Canopy Buffet

I’ve been to the buffet twice and nothing but HORRIBLE service ! I needed some napkins (something so simple that most waiters carry) & this waitress has the nerve to tell me she couldn’t help me
& that I needed to ask my own waiter. Whatever bitch, get off your high horse.

excellent food large selection nice staff
great service great gelato clean dining room

Stopped in here twice recently. I am not that big on buffets but when they are free, I like them a lot.
This place had quite a selection of items. Salad Bar, soup, Italian, Asian, American, and a desert station.
I did not try that many items but the ones I had were good. I sampled the Prime Rib, Gaucho Steak, Mushrooms, Snow Peas, Green Beans, Ceviche, and Shrimp and Grits. Now that I wrote those, it seems like I did try a lot of items. I really enjoyed the Gaucho steak with Chimichurri and also the Shrimp and grits.
For desert I had a mini Crème Brulee and a Lemon tart. Both were good.
Service was OK as far as coffee, water, and clearing plates.
Cheers to All

So many choices. Love the dessert bar especially the gelato! Nice ambiance.

Do not go to this place. Too salty and absolutely not worth the money. Elgin casino buffet or royal buffet is so much better than this crappy place.

I hate you buffet.
It started out with just crappy customer service. We had a table that we were going to join. Met 2 other people there, they had a table of four, so two extra seats. We had to wait in a line that wasn’t moving, took 30 minutes and all because a policy that even the manager said «made no sense» We couldn’t simply pay and join our table. We had to wait.
To make it worst, I assume I got the stomach flu from this place; because after dinner and waking up at 530am I was «dying» the whole day and missed four days of work. First and hopfully the last time I have to experience being that sick.
So never again, no thank you.

My family and I dined here at about 5pm on a Thursday night.
We thought $ 27/​per person for a buffet meal was on the pricier side, but we were all pleased with the quality, tastiness and variety of the food.
If you don’t have a Rivers Casino rewards card-​get one. The rewards card will save you 15% off at the buffet.
Seafood, sushi, Chinese, carving station, vegetables, comfort foods (Mac & Cheese, mashed potatoes, etc.), pasta, pizza, Mexican, soups and a salad bar. There’s a little bit of everything. Don’t expect 10 options at each station though. Canopy offers more like 3 – 4. Foods really did taste gourmet and homemade.
My favorites were the mac & cheese and mashed potatoes. The thin crust pizza was good as well. I am also a vegetarian and also found that there were a lot of options for me.
Save room for dessert! I think our table of 6 tried about 10 different things, but they offer about 30 items including gelato. My personal favorite desserts were the Oreo cookie bar and the carrot cake. Wow! You can watch the pastry chefs in the kitchen making the desserts, too.
Wednesday night is all-​you-​can-​eat crab night from 5 – 11. The place is slammed for the better part of the evening for this event.
Our waiter was very friendly and kept our drinks filled and plates cleared away. The waiter also brings your bread to the table (I highly recommend the focaccia-​like bread) if you asked for it at the cashier station.
Not sure if the food choices rotate throughout the week or if it’s always the same. We will be back to find out. If you’re looking to save s little bit, go for brunch or lunch and get that rewards card!

By far the closest thing to a vegas buffet.
Chef Dinesh has done some amazing things with the food and keeps me wanting to come back just so I can see what his next menu is.

Flavorless and dry food. I was completely disappointed with the Canopy Buffet. I have always heard that Casino buffets were top notch, but this wasn’t even Old Country Buffet quality at double the price. OCB has better meat quality IMO.
Some of the good things from the hot buffet were the mashed potatoes (they were the chunky kind with the skin still on), the chicken fried rice was good as was the mac n cheese and pastas. Weird but the cheap sides like rice were good, but the meat items like chicken, ribs, and sirloin were poor. I guess they try to fill people up with cheap starches, so they’ll eat less expensive items. The pizza was soggy, upon picking up a slice the crust collapsed and the toppings slid off. If you want a good laugh check out their deep dish pizza :).
From the pictures, I at least thought that the desserts would be good, but I was wrong. The cream puff was very good, I mean really good, I had 4. The wedding cookies, pecan pie bars, and carrot cake were good too, but the other desserts were just dry and had a stale like quality. Old Country Buffet has better «cheesecake» than the Canopy. Both serve Jello style cheesecake, not really cheesecake.
The service was horrible, I actually had to find my server and ask if I could refill my soda. Then I had to find him and ask if I could have some napkins after asking him 15 minutes earlier. Then I had to track him down for a spoon. Each time he looked bothered. Just put napkins and silverware out and no one will ask you for it! Same thing with the soda! I don’t need you to give me a napkin, I manage just fine at McDonald’s believe it or not. I’m sure he feels that he deserves $ 15 an hour for his «skills.»
The only time the server became attentive was shortly after 4pm. I got there around 3:15pm to get lunch hour prices. Once 4pm hits and dinner stuff comes out, I guess they try to get rid of people who got there earlier. The server then started to ask me if everything was alright every 2 minutes and hung around my table! Clearly the goal was to make me uncomfortable. I would understand if they place was packed, but it was empty since it was a Monday. I guess its emptiness should have told me that it wasn’t that good.
Overall, BOO!

It is disappointing when a place charges $ 22 for brunch and uses the very cheapest ingredients. The maple syrup has 5% maple. First ingredient is corn syrup and the second is the deadly high fructose corn syrup. Why? Why not serve delicious, high quality food? Aren’t they doing well enough on the gamblers to run a first class restaurant? They just Must use the cheapest ingredients to make additional profit in the restaurant too?
Skip this place. Even free it’s bad for you.

it’s a definite Meh.
we went for crab-​grab night.
so two people @ $ 40/​ea plus a btl of wine @ $ 40 and it was $ 120.
we left a $ 15 tip — which since all they do is bring you a drink and then bus your table, i think is ample. Our ‘waiter’ actually cleared our still full glasses of wine and partial bottle of wine off the table when we were up at the buffet. thankfully i caught him before he could get away. other than that mishap (which is pretty major IMO), he was attentive and friendly, and we did not make a big deal of his mistake at all. we were there to have a good time after-​all, and making a stink is never a good time.
the crab was mostly good, some of the legs were over-​cooked into crumbling dust of crab inside the shells. there was a problem getting drawn butter, they didn’t seem to know what it was, and then there was a long delay before it was provided.
the only meat at the carving station was prime rib — which was prepared fine. it’s not my favorite meat, but i did have some, and it was enjoyable.
over-​all there seemed to be a shortage of plates all night long. we sometimes had to wait for plates to come out from the back, and when they did, they were scalding hot, but we had to deal with the minor hand burns if we were to get a plate at all.
over-​all, even though there is ‘a lot’ of food up there, i didn’t find the selection particularly interesting or appealing.
the dessert station is large, but again, there’s nothing special on it. the sorbets and gelatos were good, but those are good at the grocery store.
the crème brûlée was not custard like at all, but more pudding like, and they were tiny tiny portions, which was fine, because i didn’t even want to finish one of them.
also tried rice pudding — one of the worst i’ve ever had.
and bread pudding — which seemed to have not quite set up yet. it was tasty — but far from the best — not even as good as what i make, and i’m no baker!
i would definitely not go back — at least on crab night.
i might try for a saturday lunch for $ 20 or something.
also, i noticed the ticket they attach to your receipt indicates a max time allowed of 90 minutes — which i think is a really short time frame. i’m not trying to rush through a meal and scarf stuff down as fast as possible. Generlaly speaking, when we go out to eat, we expect to be at a restaurant for 2 – 3 hours if we are planning to have a nice time. the place was not full, so they were not enforcing any time limits, and i think we were there for just about 2 hours with very little lingering.
bathrooms are not in restaurant, you have to leave and walk through part of casino to get to them. they aren’t far, but just FYI.
one VERY positive aspect, i was happy that there were NO televisions in there.
also, they had two living walls of pothos vines that were quite attractive.

Exceptional service! All you can eat, and no dirty looks! Buffet style with table service. Great variety, but a bit lacking, which is why I didn’t give it the full 5 stars. Get there early on Wednesdays for crab grab because it reaches capacity!

Definitely better than your run of the mill Chinese/​old country buffet. Better quality, much better ingredients. However, something seemed to be missing at a $ 20 lunch buffet. It was poor value. Maybe I caught it on a menu day that didn’t suite my fancy but I walked away disappointed. The soup (s) and salad were fabulous. Sushi OK. Chicken not so good. Top sirloin had two big fat veins that made it feel like, Meh, just going to put anything out there today and have someone carve it and somehow that’ll make it better than it is. It would take a significant reason for me to give this buffet a march through the corrals again. Not worth going out of your way.

Went on Father’s Day and had a nice meal. The quality and variety of the food was more than I expected. For $ 29.00 pp it was so worth it. Prime rib was well seasoned and tender. Some Asian specialties were good too. The list goes on however you would have to go to determine whats good. Customer service at the door was good as they seated us. However it took a minute or two for refills on drinks, maybe they need to hire more help. I tried desserts and have to admit they were so delicious. Chocolate gelatto was suburb, mango gelatto was decent. Also cream tart was oh so yummy.
Can’t wait to go back to try Crab Grab.

This place was in a casino just down the street from my hotel. After flying all day I was ready to grub and a buffet sounded just about right. Got seated right away and the service was spot on. The food on the other hand left a little to be desired. The prime rib was very good but everything else was fairly bland and generic. I wan’t expecting gourmet food at a buffet but I was expecting some flavor. Not a bad place if your starving but don’t expect to be wowed.

It’s a buffet but there are some stand outs here. Prime rib. Juicy and you can ask for the cut you want. If you go on Wednesday night, it’s crab grab night! Don’t overdo it or you might have delusions of opening up a Krabby Party. Weird I know.
Had your fill? Ask for some green apple gelato. Soft, just sweet taste. The mango sorbet was a delight. It actually tasted like it had passion fruit in It, which was a pleasant surprise. Cleanse that palette people!

It’s worth it because of the desserts — that’s really all. Just meh. Go if you get a comp or coupon but don’t go out of your way.
A couple tips to management: The meat slicer cuts the «prime rib» the wrong way & patrons need drink refills. I don’t know why buffets have people hustle drinks all the sudden — give me access to the soda fountain so I can actually enjoy my meal.

This will be my second review for Canopy. Since the selection of food is forever changing, I felt my review needed an update.
THE AVERAGE SELECTION OVERVIEW–
Salad Bar — Small selection of cold salads (coleslaw, broccoli salad, pasta salad, etc), greek salad (cubes of feta cheese, olives, tomatoes and cucumbers), Spring mix with goat cheese, grapes, walnuts tossed in a vinegarette, and then there’s plain spring mix or romaine and a selection of toppings to make your own salad.
Soups — There’s usually 2 – 3 soups. Can’t comment, as I’ve never tried them.
Pizza — There’s usually three different kinds of pizzas — cheese, maybe pepperoni or sausage, veggie, etc. Crust is super-​duper thin. There are sometimes calzones, flatbread, cheesy bread or garlic bread.
Mexican and Italian — There’s a small section (4 items I believe) of mexican food which would consist of chicken to build your own burrito (warm tortillas, shredded cheese, tomatoes and sour cream). The other mexican selections are forever changing. Sometimes quesadillas, chorizo, mexican corn, mexican casserole or rice. Next to the Mexican is a small selection (another 4 items) of Italian which all consist of different pastas, gnocchi, ravioli, etc.
Meat — 100% of the time there is prime rib. It’s usually cooked to medium, but if you like it well, you can ask for it to be put on the grill (don’t be shy, it’s no problem). It tastes better on the grill in my honest opinion. There’s not much flavor in the prime rib (sadly) and the grill gives it a little BBQ flavor. Sometimes there is lamb loin, pork or turkey. If there is pork, I’ll always get it. It’s usually very good. There is also usually t-​bone lamb chops, rotisserie chicken, BBQ ribs and sometimes sausages or steaks.
Fresh (or not so fresh) Dinner Rolls will be in a large basket next to the meat.
Vegetables — The selection always changes, but there is almost always mushrooms, snowpeas and some kind of potatoes (non mashed). Lately there has been vegetable medley (zucchini, onions, mushrooms, etc) and asparagus. Sometimes carrots and green beans.
American & Misc. Food (or what I like to call the CARB station) — Fried chicken, meatballs, lasagna, mac & cheese, some sort of casserole, pastas, etc.
Asian Food — Forever changing, but usually have a variety of chicken, beef and pork dishes. Also have fried rice and a noodle dish. (No steamed rice)
Seafood — Two kinds of sushi — usually california rolls and another one — usually tuna. Salmon, Seafood salad (mix of shrimp and squid), smoked salmon or grilled salmon, cold shrimp (accompanied by cocktail sauce and lemon wedges) and there is usually also a fried fish.
Dessert — Gelato (5 flavors I believe. sometimes they add new flavors), red velvet cake, carrot cake, crème brule, crème puffs, baklava, mousse cups, tiramisu, chocolate bombs, flourless chocolate cake, almond cake, raspberry tarte, coconut cake, cheesecake, etc. Also a selection of fresh fruit and hot, panned desserts such as bread pudding, cherry almond cake and chocolate cake w/​a chocolate sauce. There are also sugar free options, which is limited. Usually chocolate brownies or cake, which I’d steer clear from (have upset my stomach every time), lemon pie (yuck), chocolate pie or cheesecake.
There’s a bar, so if you’d like to drink alcohol with your food, you may do so. You can also ask for a coffee, and if you’d like, you can even ask for a to-​go cup.
Wednesdays are crab grab. Get there by 5:30 — 5:45 PM and you should be fine. The lines will form and it will be hard to find parking after 6. Keep in mind, on wednesday the price is higher, and where the buffet usually has meat (steaks, ribs, etc) and vegetables, there will only be crab. If you’re not eating crab, then Wednesday at dinnertime isn’t a good time for you to go.
Hope this was helpful!

What I would like to do is rate 3.5 for the food and –0 for service.
Experience on a Saturday afternoon for lunch $ 19.
Food: good quality, clean, lot of variety.
Variety of food I saw:
salad, many types of rolls, bread (Tuscan, 3 pepper, whole weat) Steak, chicken, lots of seafood, ribs, sushi, pizza, soups, pastas pork chops, fajitas, oriental bar with about 6 entrees and eggrolls, many many desserts.
My dining companions were very happy with their steak, chicken, bread pudding, crème brûlée, mac and cheese and pesto pasta.
My experience: MASHED POTATOES… wonderfully delicious and if you have read my other reviews, you know I loves me potatoes. Other items I tasted that I enjoyed, wonderfully seasoned fresh button mushrooms, pork chop, mac n cheese. Honestly the highlight of my meal was those potatoes… yum yum gimme some.
Posted a few pics of the desserts we sampled. Tirimisu, cream puff, and chocolate bomb.
What I did not care for: ribs, pad thai.
The three stars is because the service was atrocious and I cannot say it was because there werent enough servers. There was 3 in my party and I mean really bad like not refilling drinks, leaving plates on the table and 3 empty glasses. And the worst part was he would literally walk by and LOOK at the table, and walk past! We had to ask for refills, water. One slight, I’d let it pass but it happened repeatedly.
Odd aside: very freaky carpet (some one near our table seemed to take note of it as well) I am assuming chosen so that stains dont show as much, but the chaos of the design and color pallette makes look as if there IS food on the floor. Post one pic of carpet

Canopy Buffet at Rivers Casino is about as good as it gets when it comes to casino buffets. I won’t hide that I am a fan of Rivers Casino much more so than any of the Elgin or Indiana casinos. Add in a tasty buffet with excellent service like the Canopy Buffet and I’m all in.
I’ve heard that the wait to get in can be up to an hour on weekends or on crab night but when I went on a Monday night, my friend and I had no wait. Not only did we have no wait but they dining room was not packed full of people which was nice. The lady at the front when we paid and our waiter were both super friendly which was surprising. Our waiter was very attentive always replacing our drinks before they got to low and asking if he could get us anything.
The food at Canopy is not amazing but there are some good items and I would say it’s slightly above average for a buffet. It’s super expensive though at $ 26 so make it worth it when you go!
They have some sushi rolls but I didn’t find them to be great and actually a bit strange — one with a weird green flaking on the outside, picture posted. The orange chicken was tasty and I recommend that. They offer pad thai in the buffet which is an extremely different buffet offering. Eggrolls, salmon, buttered carrots were all good. I really enjoyed their mac & cheese with bacon in it, nomnomnomz.
The buffet has a great selection of desserts and some I found to be quite creative considering they are at a buffet. The baked apple with cinnamon sticks looked cool & tasty pretty good (picture posted). I loved the chocolate mousse and the cookies were decent.
Overall, if you’re going to pay $ 26 for the buffet at night, eat your heart out to make it worth it! I would probably opt for other dining choices in the casino that are a bit cheaper.
Pro-​tip: Sign up for a player’s card and accrue 10 points for a free buffet. It’s totally worth it!