Welcome to the Brine Fly Buffet

Two California gulls enjoy sunset dining at the All You Can Eat Brine Fly Buffet at the Great Salt Lake.

The “all you can eat” Brine Fly Buffet at the Great Salt Lake was voted Best Eatery in the Pacific Flyway by about ten million regulars who dine there annually.

The casual gourmet establishment opens for business in the summer when the brine flies, having survived the colder months in their larval stage at the Underwater Snack Bar for Diving Ducks and Grebes, emerge by the billions and float to shore on large buzzy rafts. There they crawl around for a couple days until they either lay eggs and die, or get snarfed up by one of several million shorebirds and gulls who visit for the occasion.

Being the only one of its kind in the great North American interior, the Brine Fly Buffet at the Great Salt Lake is a beloved establishment for winged bug-lovers hailing from beaches up and down the Western half of two continents.

“I swear I have doubled my body weight here in the past month,” laughs one phalarope, as she nabs a fly from the buffet. “We come here every year. It’s kind of a haul to get here, but we wouldn’t miss it!”