Foodstuff

I guess you could call it buffet taken to a new level. The brand-new BD's Mongolian Barbecue (101 Clematis St., West Palm Beach, 561-655-1433), which has been hyped in recent weeks by its mascot Mongo Man -- a nine-foot-tall Mongolian warrior walking around West Palm Beach frightening small children --...

By Jen Karetnick

May 24, 2001

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I guess you could call it buffet taken to a new level. The brand-new BD's Mongolian Barbecue (101 Clematis St., West Palm Beach, 561-655-1433), which has been hyped in recent weeks by its mascot Mongo Man -- a nine-foot-tall Mongolian warrior walking around West Palm Beach frightening small children -- is currently offering "interactive dining." Patrons choose from a stir-fry buffet that includes an array of meat, fish, and chicken, plus vegetables, sauces, spices, and oils, then take their picks to the centerpiece of the restaurant, a seven-foot-diameter, two-ton, 600-degree grill. There the chefs stir-fry the individual concoctions with three-foot chopsticks, all the while telling bad jokes. Think Benihana gene-spliced with Stir Crazy, and you get this 7000-square-foot place -- the first theme restaurant to hit Clematis. You can probably bet your yardstick-long utensils it won't be the last.

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Jen Karetnick is an award-winning dining critic, food-travel writer, and author of the books Ice Cube Tray Recipes, Mango, and The 500 Hidden Secrets of Miami.

Contact: Jen Karetnick