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Homosassa Springs park adds restaurant
By JORGE SANCHEZ, Times Staff Writer HOMOSASSA SPRINGS -- A new buffet restaurant opened Friday at the Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park visitors center, allowing park visitors to get a full meal before visiting the park. The Riverside Buffet House offers a lunch, dinner and Sunday brunch buffet, said co-owner and executive chef Charlie Brown. The Riverside Buffet, which can seat up to 240 people, is at the north end of the visitors center at U.S. 19 and Halls River Road. It is accessible either by climbing a short flight of stairs or taking an elevator once inside the visitors center. The interior has a nice view of Pepper Creek, the boat route taking visitors to the state wildlife park. The restaurant has wooden floors, an electric train that circles just below the ceiling and a 40-seat patio, which is also the designated smoking area. Entrees include soups, fried chicken, mashed potatoes, fried okra, stuffed cabbage, chicken and dumplings and other Southern staples, such as Friday's deep-fried marinated whole turkey. The buffet also has a full-service liquor bar and a dessert selection. "We'll be serving home-cooking style food with a Southern flair," Brown said. Prices for the 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. lunch buffet are $7.95 for adults, $5.95 for children and free for age 2 and younger. The dinner buffet served from 4 to 7:30 p.m. costs $9.95 and $7.95. The Sunday brunch, which will have a breakfast station with an omelet cook and a meat-carving station, costs $14.95. Brown and his business partners will operate the buffet under a long-term contract with the state, which owns the property. The restaurateurs also operate the snack bar at the wildlife park. There won't be much seafood on the menu -- for a reason. Brown also operates Charlie Brown's Crab House at the Homosassa Riverside Resort a few miles away on Cherokee Way in Old Homosassa. The serving staff at the buffet will recommend the Crab House for those who want seafood. "We want people to come and discover Old Homosassa after they visit the state park and have a seafood dinner with us," Brown said. "A visit to the state park is usually a three- to four-hour event, and this way, they can make a day out of it and discover the rest of Homosassa."
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