ビュッフェ

びゅっふぇ
noun
buffet, all-you-can-eat
1. buffet, self-service meal
A style of dining where food is displayed and guests serve themselves. Often used for hotel breakfasts, party catering, and restaurant dining.
ビュッフェ形式(けいしき)のランチだ。
It's a buffet-style lunch.
ホテルの朝食(ちょうしょく)はビュッフェだった。
The hotel breakfast was a buffet.
このレストランはスイーツビュッフェが人気(にんき)で、週末(しゅうまつ)予約(よやく)()りにくい。
This restaurant's dessert buffet is popular, and it's hard to get a weekend reservation.

ETYMOLOGY:
From French buffet. The pronunciation follows the French original more closely than バフェ or バフェット.

VARIANTS:
バイキング is another common Japanese word for buffet-style dining, especially all-you-can-eat restaurants. バイキング is wasei-eigo originating from a 1957 Imperial Hotel promotion inspired by a Scandinavian smörgåsbord. ビュッフェ tends to sound more upscale.

COMMON COLLOCATIONS:

  • ビュッフェ形式(けいしき): buffet style
  • 朝食(ちょうしょく)ビュッフェ: breakfast buffet
  • スイーツビュッフェ: dessert buffet
  • ディナービュッフェ: dinner buffet
  • ビュッフェ(だい): buffet table