Of course, I wouldn't be writing this review if I hadn't stumbled upon it, but I must warn everyone: There are at least a couple here in State College that I wouldn't throw a stone at. But for the sake of classy reviewing, I will refrain from mentioning these sub-standard restaurants and guide all the local Chinese food lovers to the one Asian buffet here that gets my allegiance now -- and that is the College Buffet, 1627-1631 N. Atherton St.

Located next to Wal-Mart within the North Atherton Place shopping center, it seems quite plain from the outside and can be easily missed -- but only on your first trip there.

When you first enter College Buffet, one can only see that the place exudes friendliness. Upon my arrival, after I was greeted and taken to a table on the far side of the room, I scoped out the premises. I found four large buffet tables, and a giant glass chandelier overlooking it all. It manages to give the entire dining room a warm, happy feel -- essential for consuming a wide variety of foods without leaving the restaurant with a sour feeling in your stomach. Many Chinese buffet restaurants may be tasty, but come with a hefty price--no matter what time of day. College Buffet manages to not give in to that temptation, at least during the lunch buffet. The lunch buffet price is $5.99 per person from 11 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. Monday through Saturday -- plenty of time for you and your friends to inhale as much food as possible before waddling back to your car and napping for the rest of the day.

Dinner is a bit pricier at $8.25 to $9.25 per person, but hey -- if you want those delectable crab legs, a few bucks more will get you all you can eat.

So the service and atmosphere are great, the price is nice, but how's the food?

Let me just say that with four huge tables to choose from, you won't be able to eat all of your favorites in one sitting. My personal favorites include the baked crab meat with cheese, the peanut chicken, and I can now say I enjoy sushi after reluctantly trying some. The coconut shrimp was also good, a bit too sweet for my liking, but not bad.

The only let down that I sampled at College Buffet was the General Tso's chicken, which is a shame because it's usually one of my favorites. College Buffet makes up for it, though, along every other step of the way.

Before my tasty journey came to a close, I opened my fortune cookie to read: "You'll receive some high prize or reward." Given the great, if not extremely full feeling I had at the moment, I'd say that College Buffet had indeed rewarded me quite nicely.