Johor Bahru's hotel buffets have a different shape from KL's. Most hotels here save their big seafood spread for Friday and Saturday nights and run a cheaper hi-tea at the weekend, while weekday dinners are thin or missing altogether. The most expensive weekend dinner we found is RM188 nett.
We read every price below on 2 October 2026 on the hotel's own website, the booking page its website links to (SevenRooms or TableCheck), or the posters on its official channels. All prices are nett unless we say otherwise, so the figure is what you pay. Where two official sources disagree, we say so.
*Image: Renaissance Johor Bahru Hotel*
How to choose a hotel buffet in JB
Pick the night first. If you want seafood on ice, sashimi and grilled lobster, you are choosing between Friday and Saturday dinner at Renaissance, DoubleTree, Novotel and St. Giles. On a weekday, the realistic options are a lunch buffet or Pulai Springs' order-as-you-go Chinese menu.
Do the family maths, not the headline. Children's rates usually run at about half the adult price, but the age bands differ. Renaissance and St. Giles let kids aged 5 and under in free. Pulai Springs charges from age 3. At Novotel, a child pays RM118 at the seafood dinner, which is not far below the adult price.
Count your group. Several hotels give one free seat in a group. DoubleTree's seafood dinner is buy 4 free 1, Grand Paragon is buy 5 free 1, Pulai Springs is come 6 pay 5, and Novotel's 4th hi-tea guest pays RM1. For a group of five at DoubleTree, that brings the adult cost down to about RM134 a head.
Ask about member and card discounts. Club Renaissance members get 35% off the Renaissance weekend dinner. CHM members get 10% off adults at St. Giles. Grand Paragon has a government staff rate.
Book, especially at weekends. Renaissance asks you to book children too. Holiday Inn's early bird price only applies if you pay online at least a day ahead.
How to pick
For a special-occasion seafood dinner, DoubleTree is the strongest value in the top tier: RM168 with lobster on the menu and a free fifth seat. Renaissance is the most expensive at RM188 but halves the price for children and lets under-6s in free. With young kids on a budget, St. Giles Southkey at RM118 (RM59 a child, shows included) is hard to beat. For a weekday treat or a big family table, Pulai Springs gives you a cooked-to-order Chinese menu for RM85 to RM90. And for an afternoon spread for under RM50, go to Holiday Inn before the promotion ends in late November.
If you only want breakfast, Amari Johor Bahru's Amaya Food Gallery runs a weekend breakfast buffet at RM75 nett an adult and RM38 a child aged 7 to 12, Saturdays and Sundays 6.30 to 10.30am, until 31 December 2026.
For buffets in other cities, see our price guides for KL and the Klang Valley, Kuching and Kota Kinabalu.
