那天我们去商场

nà tiān | wǒ men | qù | shāng chǎng

That day we went to the mall,

又看到了那家很大的自助餐厅

yòu | kàn dào | le | nà jiā | hěn dà | de | zì zhù cān tīng

and saw that big buffet restaurant again.

这个餐厅很多年前我们吃过

zhè ge | cān tīng | hěn duō nián qián | wǒ men | chī guo

We ate at this restaurant many years ago—

那时候一百多一个人

nà shí hou | yī bǎi duō | yī gè rén

it was over a hundred yuan per person back then,

算是高档一点的自助餐厅了

suàn shì | gāo dàng | yī diǎn | de | zì zhù cān tīng | le

which was considered a relatively high-end buffet.

菜品很丰富

cài pǐn | hěn | fēng fù

The dishes were very abundant,

有很多海鲜

yǒu | hěn duō | hǎi xiān

with plenty of seafood.

我们有很多年没吃过自助餐了

wǒ men | yǒu | hěn duō nián | méi chī guo | zì zhù cān | le

We haven’t eaten at a buffet for many years,

有几方面的原因

yǒu | jǐ fāng miàn | de | yuán yīn

for several reasons.

第一，没有新鲜感了

dì yī | méi yǒu | xīn xiān gǎn | le

First, there’s no sense of novelty anymore.

刚开始觉得很新鲜

gāng kāi shǐ | jué de | hěn | xīn xiān

At first, we thought it was very fresh;

贵的便宜的自助餐都吃过

guì de | pián yi | de | zì zhù cān | dōu | chī guo

we’ve tried both expensive and cheap buffets,

多吃几次也就那样了

duō chī | jǐ cì | yě jiù | nà yàng | le

and after eating them a few times, there’s nothing special.

第二，低质的平价自助餐厅

dì èr | dī zhì | de | píng jià | zì zhù cān tīng

Second, low-quality affordable buffets.

有很多平价的自助餐厅

yǒu | hěn duō | píng jià | de | zì zhù cān tīng

There are many affordable buffets,

一个人只需要几十元

yī gè rén | zhǐ | xū yào | jǐ shí yuán

costing only tens of yuan per person.

虽然种类也算丰富

suī rán | zhǒng lèi | yě suàn | fēng fù

Although the variety is also abundant,

但是品质堪忧

dàn shì | pǐn zhì | kān yōu

the quality is worrying—

吃过一次就不想再吃第二次

chī guo | yī cì | jiù | bù xiǎng | zài chī | dì èr cì

you won’t want to eat there a second time after trying it once.

第三，健康饮食理念

dì sān | jiàn kāng | yǐn shí | lǐ niàn

Third, the concept of healthy eating.

越来越多的人讲究健康生活

yuè lái yuè duō | de | rén | jiǎng jiū | jiàn kāng | shēng huó

More and more people pursue a healthy lifestyle,

或者是我们年龄大了

huò zhě | shì | wǒ men | nián líng | dà le

or maybe we’re getting older,

不想胡吃海塞

bù xiǎng | hú chī hǎi sāi

and don’t want to overeat.

为了“把钱吃回来”

wèi le | “bǎ qián | chī huí lái”

In order to "get your money’s worth",

要吃好多进肚子里

yào | chī | hǎo duō | jìn | dù zi | lǐ

you have to eat a lot,

对健康有害

duì | jiàn kāng | yǒu hài

which is harmful to health,

反而得不偿失

fǎn ér | dé bù cháng shī

and ultimately not worth it.

我们每次住酒店

wǒ men | měi cì | zhù | jiǔ diàn

Every time we stay at a hotel,

还是会吃自助早餐的

hái shì | huì | chī | zì zhù zǎo cān | de

we still eat the breakfast buffet,

偶尔也会吃自助晚餐

ǒu ěr | yě | huì | chī | zì zhù wǎn cān

and occasionally the dinner buffet.

五星级的自助餐还是有品质保障的

wǔ xīng jí | de | zì zhù cān | hái shì | yǒu | pǐn zhì | bǎo zhàng | de

Five-star hotel buffets still have quality assurance,

但是常常都是想大吃一顿

dàn shì | cháng cháng | dōu shì | xiǎng | dà chī | yī dùn

but we often intend to eat a big meal,

结果吃不了多少

jié guǒ | chī bù liǎo | duō shao

only to end up not being able to eat much.

My email address: yoyomo85@gmail.com