La Nacional Mexican Buffet

Good value. Buffet probably would have been excellent, but it had obviously been sitting, which was a shame because it was 6pm, so one would think there would be good turnover.
Still tasty and angood valie, just not five star.

Great food, especially for a buffet. If you’re hungry and want some really good, authentic Mexican food, it’s there.

Not good, cold or dried out buffet items. Much better options for hot properly prepared meal elsewhere in town. We did arrive late so maybe that explains the dried out offerings and the bum’s rush to get us out. Would not go again. Don’t understand all of the rave reviews for this place

We’re Foodies, so we needed something different. We had been before, when they first opened, loved it, daughter did not remember as she was rather young at the time. I reminded her of the small size of the restaurant, but BIG flavour of their food. I had never seen, nor been to a buffet like this on our first dinning. Do not let the restaurant size fool you. Or the buffet put you off. La Nacional Mexican Buffet comes across as family friendly with sit down quality. The décor is bright and cheery. Booths comfy. Very clean. Wait Staff, friendly and ALWAYS smiling. We had tea. Very good, not too sweet. Tasted brewed, which we prefer. LARGE selection on the buffet, as other reviews here stated. Guacamole, SO fresh, tasty. Cheese, sour cream, tomatoes, lettuce, all FRESH, bold in colour. Tortillas warm, soft. We tried a little of everything. SO GOOD. Nothing too spicy. Pain is not a flavour. I think people assume all Mexican cooking must induce heartburn. Which is not the case, period. There was only one item I did not recognize, did not ask what it was. My daughter said it was an egg roll, lol. It was wonderful. Empanada, but rolled? Try it. Its very good. We did not try the soup (?). It must have been good as everyone else was enjoying it. Tatquitos, beef/​chicken crunchy goodness. Sadly could not find the Queso that we read was excellent. Braised Chicken with Oaxacan Chocolate Mole Sauce (?), excellent. (Okay, okay, okay, getting a little Foodie here. That’s what it tasted like. GOOD!!!) Potatoes, crispy outside, tender inside. Spanish Rice, should have gotten more. Wanted to try the Jalapenos, decided I’d best pass. But love them. So, yes, there was something too spicy, lol. Though they looked good. The sweet tortillas chips were a nice treat. Sopaipilla would have been nice too ;-) We even took take out, so we could enjoy it for dinner. Reheats well. Dine in is always best. Great for lunch, brunch, dinner. Family, date, work crowd, groups, Office Parties, Birthdays. Everyone seemed pleased with the selections and left, like us, smiling and full. If you leave hungry, as stated in another review… you’re doing it WRONG. Loved the music, just not the Hard Rock Café level. But, that’s just us. It was good music too. That is what we meant by very loud. Hipster, because it is a cool place to eat. They do not have a bar. They do not need it. Smoke free (YES!) Stop by their store. You’ll be equally pleased. We were. Go. Eat. Shop. Enjoy.

Authentic & delicious. In college, I used to go home with a friend to Calexico. His mom made the best Mexican home cooked meals I’ve had, and this place is as close to that as I’ve had.

This is a very good Mexican buffet. The food is hot, well cooked, has great flavor and the price is right. The staff is friendly and the service is wonderful. A great dinner if you want a buffet from south of the border. Remember don’t judge a book by the cover. The place is next to a Mexican grocery and what some have called a hole in the wall but like a great book the beauty is on the inside. Like this place and you should try. Found it by using Unilocal love this app.

Our family visited this restaurant yesterday, and we agreed that this is the best Mexican buffet we ever had. The foods are like what would come out of mom’s kitchen. Name what you want, and you’ll find it in the buffet. Carnitas stew is basically melted in your mouth tender. The place is nice and clean, waitresses are very attentive. I have nothing bad to say about this place. Yum :)

This place is unbelievable! Who new something like this even existed? Normally, when you think buffet, you think the food you want to taste and enjoy without the soul or realm was to it. This was not that! Everything was cooked perfectly despite being under the hot lamps and in boiling water. The fajita meat was amazingly flavored and the refried beans were surprisingly good. It’s a restaurant connected to a grocery store, so if you’re in the mood for some Spanish soda or paella mix, head next door after the meal. Did I mention my husband and I had dinner for $ 16.00?!? I mean that’s insane!

At first when you think of a Mexican buffet, you think of dried tortillas, runny beans, and nothing from scratch. This restaurant is the complete opposite. It 8s attached to a small store and I think I was the only white person in the, but the food was amazing. I had lived in southern California my whole life and this was delicious. I would recommend this resturant.

In town for business and came across this little gem. Second day in a row eating here and can’t get enough of this place. Awesome food and service. The prices are ridiculously low for a buffet. The food is constantly coming out and is always freak. So many items to choose from. Highly recommend this place for lunch or dinner. You CANNOT go wrong and if you don’t leave stuffed, you’re doing something wrong.

The woman who ran the register and waited tables was really nice and hospitable. It was a buffet but sit down quality food. They brought fresh quesadillas to the table when they were ready. They were wonderful. They had a few choices in salsa, soups, and a nice bar of toppings. They had fresh hard and soft shells and wonderful fajitas, chicken, and burritos. The rice and beans and guacamole were all awesome. They even had all you could eat cheese dip. I could barely walk out of there. No margaritas though.

My old hometown favorite was a place called El Palenque in Wahiawa, HI. It was run by a family transplanted to Hawaii from Oaxaca, Mexico. When we moved here to Columbus, finding good home cooked realistic Mexican food was beginning to look hopeless until we found La Nacional. While the buffet aspect is different, the food is awesome and the closest thing I think we are going to find. It blows all the other «Taco Bell-​like» Mexican resturaunts around Columbus out of the water. Nice atmosphere if you like small family owned, hole in the wall type places, like I do. Friendly service and prices were decent. The food was hot and fresh, the meat tasty and juicy, the sweet potato was perfectly spiced. Wife and I will definitely be back again.

4 Stars only because this establishment does not serve alcohol. The cleanliness, service and the food make up for it. Everything is buffet style and remains fresh due to the chef constantly ensuring the buffet is fully stocked. The wait staff does a great job keeping the buffet and tables clean and they do not allow plates to stack up on the tables. Great place to bring your family.

It’s a small restaurant, and there’s a small store next to it where you can buy Hispanic goods. The food is very tasty. I like the dice-​cut meat which they season and cover in delicious red salsa. I also like their quesadillas and the rice. They have agua de horchata, which is a drink a lot of Hispanic people like to order, although it’s also becoming very popular among US nationals. The servers are very attentive and do a good job keeping the place clean.
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Es un restaurante pequeño y al lado hay una tiendita donde se pueden comprar productos hispanos. La comida es muy sabrosa. Me gusta la carne cortada en cuadraditos que sazonan y bañan con una deliciosa salsa roja. También me gustan las quesadillas y el arroz. Disponen de agua de horchata, una bebida que muchos hispanos acostumbran a pedir, aunque también se está volviendo popular entre los estadounidenses. Las meseras son muy atentas y hacen un buen trabajo manteniendo limpio el lugar.

Your’e probably thinking «OMG, a buffet!» and honestly, that was my first thought, too. I was new to the area and desperately missed the amazing Mexican food that I was used to. A co-​worker recommended this place so we gave it a try.
Wow. Everything we had was fabulous. I actually loved the buffet concept because it gave the opportunity to try a little bit of whatever you liked. And the food was fresh and authentic!
This place filled up very quickly– lots of locals, professionals, etc. The employees were constantly replenishing the line and were extremely accommodating. They have the usual suspects: burritos, quesadillas, tacos, cheese dip. However, there are some items (like tamales and chilaquiles) that are unique. Also– there is a salsa bar with a variety of fresh salsa to choose from
Did I mention the price? I think both of us ate there for $ 16 (!!!)
It was exceptional. Go give this place a try.

Definitely lived up to their hype. They fiod was plentiful fresh and delicious. A total surprise. There is a large variety and there were a lot of Mexican nationals here. That is a good indication the food is authentic. I was excited that the selection was not standard Mexican fare. Some interesting national dishes.

Delicious. I keep coming back for more so I am updating my original review. I love that they actually have salsa that is spicy instead of the very mild ones other restaurants serve.

Hands down greatest place to eat Mexican in town. Refillable horchata gets me every dang time. The soup, tamales, and quesadillas are the best. If you don’t see it out there, they’ll make it fresh for you. The servers are the best. Please tip them well. They really work hard.

La Nacional is a sit-​down quality meal with the selection of a buffet. The fact that they put such good food on a buffet boggles my mind. La Nacional does not skimp on quality to serve buffet-​style.
Everything on the buffet is amazing, but the guacamole is the standout; yeah, this place has a buffet with unlimited guacamole. You might miss it it you didn’t know it’s there, but it is to die for. Everything from the main dishes to the salsas are homemade with care. The staff are very friendly and helpful. If there’s anything you want that’s not on the bar they will gladly get it for you.
La Nacional is a Columbus treasure and I highly recommend it to residents and visitors alike.

This place definantly needs a make over. But the food was great. And you can’t beat a Mexican buffet! You don’t see those around often. The food is made fresh as soon as it’s gone out of the buffet or if you are eating a dish and you feel it’s no longer fresh last them know and they will make a new dish. Although this is a buffet you can order also straight from their menu all you have to do is ask. They have two different buffets for
Lunch and dinner so you need to check them out.