First, it was the Scandinavian-style Smorgasbord. Later, it was Old Country Buffet.
My parents were immigrants who grew up in a time and place where starvation was a reality. Naturally, all-you-can-eat restaurants seemed like one of America’s Greatest Wonders.
When I was in elementary school, we would drive into the Big City (Minneapolis) and chow down at Valhalla or Asgard or whatever it was called. The horned Viking helmets and swords mounted on the wall provided the....