Ah, America. The land of opportunity, of milk and honey, and of an abundance of opportunities to consume as much milk and honey – or beef, noodles, curry, sushi, salad or fried foods – as your stomach can hold for one low, low price.

Of course, I’m referring to the trend of all-you-can-eat dining.

It is certainly a bargain in a time when most wallets cry out for relief, but it’s also a novelty, transforming eating into an event and an entertaining challenge for the whole family.  In other words, all-you-can-eat is simply fun, and of the many options in the Pikes Peak region, we highlight a few bottomless choices for your unlimited enjoyment.

Whether you enjoy only a healthy amount of all-you-should or an excessive serving of all-you-can, that’s for your freedom-loving American stomach to decide.

Little Nepal1747 South 8th St.477-6997, lnepal.com

While many local Indian eateries offer lunch buffets, the spread at Little Nepal’s Thursday evening buffet ($16.99) elevates the steam-heated, sneeze-guarded concept to a dinner-worthy level. The curries offered at lunch expand to include lamb (a nutty lamb korma on my visit) and more varieties of chicken, such as chicken masala to supplement my favorite-ever Little Nepal dish of sweet-potato masala. The salad bar also boasts more variety, and desserts like mango custard sweeten the dinnertime deal.

At almost $17, this all-you-can-eat is a pricey one, but in my opinion, it’s quantity of choices rather than sheer quantity eaten that matters here. Rather than settling for only one of Little Nepal’s solid Indian classics, diners can have a few delicious bites of each, sampling the best of their regular dinner menu. Such grazing is also a great introduction of the cuisine for Indian newbies or doubters.

If lamb and chicken are outside your tastes, try the vegetarian dinner buffet on Sundays for $14.99.

Milt’s Coffee Shop2314 East Platte Ave.634-9016

Nothing has changed at Milt’s for decades, including the 1970s orange-and-yellow color scheme, the low counter stools or the springy vinyl booths. That’s because nothing needs to. Located on a corner of busy Platte Avenue, Milt’s is the paragon of an old-fashioned greasy spoon. Sizzling just out of sight behind the counter, the food is similarly old-fashioned, meaning scratch-made and wholesome.

Monday through Saturday until 4 p.m. (it’s closed on Sunday), the diner dishes up bottomless plates of either pancakes or biscuits and gravy for only $4.95. The cook is unafraid to put the perfect dark brown sear on the former, while a plate of the latter comes with three biscuits, split into six halves, swimming in a peppery white gravy.

You can even ask for light on the gravy, because the real treat is the biscuit underneath the pepperiness. Fresh baked, it softly parts under the fork and springs back into fluffy layers.

Mountain Shadows Restaurant2223 W. Colorado Ave.633-2122, mountainshadowsrestaurant.com

Fish on Fridays was once the norm for practicing Catholics, but whether you’re Catholic or not, be it Lent or no, you can cap the work week with seafood at Mountain Shadows Restaurant in Old Colorado City. From 11 a.m.-8 p.m. on Fridays, the cute café servers will return to your table with hot, fresh all-you-can-eat fish and chips ($9.59) as many times as you can stand.

In this context, chips is not British for fries. Mountain Shadows fries up thin, salty potato chips in house. Crunchy with fresh capers and pickles, the tartar sauce is also fresh, and served with the main attraction of fried fish fingers.

Not as light as some versions, Mountain Shadows’ fish is meaty with a crisp crust, easily the best fish and chips I’ve had next to a jug of syrup. (Mountain Shadows serves breakfast all day.) The iced tea and coffee are also bottomless, naturally.

Panino’s Italian Restaurants1721 S. 8th St., 635-1188604 N. Tejon St., 635-7452paninos.com

To me, neighborhood spirit rather than food has always been the defining characteristic of locally owned Panino’s restaurants – not that their lengthy menu doesn’t sport many pleasant pasta-centric options. Wednesday’s all-you-can-eat spaghetti nights, though, make Panino’s a bigger spaghetti party than the one in the movie “Lady and the Tramp.”

Actually, strike that. You can’t share your endless spaghetti bowl ($8.99) with your lover, but it does come filled with thick, quality and al dente noodles topped with a not-too-sweet, vibrant house sauce. The deal also includes a house salad and unlimited breadsticks, but don’t let those steal your appetite if you want your buck to stretch into several servings of pasta.

As a bonus, at the Tejon Street location, Wednesdays also offer a drink special of $2.29 per glass for all house wines.

Tucano’s Brazilian Grill3294 Cinema Point597-3800, tucanos.com/colorado-springs

Adrift in a sea of music, chatting diners and bustling servers, the massive island of vegetables and salads in the middle of Tucano’s Brazilian Grill is more than a salad bar. Instead, it’s an aptly named “Salad Festival,” featuring all the staples as well as delicacies like hard-boiled quail eggs and fried bananas.

Certainly, you can order only the all-you-can-eat Salad Festival ($10.95 lunch/$13.95 dinner), but the real all-you-can-eat treat at Tucano’s is the unlimited Churrasco ($13.95/$20.95), the impressive variety of meats those bustling servers carry from table to table, carving off pieces until every customer reaches meat satiation.  

The standard price will net you as much of the 12 standard meats as you please —  of which the bacon-wrapped turkey, fried white fish and sirloin tip are notable standouts –- as long as your table’s marker is set to green. Flip it red to pause or stop the river of food. As the highest priced of the eat-’til-you-drop options, it’s up to you how far $20 can go, but if you still crave more, specialty skewers like sea scallops ($10.95) are available for an additional fee.

Be it Lent or no, Mountain Shadows Restaurant dishes up bottomless fish and chips every Friday for lunch and dinner. Photo by Kate Jonuska

With the plentiful salad and grilled veggie and fruit items, even vegetarians can get an all-you-can-eat experience at Tucano’s Brazilian Grill. Photo by Kate Jonuska

The biscuits in Milt’s Coffee Shop’s daily all-you-can-eat biscuits and gravy are fluffy and light. Photo by Kate Jonuska