The MGM Grand Buffet closes as Americans reexamine their relationship with the smorgasbord.

Fast-food chains are pulling out all the stops to woo price-pressured consumers. And that means the tried and true enticement: lower costs. From fries to chicken wings, consumers are looking for a deal and fast food chains are ready to provide them.

Straddling the line between spectacle and restaurant, the Las Vegas buffet is an entity unto its own. It’s a place where rules are meant to be broken; where diners can wander with towering plates of food in hand, pile in seven different desserts, and say things like, “I think I’ll try both flavors of melted butter.” But in order to have the best time — or at least the most cost-effective experience — there are guidelines to follow, ones that may spare you from long lines, overspending, or going in without a holistic game plan. Below, experts weigh in on the dos and don’ts of dining in a Las Vegas buffet.

The soul of Las Vegas can be uncovered one buffet station at a time.

The CEO of Red Lobster's parent company said he will never eat lobster again after the chain was forced to file for bankruptcy days after closing 100 locations. Thiraphong Chansiri, 58, is the CEO of Thai Union, a Thailand-based producer of seafood based products that owns a 49 percent stake in Red Lobster.

Red Lobster has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection days after shuttering nearly 100 restaurants across America. The seafood chain, which has closed restaurants in 27 states, has been struggling with rising lease and labor costs in recent years and also promotions like its iconic all-you-can-eat shrimp deal that backfired.

Red Lobster is in hot water. The chain has filed for bankruptcy after a series of missteps by a parade of executives — including an ill-fated promotion for all-you-can-eat-shrimp.

Red Lobster promised customers an endless supply of shrimp for $20 — a gamble the struggling restaurant chain hoped would help pull it out of its pandemic doldrums. But Americans, and their appetites, had other plans.