Mom and Dad recently took us to one of their new favorite restaurants, Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen in Mansfield.  Tom and I had eaten there once before when we met our friend Deborah in Mansfield.  But that was before I started writing my blog, so I decided Cheddar’s was good enough to mention here.

Unlike the restaurants in Columbus, the restaurants in Mansfield are rarely crowded.  Sundays after church are the rare exception.  On the Wednesday night that we ate there, about half the tables were full, which meant that it was busy without being crowded.

We had a great waitress.  She was attentive without hovering, always my favorite kind of server.  When she brought out our drinks, she also brought four fresh-from-the-oven croissants with honey butter drizzled all over them.  I think this is Dad’s favorite thing about eating at Cheddar’s, although we all enjoyed them very much.

We placed our orders.  I got a salad with grilled chicken.  Mom ordered cheese curds for us to share as an appetizer and got a loaded baked potato.  Dad ordered chicken potpie:  one of his favorite things and a Cheddar’s specialty.  Tom ordered salmon and steamed broccoli.

Cheddar’s started in Irving, Texas in 1979.  Their aim was to make good food, made well, for a good price.  They now have 174 restaurants in 28 states.  There are four Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchens in Ohio, with the one in Mansfield being the closest to Columbus.

We all enjoyed our food very much.  Everything on the menu looked good.  I was especially tempted by the Monte Cristo sandwich, which was ham, turkey, and two cheeses, battered and fried until golden, with raspberry preserves and dusted with powdered sugar.  I must be craving fried foods.  But I resisted temptation and enjoyed my salad.

I was thinking about ordering dessert because their desserts looked delicious, but everyone else was full.  And, because our waitress was so good, she didn’t even ask us.  Sometimes the waitress asking is all I need to cave in to ordering dessert.  Of course, I always share whatever I order.  Cheddar’s has a monster cookie and a hot fudge cake sundae which both sounded wonderful.

Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen has a nice takeout menu.  They have three family bundle meals, which feature grilled salmon, chicken tenders, or a combination with a vegetable, another side, and the Cheddar’s croissants.  Sounds perfect for a family and easy to pick up after work.

We enjoyed our meal at Cheddar’s very much.  The food was good and so was the company.