Happy Chef Restaurant — Restaurant in Mankato

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...

This has been a go to restaurant for breakfast for me over the years. It's never been outstanding service, but the food is always very good. I decided to take my boys there yesterday. We sat down and ordered drinks, and I looked at the menu to find something that I could eat. I've been on the keto diet for almost a year so I needed to make some substitutions. I asked if I could substitute something for the hash browns and the pancakes, because I can't eat them. She said, yes. I told her that I would like a side of broccoli and a side of cottage cheese. I asked "there will be no extra charge for that correct?" She said, "no, we we'll have to charge for those." I told her I didn't understand if I'm not eating 2 of the items in the meal, why I can't replace them with something else without being charged. She said, there's nothing she could do. I ended up telling her that I just wouldn't be eating. She simply said, "okay", with a smile. I then decided to go to the front counter and ask the same server to speak to a manager. She turned and yelled back to the kitchen that I needed to speak to a manager. The one manager on duty said, "she's going to have to wait. It'll probably be 10 minutes!" I was hoping to still be able to order our food but that was simply unacceptable. I gathered up the boys and on our way out, said we're leaving. Our server said, "okay, bye boys", not apologizing for the inconvenience at all. This was one of the worst experiences I've had at a restaurant. I was very disappointed. We then decided to go to Weggy's here in town. I told the manager of our experience and he went above and beyond for us. Before we even ordered, he brought us a 4 pack of Krusty's donuts. He said he was sorry, we had a bad experience at Happy Chef. When we left, I left a $20 tip because of the excellent service and kindness. That could have been the server's at Happy Chef if she had done herjob and put the...

I am relatively new to the area and finding a sit-down, non-franchise breakfast place in Mankato is tough! I regularly meet a good friend of mine monthly for breakfast and we have had to alternate between Perkins, Baker's Square, and Weggy's. We decided to try Happy Chef, which flies under our radar, for some reason. What a great choice!

First, they have an excellent breakfast menu, with everything from the traditional to things like corned beef hash/eggs, as well as omelets. I chose the Farmer's Omelet and added onions. It was absolutely delicious. The egg wrap was cooked perfectly. There was just the right amount of cheese. All the meat inside tasted fresh. And, most importantly, it wasn't greasy. It came with a side of toast and hash browns that were cooked nicely, with the right amount of crisp. There were other side choices, including pancakes. The service was friendly and efficient. My friend and I sat and talked for some time before we ordered and the server checked back with us occasionally, without being interruptive or disappearing.

Happy Chef is such a throwback institution around here that it was fun to discover what an awesome breakfast place it is. I'm sure most people already knew that! I will definitely...