SMORGASBORD.  The new Vikings Luxury Buffet in SM City Cebu can seat 384 diners and offers 11 buffet stations. Two more buffet restaurants are set to open in the SM Seaside City mall.  (Sun.Star Foto/Katlene O. Cacho)
 
PACIFIC Apex Food Ventures Inc. is banking on Cebu’s healthy economy and expanding middle-income class to grow its buffet business in Cebu.
 
Last May 10, the company opened its first Vikings Luxury Buffet in SM City Cebu, its ninth buffet outlet in the Philippines and third in the Visayas-Mindanao area.
 
“Our entry in Cebu was buoyed by the strong clamor of Cebuanos. Everybody is asking for it,” said Raquel Bartolome, marketing manager of the Vikings Group.
 
Vikings Cebu is a 384-seat full-service buffet restaurant, one of the newest in Cebu, that features 11 buffet stations including Chinese, Korean, Filipino, and Italian cuisine.
 
Bartolome described Vikings as a dining destination for “unlimited food with class.”
 
Vikings started operating in the Philippines in 2011. The group operates three buffet brands: Vikings Luxury Buffet, Niu by Vikings and Four Seasons Buffet and Hotpot.
 
She noted that the company’s optimism for growth here also stemmed from Viking’s positive performance in all of its outlets across the country. 
 
“It’s already proven and tested that when you say Vikings, people would really come and dine with us,” said Bartolome, adding that they put a premium on delivering value-for-money buffet selections, as well as the best service and ambience.
 
Most of Vikings’ clients are locals who dine in groups. Bartolome said this reflects the Filipinos’ love for food and merriment.
 
After Vikings Cebu, the holding company is also set to open Niu by Vikings and Four Seasons Buffet and Hotpot City in SM Seaside City in the South Road Properties this year. Each buffet restaurant will have around 300 seats. 
 
Niu, which means “nine” in Old Norse, is the high-end buffet brand of the Vikings Group, while Four Seasons is a hotpot buffet that serves an assortment of fresh and healthy ingredients handpicked by chefs. The company, according to Bartolome, is opening five to six buffet outlets within a year.