Thai Chef Buffet opened a little over a week ago, and today I made the short trek up Congress Street to check it out. At 1:30 pm, the 100-seat restaurant was pretty packed with office workers grabbing a quick lunch. The attraction is obvious: fast, fresh, tasty food at an all-you-can-eat price of $8.50 (plus tax, of course).

The restaurant is owned by the very gracious Suwanna Sanguantonkallaya, who also owns Sengchai Thai Cuisine on Forest Avenue. She explained to me that the buffet is divided into

a vegetarian bar,

a meat-eaters bar

and a salad, sushi and fresh spring rolls bar.

When she showed me the dedicated veggie bar, I could tell Suwanna is a woman after my own herbivore heart (wait, make that stomach). And my affinity for her only increased when she told me: "I dream a lot of getting people to eat tofu."

Her passion for healthful eating springs from personal tragedy and the desire to not let it happen to others. If you were living in Portland in early 2001, you may recall the tragic fire at Suwanna's former restaurant on St. John Street. Shortly after that sad event, her husband passed away from a heart attack. Prompted by his dad's untimely death, one of Suwanna's sons is getting close to completing his doctorate in heart surgery at a med school in Thailand. This same son has been urging her to get Americans to eat less meat.

Achieving this goal shouldn't be tough, considering how delicious the meatless meals are here. I particularly recommend the fresh spring rolls, the curry puffs, the yellow curry and the hot & sour soup. And judging by the reactions of my meat eating colleagues to the non-vegetarian samples I brought back to the office, the meat based meals are mighty tasty too.

Thai Chef Buffet is located at 511 Congress St. It is open Mon.-Thur., 11 am-9 pm and Fri.-Sat., 11 am-9:30 pm. The restaurant serves beer & wine and a full take-out menu is available. Delivery is available too. FMI call 699-5550.