HongXin Oriental Buffet

Volcanic King Prawn Eruption of Food poisoning, Very expensive £8 worth. 💔😭 I was looking forward to this treat to myself, the reviews were right, Hongxin Buffet has really gone downhill in quality since I last visited with my family in the Fall of 2017 (Had all-you-can eat buffet & they had halal options e.g. the chicken, now there are no longer halal meat options available). On Fri 29th May 2025, I waited outside the restaurant till opened & till it was the takeaway time. I went to ask if the £5 buffet voucher could be used on a takeaway box, it couldn't, & I certainly wasn't going to pay £18.50 for all you-can-eat buffet in our current cost of living climate, I felt a bit duped driving a long way for a potential £5 off. It was at this point that I should have followed my gut instinct & just left but considering, I had waited 30 mins for opening time & meticulously gone through the menu online for possible options, I regrettably decided to still get a takeway box (not value for money ~10 cm x 5 cm). Oh yeah, apart from ~3 dishes (e.g steamed rice), practically everything had Gluten in it. And I felt duped coz some of the dishes on the online menu (e.g. the sesame prawn toast that I was craving, the smoked shredded chicken, coconut fried rice etc), were not available in the restaurant, they had chicken prawn toast instead. Got a takeaway box which was £8 & glad I could mix & match (excluded sushi & pizza & dessert options), the food looked fresh (I naively thought I'd be safe going nearer opening time), I had mainly all the Prawn options including the Volcanic king prawns, squid, some salt & pepper potatoes, 3 mini hash brown pieces, some egg-fried rice & Indonesian rice, 1 veggie spring roll, 1 prawn cracker & part of a poppadoms looked fresh and tasted delicious (the chilli levels have been 'Englishified' e.g. the volcanic dish was not as spicy as the name implied. I added chilli oil as a garnish. Anyway, looks were deceiving, I ate the food straightaway in my car onsite, & the only meal I had, hours later that evening was a banana & apple. Around 14 hours or so later, I had food poisoning, luckily I took acidophilus capsules & rested so it resolved quickly; I can't pinpoint which Hongxin dish it was, maybe the array of prawns or the open bowl of chilli oil perhaps. Either way, they need to investigate the source of the issue. Anyway, I won't be back unless the food hygiene situation improves, & if there are more gluten-free, dairy-free &/or halal options without cross-contamination issues. Well done on labelling the allergens for each dish, very helpful. I have fond memories of this place so I do hope things do improve. It's self-service. Their hospitality was good with the Host being the most friendly & welcoming in greeting me & saying goodbye. The other staff (some looked a bit tired) answered my questions & thank you for not following me like a hawk like they do in some Asian establishments. I got cutlery & a plastic bag to go which I was glad about. I'm also glad that there wasn't loud music blaring, it was a subdued and calm atmosphere in the restaurant.