12 Illinois Buffets Where Dessert Is The Real Competition
Picture this: you’ve loaded up your plate with fried chicken, mac and cheese, and maybe some mystery casserole from the buffet line. But then you spot the dessert station glowing like a sugary beacon of hope across the dining room.
Suddenly, everything changes. Illinois knows how to do buffets right, and the dessert spreads at these spots are legendary enough to make you skip straight past the entrees.
Get ready to discover where the real magic happens (hint: it’s always near the soft-serve machine).
1. Yoder’s Kitchen – Arthur
Amish country doesn’t mess around when it comes to sweets, and Yoder’s Kitchen proves it with every slice of homemade pie. Located at 1195 E Columbia St in Arthur, this beloved buffet serves up traditional comfort food that’ll make your grandma jealous.
But save room, because the dessert table is where legends are born.
Their pie selection rotates daily, featuring classics like Dutch apple, cherry crumb, and peanut butter cream that could make grown adults weep with joy. Fresh-baked cookies and cinnamon rolls the size of your head sit alongside soft-serve ice cream stations.
Everything tastes like it came straight from someone’s farmhouse kitchen—because it basically did.
The Amish community surrounding Arthur has perfected the art of simple, soul-satisfying desserts without fancy techniques or exotic ingredients. Just butter, sugar, love, and probably some secret ingredient they’ll never reveal.
Families drive hours just to experience the dessert spread, often planning their entire meal strategy around saving maximum stomach space for sweets.
2. Red Apple Buffet – Chicago
Tucked away at 6474 N Milwaukee Ave, Red Apple Buffet brings Polish and Eastern European flavors to Chicago’s buffet scene with serious dessert game. While the pierogi and kielbasa deserve respect, the pastry section commands attention like a soprano hitting the high note.
You’ll find yourself in a sweet-toothed wonderland faster than you can say “pączki.”
Traditional Polish pastries share space with American favorites, creating a dessert United Nations that somehow works perfectly. Cream-filled doughnuts, fruit-topped cheesecakes, and delicate layered cakes compete for your affection.
The apple strudel alone justifies the trip, flaky and cinnamon-scented enough to haunt your dreams.
Weekend crowds often pack this place for expanded dessert selections, which can include rotating and seasonal specialties throughout the year. Chocolate babka makes occasional appearances, alongside mysterious European treats that look too pretty to eat.
But eat them you will, because willpower evaporates when confronted with this much homemade goodness in one convenient location.
3. Royal Buffet – Hoffman Estates
Royal Buffet at 31 Golf Center in Hoffman Estates takes the dessert competition seriously, offering an impressive array that rivals dedicated bakeries. Asian-inspired sweets mingle with Western classics in a sugary fusion that somehow makes perfect sense.
Your biggest challenge won’t be choosing what to eat—it’ll be figuring out how to fit it all on one plate.
Mochi ice cream balls sit next to chocolate fountains, while fruit tarts share real estate with sesame balls and egg custard tarts. The soft-serve station features multiple flavors with enough topping options to build your own Dairy Queen knockoff.
Fresh fruit provides the illusion of healthy choices, though let’s be honest about why you’re really here.
Kids go absolutely bonkers for the candy station, which features gummy bears, chocolate-covered treats, and other cavity-inducing delights. Adults pretend to supervise while sneaking their own handfuls of Swedish Fish.
The dessert section takes up a notably large portion of the buffet area, sending a clear message about priorities.
4. Asia Buffet & Grill – Chicago
South side Chicago knows good food, and Asia Buffet & Grill at 8059 S Cicero Ave delivers on the sweet front with unexpected excellence. While the Mongolian grill gets attention, smart diners know the endgame involves the dessert island strategically positioned near the exit.
It’s almost like they’re daring you to leave without sampling everything.
Traditional Asian desserts like almond cookies and fortune cookies share space with Americanized favorites including bread pudding and soft-serve sundae bars. Fried dough-style pastries and sugar-dusted treats appear regularly throughout service.
Coconut macaroons are sometimes available, adding tropical vibes to the mix, transporting you somewhere beachy despite being landlocked in Illinois.
The fruit selection actually deserves mention, featuring fresh pineapple, mandarin oranges, and melon carved into fancy shapes. But nobody’s writing home about the fruit—they’re raving about the cream puffs and chocolate-forward desserts when offered.
Regulars note that dessert variety can expand during busier weekend evenings.
5. Royal International Buffet – Decatur
Central Illinois gets its buffet fix at Royal International Buffet, located at 2036 S Mount Zion Rd in Decatur, where the dessert spread could double as a wedding reception. Multiple cake varieties stand at attention like sugary soldiers, each one more tempting than the last.
Chocolate, vanilla, red velvet, and seasonal flavors rotate regularly, ensuring repeat visitors never experience dessert déjà vu.
Pie lovers rejoice at the selection that rivals actual pie shops, featuring fruit-filled, cream-based, and chocolate variations that cover all the essential food groups. A dedicated cookie station offers everything from chocolate chip to snickerdoodles, plus those weird pink frosted circus cookies everyone secretly loves.
The brownie tray rarely stays full for long, especially during peak dining hours
Pudding cups provide individual portion control for people with more willpower than sense, while the soft-serve machine tempts everyone else into building towering creations. Toppings include crushed Oreos, gummy worms, sprinkles, and hot fudge.
Decatur residents consider this buffet a point of local pride.
6. Grand Buffet – McHenry
McHenry’s Grand Buffet at 4400 W Elm St lives up to its name with a dessert section that occupies serious square footage. Walking into the dessert zone feels like entering Willy Wonka’s factory, minus the Oompa Loompas and safety violations.
Every sugar craving you’ve ever experienced can find satisfaction here, probably within arm’s reach of each other.
Asian-style desserts like sesame balls and sweet rice cakes offer adventurous options for curious palates, while traditional American favorites provide comfort for the less daring. Cheesecake varieties include New York-style, strawberry-topped, and chocolate swirl versions that could convert cheesecake skeptics.
Fresh-baked items rotate throughout the day, meaning your 6 PM visit yields different treasures than your noon lunch rush.
The chocolate fountain runs continuously, surrounded by strawberries, marshmallows, pretzels, and Rice Krispies treats waiting for their cocoa bath. Kids treat it like a chocolate waterfall amusement park, while adults pretend they’re only there to supervise.
Weekend crowds often coincide with expanded dessert offerings, which may include specialty items depending on availability.
7. Shabu-Yo (All-You-Can-Eat Japanese Hot Pot) – Schaumburg
Japanese hot pot might not scream “dessert destination,” but Shabu-Yo at 1180 Plaza Dr in Schaumburg sneaks in sweet surprises that complement the savory experience perfectly. After cooking your own meats and vegetables in bubbling broth, the dessert selection provides a refreshing cool-down that’s almost medicinal.
Almost, because ice cream has never actually cured anything except sadness.
Mochi ice cream dominates the freezer section, offering flavors like green tea, mango, strawberry, and chocolate in those adorable little packages. Dessert offerings here are more limited than traditional buffets but still satisfying.
Sesame balls and red bean pastries may be available depending on the day, while fruit cups with lychee and mandarin oranges add freshness.
The soft-serve machine dispenses green tea and vanilla flavors that you can swirl into yin-yang perfection. Toppings include mochi bits, chocolate chips, and fruit sauces that turn simple ice cream into Instagram-worthy creations.
Regulars know to pace themselves during the hot pot portion, saving precious stomach real estate for the sweet finale that rounds out the experience.
8. Nellie’s Puerto Rican Brunch Buffet (weekends) – Chicago
Weekend brunch at Nellie’s, located at 2458 W Division St in Chicago, transforms into a Puerto Rican celebration where desserts hold their own against incredible savory dishes. Traditional flan takes center stage with its caramel-topped glory, wobbling temptingly on serving trays.
This isn’t your abuela’s flan—okay, it totally is, which makes it absolutely perfect.
Tres leches cake soaks up sweetened milk like a delicious sponge, creating that perfect moist texture that makes regular cake seem dry and boring. Guava pastries filled with sweet cheese provide tropical vibes even during Chicago’s brutal winters.
Fresh fruit platters featuring papaya, mango, and pineapple offer vitamin C alongside your sugar rush, which totally counts as balanced nutrition.
Coconut-based desserts appear throughout the spread, including tembleque—a coconut pudding that jiggles hypnotically and tastes like Caribbean vacation dreams. Rice pudding spiced with cinnamon provides comfort food vibes, while mini empanadas filled with sweet pumpkin or guava surprise unsuspecting diners.
These desserts are offered as part of the weekend brunch buffet. Arrive early because locals know what’s up.
9. TAO Asian Bistro Endless Sunday Brunch (includes dessert bar) – Chicago
Upscale dining meets all-you-can-eat at TAO Asian Bistro’s Sunday brunch, located at 632 N Dearborn St in downtown Chicago, where the dessert bar elevates buffet sweets to fine dining status. Forget everything you thought you knew about buffet desserts—this spread belongs in a pastry chef’s portfolio.
Presentation alone could make you weep with aesthetic joy before tasting a single bite.
Miniature desserts allow sampling multiple options without the guilt of full-sized portions, though let’s be honest about how many “miniatures” you’ll actually consume. Dessert selections vary by season and menu rotation and may include items like matcha-flavored desserts, fruit-forward pastries, and Asian-inspired sweets.
Specific offerings change over time, but the dessert component remains a highlight of the brunch experience.
The Sunday brunch crowd skews sophisticated, but everyone reverts to childhood glee when confronted with this dessert wonderland. Reservations recommended unless you enjoy waiting while watching others eat amazing food.
10. Golden Corral – Rockford
Golden Corral at 995 S Perryville Rd in Rockford represents American buffet culture in its purest form, and the dessert section doesn’t apologize for anything. Chocolate Wonderfall cascades continuously, creating a chocolate fountain so iconic it deserves its own zip code.
Surrounding it, an army of desserts waits patiently for your attention and stomach capacity.
Soft-serve ice cream stations flank both sides of the dessert area, ensuring you’re never more than ten feet from frozen dairy perfection. Toppings range from standard sprinkles to crushed candy bars, hot fudge, caramel, and enough whipped cream to float a small boat.
Cookies, brownies, and blondies stack high on trays, still warm from the oven during peak hours.
Pie varieties rotate but always include cherry, apple, and chocolate cream options that taste exactly like childhood memories. Some locations also feature novelty items like cotton candy machines, depending on layout and staffing.
Bread pudding with vanilla sauce provides comfort food vibes, while banana pudding with vanilla wafers hits that nostalgic sweet spot. Rockford residents defend this location fiercely against any Golden Corral slander.
11. Golden Corral – Springfield
Springfield’s Golden Corral at 1038 Le June Dr delivers the same dessert excellence as its Rockford cousin, with local touches that make it uniquely central Illinois. The Chocolate Wonderfall anchors the dessert island like a delicious lighthouse guiding sugar-seekers home.
Everything you loved about buffet desserts as a kid exists here in abundance, plus adult appreciation for not having to share.
Carrot cake with cream cheese frosting appears alongside German chocolate cake, creating difficult decisions that often result in taking both. Fruit cobblers bubble away in warming trays, their crusts golden and crispy while fruit filling threatens to overflow.
Vanilla ice cream provides the mandatory cobbler accompaniment, melting into warm fruit in ways that should probably be illegal.
Cheesecake varieties include turtle, strawberry, and plain New York-style for purists who respect tradition. Rice Krispies treats cut into perfect squares remind you that simple pleasures often beat fancy alternatives.
The cookie selection spans chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin, sugar cookies, and those weird pink frosted ones that taste like childhood birthday parties. Springfield families consider Sunday dinner here a weekly tradition, and the dessert spread explains why.
12. Pizza Ranch (Buffet + dessert included) – Springfield
Pizza Ranch at 1001 Lejune Dr in Springfield might focus on pizza and chicken, but the dessert pizza situation deserves serious recognition. Yes, dessert pizza—because apparently regular pizza wasn’t already perfect enough.
Cinnamon streusel pizza with sweet icing drizzle converts skeptics into believers with a single bite, proving that pizza dough works beautifully in sweet applications.
Soft-serve ice cream stations let you build sundaes between pizza slices, which sounds weird but feels absolutely right in the moment. Chocolate chip cookies bake fresh throughout service, filling the restaurant with irresistible aromas that make focusing on savory food nearly impossible.
Brownies cut into generous squares provide fudgy chocolate satisfaction, while cinnamon rolls the size of dinner plates challenge your commitment to finishing what you start.
The family-friendly atmosphere means kids run wild with dessert excitement, but adults secretly feel the same way while maintaining better poker faces. Seasonal desserts rotate through, including pumpkin dessert pizza in fall and cherry varieties in summer.
Springfield locals debate whether Pizza Ranch counts as a pizza place or dessert destination, but smart people recognize it excels at both simultaneously.