Everyone loves a good smorgasbord. Whether it's time for a Sunday brunch or just the standard spread at your local lunch buffet, there's nothing quite like walking into a restaurant and seeing food, glorious food, as far as the eye can see. But if you want to truly get the most value out of your next trip to the buffet, here are a few tricks to keep in mind.

Start With The Good Stuff

Typically at a buffet, most diners start with salad and soup or other light items and then move on to the main courses. But that's exactly what the buffet wants you to do. If you get filled up on breadsticks and appetizers, you won't have as much room left for the much more pricey steak or seafood. So next time you go to a buffet, go in reverse: get the main course first and then worry about the side dishes later.

Time It Just Right

Some lunch buffets turn into a dinner buffet as soon as 3 or 4 p.m. If you plan ahead, you can get to the buffet with 30 minutes left to go on the lunch menu, just enough time to slowly eat your first plate. Then, you can go back up when some of the dinner dishes are put out, while still being charged the lunch price. Just don't go hog wild on the sirloin or you might be asked to pay the higher price.

A Big Kid Deserves a Big Bowl

Just about every lunch or dinner buffet on the face of the planet offers soft serve ice cream for dessert, provided you actually have some room left of course. But did you ever notice the size of the ice cream bowls that are placed in the dessert area? Yeah, they're not so big, right? It would probably take you more than one trip with such a small bowl to really get your money's worth. Luckily, there's no rule that you need to use those specific bowls for ice cream. Instead, head over to the salad bar and get a soup bowl instead. You'll have enough room in there to really pour on the toppings if you so desire.

Eating at a buffet can be a great deal of fun but it can be even more entertaining if you know you are really getting your money's worth out of the trip. Whether you plan your arrival to take advantage of a dinner buffet at lunchtime prices or just go ahead and start with the high price items first, you'll soon be on your way to being a full-time buffet expert. And as long as you bring your relatives and friends with you, chances are the restaurant isn't going to mind. For more information, contact companies like Crico's Pizza & Subs.