Restaurant Review - Fresh Harvest Buffet at The Hard Rock in Tampa

Last week was my birthday and I decided I'd like to go to the Hard Rock here in Tampa for some buffet action and gambling.  I've been to the Fresh Harvest Buffet before a few years ago and was very impressed.  I was interested to see if the quality had remained the same.   I was not disappointed.

The Fresh Harvest Buffet at the Hard Rock is located through the casino (of course) and up a set of escalators.  We decided to get there around 4:30 p.m. to beat the crowds.  Seems that everyone else had the same idea.  The line was quite long and I think we waited over an hour in line.  However, I noticed that by 6:30 p.m., the line was almost down to nothing.  So, next time, we will go around 6 p.m.  Oh, and most importantly, bring your Players Club Card or get one if you don't have one.  Dinner is $22 with card and $27 without.  Lunch is $15/$20.  There are also daily specials that can be purchased for $2 to $3 at each station.

Our party of seven was shown to nice tables and our drink orders were taken almost immediately.  Our wait person, Jeff, was efficient and very friendly.  In fact, he had us laughing and made the evening quite special.   He really went above and beyond the call of duty.

We were starving, so everyone scattered in all directions.  There are seven different kitchens to choose from.  There's an Italian section with fresh brick oven pizza, an Asian section with wonderful dim sum, and crab legs, crab legs, crab legs.  Make sure you get the hot crab legs toward the back of the buffet.  There are cold ones too but the hot ones are my favorite.  These are the freshest snow crab legs I have ever had!

Also, in the middle area, there's a real fire grill which serves meat dishes to order along with the most wonderful grilled flank steak I've had in quite a while.  There's sausage and awesome homemade rosemary chips with this amazing dip.  FRIED CHICKEN!!!!  OMG...the best fried chicken ever!  Red bliss mashed potatoes, wonderful green beans...I'm sure I'm missing a whole lot of other amazing things.

The dessert area is unbelievable.  My favorite thing is their bread pudding with vanilla sauce.  This is weird because I am strictly a chocolate person.  However, this bread pudding is out of this world.  If I could make this dessert, I would weigh three times as much as I do now instead of just twice as much. 

Last time I was at the buffet, about two years ago, I called the manager over to tell him how pleased we were with the meal.  If I remember correctly, he said that nothing is cooked in the back.  Everything is prepared out front to ensure quality and freshness.

Overall, I have to say that The Fresh Harvest at the Hard Rock Casino in Tampa has truly earned their name.  Thanks Jeff for making our experience a pleasant one!

Open Daily: 11AM - 10PM
LUNCH
11AM - 4PM
$15.00 FOR PLAYERS CLUB MEMBERS
$20.00 REGULAR PRICE
DINNER
4PM - 10PM
$22.00 FOR PLAYERS CLUB MEMBERS
$27.00 REGULAR PRICE
FRIDAY SEAFOOD DINNER
4PM - 10PM
$30.00 FOR PLAYERS CLUB MEMBERS
$35.00 REGULAR PRICE
SUNDAY CHAMPAGNE BRUNCH
10AM - 10PM
$30.00 FOR PLAYERS CLUB MEMBERS
$35.00 REGULAR PRICE