Bobbie is amazing I love her so caring and thoughtful. This was definitely a great recommendation for my trip. I even got to have gluten-free pancakes!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Susan Lundberg
Happy Chef was everything I remembered it being in the past. The food was both tasty and plentiful, our waitress was very helpful and attentive without being intrusive. It was a warm hug of a breakfast. Really good coffee, reasonable prices.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Sport Smith
Great food with healthy portions. Friendly service. Great breakfast spot.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Sue Kaveney
Loved it ❤️
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Stephanie Rae
French toast was very good. But service was rude. Slow. Understaffed maybe? Interior needs updating
Jana Whetzal
Nostalgia ❤️
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Kevin Pytleski (Super duty man)
Ordered our food and then sat and waited 40 just to watch other customers that ordered after us received their food.
We walked out and they didn't even care.
Bye bye happy chef gonna miss you.
Service: 1
Letitia Rae Badness
BEST BREAKFAST 🚨 HOT & FRESH FOOD AWARD 🥇 CLEAN GRILL AWARD 🥇 FAST SERVICE AWARD 🥇 CLEAN STORE AWARD 🥇 WTP AWARD AFFORDABLE🥇 worth the price)
Two of us stopped for breakfast at the Happy Chef restaurant just north of Mankato, MN (2100 Highway 169 N, Mankato, MN 56001) on a bright Sunday morning -August 24, 2025; about 9:30 am, after a long evening attending the Hairball/Slave Raider concert at Vetter Stone Amphitheater. We were super hungry.
I remember back in the 80’s & 90’s stopping for late-night and early morning food at Happy Chef restaurants in the Midwest, and that memory was always a great one. You can count on this restaurant chain for a pleasant and affordable experience. The restaurant in Mankato is very easy to spot along highway 169 with the huge 30-foot tall vintage ‘Happy Chef’ statue right out front! The restaurant was full, and had a back room for spillover with an 8-top table along with numerous other 4-top tables, with the local PD also having their breakfast there as well. (You know it’s good when the cops eat there!) We both ordered a traditional breakfast. Eggs, hash browns, toast, coffee; and a choice of meats. I ordered a tall glass of milk (to come with my meal), which our waitress forgot- so I had to get up and ask- but in my years of being a chef and also a server- that’s a common thing to forget. The breakfast came in lightening-fast time. Perfect order, no errors. Food was hot and fresh, tasted clean (obviously the chefs keep their grill spic & span). Afterwards, I asked the server to please say thank you to the chef staff for us. They don’t regularly get many comments. With the bill coming in around $30 for two, it was very much worth the price.
Highly recommended breakfast spot with a large parking lot, big picture windows overlooking the treed hillsides of the north side of Mankato. We will be back. I suggest you give this place a try if you’re looking for delicious food and fast clean service!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Theo Helms
Good greasy spoon diner. It was busy on a Sunday, which is to be expected, and we had a big group but it was a 20 minute wait and then over an hour to get our food. Standard breakfast diner food.
I was pleasantly surprised that they still had the hot turkey sandwich with mash potatoes and gravy. It was as good as it was a few years ago. The service was very good and it was reasonably priced.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
David Limon
Me and my buddy had the cinnamon roll pancakes with the farmers omelette, which had a side of hashbrowns, and it was some of the best American classic breakfast food he and I have ever had. The service was also pretty good for how busy it was. Thank you guys for everything.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
lyle hanson
Our food was spot on ,came out hot and plenty toeat,yum
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
John Nelson
We go there for breakfast on Sundays sometimes and the food is always amazing and the staff is fantastic!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Michael Kaeb
Had the Farmer’s Omelette and it hit the spot—plenty of flavor and a solid portion. One of my favorite touches was having a full coffee pot left at the table so I could refill as needed. That said, the pot was leaking a bit and the cup was on the small side, so it took a few trips. Service was friendly, and overall it was a good experience. You can tell this place has been around a while, but there’s something kind of comforting about that too.
Bobbie is amazing I love her so caring and thoughtful. This was definitely a great recommendation for my trip. I even got to have gluten-free pancakes!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Happy Chef was everything I remembered it being in the past. The food was both tasty and plentiful, our waitress was very helpful and attentive without being intrusive. It was a warm hug of a breakfast. Really good coffee, reasonable prices.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Great food with healthy portions. Friendly service. Great breakfast spot.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Loved it ❤️
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
French toast was very good. But service was rude. Slow. Understaffed maybe? Interior needs updating
Nostalgia ❤️
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Ordered our food and then sat and waited 40 just to watch other customers that ordered after us received their food.
We walked out and they didn't even care.
Bye bye happy chef gonna miss you.
Service: 1
BEST BREAKFAST 🚨
HOT & FRESH FOOD AWARD 🥇
CLEAN GRILL AWARD 🥇
FAST SERVICE AWARD 🥇
CLEAN STORE AWARD 🥇
WTP AWARD AFFORDABLE🥇 worth the price)
Two of us stopped for breakfast at the Happy Chef restaurant just north of Mankato, MN (2100 Highway 169 N, Mankato, MN 56001) on a bright Sunday morning -August 24, 2025; about 9:30 am, after a long evening attending the Hairball/Slave Raider concert at Vetter Stone Amphitheater. We were super hungry.
I remember back in the 80’s & 90’s stopping for late-night and early morning food at Happy Chef restaurants in the Midwest, and that memory was always a great one. You can count on this restaurant chain for a pleasant and affordable experience.
The restaurant in Mankato is very easy to spot along highway 169 with the huge 30-foot tall vintage ‘Happy Chef’ statue right out front!
The restaurant was full, and had a back room for spillover with an 8-top table along with numerous other 4-top tables, with the local PD also having their breakfast there as well. (You know it’s good when the cops eat there!)
We both ordered a traditional breakfast. Eggs, hash browns, toast, coffee; and a choice of meats. I ordered a tall glass of milk (to come with my meal), which our waitress forgot- so I had to get up and ask- but in my years of being a chef and also a server- that’s a common thing to forget.
The breakfast came in lightening-fast time. Perfect order, no errors. Food was hot and fresh, tasted clean (obviously the chefs keep their grill spic & span). Afterwards, I asked the server to please say thank you to the chef staff for us. They don’t regularly get many comments.
With the bill coming in around $30 for two, it was very much worth the price.
Highly recommended breakfast spot with a large parking lot, big picture windows overlooking the treed hillsides of the north side of Mankato.
We will be back. I suggest you give this place a try if you’re looking for delicious food and fast clean service!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Good greasy spoon diner. It was busy on a Sunday, which is to be expected, and we had a big group but it was a 20 minute wait and then over an hour to get our food. Standard breakfast diner food.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Reasonably cheap & vibes are lovely!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
I was pleasantly surprised that they still had the hot turkey sandwich with mash potatoes and gravy. It was as good as it was a few years ago. The service was very good and it was reasonably priced.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Me and my buddy had the cinnamon roll pancakes with the farmers omelette, which had a side of hashbrowns, and it was some of the best American classic breakfast food he and I have ever had. The service was also pretty good for how busy it was. Thank you guys for everything.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Our food was spot on ,came out hot and plenty toeat,yum
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
We go there for breakfast on Sundays sometimes and the food is always amazing and the staff is fantastic!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Had the Farmer’s Omelette and it hit the spot—plenty of flavor and a solid portion. One of my favorite touches was having a full coffee pot left at the table so I could refill as needed. That said, the pot was leaking a bit and the cup was on the small side, so it took a few trips. Service was friendly, and overall it was a good experience. You can tell this place has been around a while, but there’s something kind of comforting about that too.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
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