I've witnessed the "death spiral" at a local Japanese restaurant which isn't a buffet but offers an AYCE option where diners order from an I-Pad. Since opening the price has gone up and the quality and crowds have both declined. Ordering off the menu is a better option but this restaurant won't allow it if another person at your table wants AYCE.

Buffets are just slop troughs for human hogs and I avoid them as much as possible. My loathing of buffets began years ago at an Indian restaurant near my then office in Toronto where colleagues and I ate lunch once a week. The buffet was passable with a limited assortment of the usual dishes and eventually we tired of it. The first time we ordered different dishes from the menu it was a revelation and never ate the buffet again.