Oster Buffet Server Warming Tray | Triple Tray, 2.5 Quart, Stainless Steel

I ordered this buffet server to help take some of the stress out of preparing a Thanksgiving feast for several people and I used it for the first time yesterday. I researched several brands before settling on Oster. I've had excellent luck with the Oster brand in everything from toaster ovens to blenders so . . .First of all, read the instructions when your unit arrives. You will see that an electrical smell is expected when the unit is heated for the first time. The instructions recommend that you plug it in and heat it up until the smell dissipates. We followed these instructions. When we brought the unit out and plugged it in to use it for the first time, we had a perfectly functioning unit with no surprises. The instructions also explain that this unit is strictly for keeping cooked foods warm - when placed into the chafing pans the food should already be fully cooked and hot.I used all three of the stainless steel 2.5 quart compartments. One had baked potato wedges in it, one had turkey and stuffing in it, and one had crispy baked dressing in it. Everything stayed warm, moist, and yummy. We started out with the unit turned on high and placed the potatoes and crispy dressing directly out of the oven into the compartments. Once the turkey was carved and the stuffing removed, we placed those items in the third compartment and then turned the unit down to low where it stayed until dinner was over and we turned the unit off. I could not have been happier with the performance of this appliance. It performed exactly as I was hoping; no more stress about timing all the various aspects of the meal so that everything was hot when we sat down to eat.Other things I particularly like are the way the lids are made. The way the handle is molded into the lid makes the lids easy to remove and replace for serving, and very easy to wash and dry. We chose to hand wash the lids to help keep them clear and unscratched but they can be washed on the top shelf in the dishwasher. The chafing pans we washed in the dishwasher.This morning I assembled the unit and slipped it back into its box until I get to use it the next time. I can't wait!

Bought two of these for setting my kitchen up buffet style for thanksgiving. I intend to have everything precooked, portioned into the pans and reheated before being placed on the warmer. I’ve set the unit up with water and a temp probe and they perform well. Will they perform better than the traditional gas powered chafing dish setup when they’re loaded with food? I’m not sure, but I’ll update and let you know how they work out.Update:Thanksgiving was a blast! This was the first year my husband and I got to host the holiday at our new place. First servings were just as hot as seconds or thirds! Everything was so delicious, we had next to no left overs. I sent each guest with a microwaveable bento box esque container, and threw the lids and metal pans right into the dishwasher. For my family (we had 10 total in attendance), two of these warmers were sufficient (though I did have to supplement with a crockpot for another side dish). I think I might order another one while they’re at such an attractive price. Our celebration went off without a hitch and it went so well - I’m hosting Christmas this year! I’m so excited! But anyway, these are an excellent value and held up for the event. I used to work fine dining parties with gas chafing dishes and I must say I like the electric ones just a little better. Yes, the volume is a little less. But there didn’t appear to be any uneven heating in these ones which was a primary concern. There also wasn’t any burn spots on the pans and there wasn’t any worry about maintaining water levels. I do however recommend buying a heavy duty power strip with a decent length. Trust me. It’ll make your life so much easier. Just make sure it can handle the load that your placing on it. I cannot believe how great these were until after I had used them. It’s a total game changer. I highly recommend these.

We have had ours two months and have used it three times for entertaining guests in our party room. Works as expected. Keeps food very warm to hot, but not so much as to dry them out. We've used for chicken wings, toasted ravoli's, pizza rolls, meatballs, bacon wraped lil' smokies, and more. Worked perfect for these. No reason to think it will not work well for other items. Easy clean up.We find that the product base is make of very light materials that flex when you move it. The frame surrounding the serving pans is very light material too. Pans are good. Lids are light could easily chip or crack? We worry about durability. I suppose we could have got better if we spent more. For this reason we took away one star from an otherwise great working product.As you look at other servers be aware that some of them are much smaller although they might not look like it in the photos. Instead of getting one of the ones that were on sale for $30 everywhere at Christmas, we paid a bit more for this one as the servering pans were twice as big. Can be used as a hot plate also.Edit 10-2013: Used 20 times over the past year and a half. Still in excellent condition. Lids turned out to be just fine. Great product.EDIT 11-15-2014: Yes, still working, still very satisfied.Click YES if this information was helpful.

Not enough warm