Yoder's Restaurant — Restaurant in Sarasota

Had an appointment down in Sarasota today, so I decided to see if my mom would like to join for the long drive from Tampa. She was up for a little trip. After the appointment, I decided to finally check out Yoder's after having seen Adam Richman spotlight it some years ago.

First, I absolutely love the little community. It was a sight to see all the tricycles zooming around. They also let you know they rule the road. lol...

Parking was a little crazy, but driving past the restaurant to the lot, we could see why. There was a good line out the door of the restaurant. Thankfully, it moved fairly quick, and I don't think we waited more than 10 mins before being seated.

I decided to try a "small bowl" of chili. But I think our server only heard "bowl of chili". I wasn't upset with it, because the chili was delicious. Especially with the homemade bread being dipped in it. I also decided to go with the famous fried chicken (quarter white), Amish noodles (think a delicious chicken noodle soup, light on the broth and heavy on the noodles), and the Amish potato cakes. I do wish the chicken had a little more seasoning, but that's just personal preference. The skin was perfectly crispy, and the breast was probably the moistest, most tender and delicious piece of white meat I've had. Unfortunately for me, between the chili, the whole wing, the noodles, and one of the two potato cakes, I was stuffed and had to box the majority of the breast up.

I did also decide to order a large order of the meatloaf, with mashed potatoes & gravy, and mac & cheese to go. Along with a slice of pecan pie. So, I'm set for a few meals. lol

My mom decided on the liver and onions, since it's been a few years since she's had it. And they had fried (or baked) cod on the menu today. Which looked fantastic, as I saw plates of it passing by. So I know the liver and onions sounded good to mom, because she passed on the fried fish. She got the buttered corn and mashed potatoes & gravy as her sides. She loved all of it. But the portion was large enough that she had to box most of it up to go, too.

We grabbed a loaf of white bread to go, because the bread we were served was so soft and delicious (it was the wheat, which we didn't realize). Then we headed over to the market. I decided to grab a couple of the sliced cheeses (muenster and sharp cheddar), a large roll of the Amish rolled butter (INSANELY good, btw!), and I saw scrapple, and decided to give it a go, since it always looks tasty on the shows I've seen it on.

The food was all fantastic, and I really look forward to heading back down to try out more of the menu (and restocking that butter!). But let me just say, the star... or stars, rather... of the show are all the truly wonderful people that are serving you. From the host to the server, to the bus boy, to the cashier. Every last one of them were just pleasant and delightful.

I can't wait for the next...

I’m going to start this review with saying that I have been coming to Yoders for over 10 years. Our family drives over an hour away to come because this place has become one of our favorites over the years. A couple years ago something just changed. Mostly everyone is incredibly nice and a lot of the people know us in the restaurant so it’s always very welcoming. Today our server seemed quite annoyed, so I’m not sure if he’s just having a bad day or what was going on. Upon being greeted, I ordered a basket of half corn bread and half rolls because we like to take them home for our family to enjoy and I asked our server for some of the complementary baked bread for my two-year-old and he kind of scoffed and made a face as he said yeah. I then got my chicken tender platter which to be very clear is $19. The chicken was overcooked, so there was barely any chicken left inside of the tenders due to them Being over overcooked. I asked the server if they could be remade because once again, we drive over an hour to come to Yoder’s, and the chicken tenders are $19. We don’t mind paying when they are correct. Our mashed potatoes were amazing and the mac & cheese was edible. If you’ve ever been to Yoders, you know that their macaroni and cheese is one of the best things on their menu, but it is just so inconsistent that I can’t say that it’s great every time we go. He then brought out the redone chicken, and I cut into one and it was raw. I honestly would’ve rather just left the restaurant than even bring up the concern with our server due to how annoyed he seemed But I nicely asked him if it was possible to just get something else In which he brought us out what we requested. He did take the food off the order so we are thankful for that kind gesture. I personally just feel like the last five or six times we’ve made the journey out things just are not what they used to be. I’m actually very disappointed because Yoders was one of our favorite semi weekly trips, but I’m not sure we will be taking those as often anymore. This place has a whole lot of potential and it used to be amazing. Garrett is one of the kindest people I have ever encountered and is usually at the hostess stand, which makes the trip awesome. Most of the time our service is amazing and a lot of the servers are incredibly kind people as well. I really hope that the consistency of the food can come back to what it was a...

Ok, I recently went to Yoders for the first time in a couple of years. My whole family took a trip down to Sarasota to try Yoders a couple years back because we had seen it on Food Network. It was phenomenal! So when my friend moved to Sarasota, I told him, “We need to get over to Yoders. It’s phenomenal. The pies are amazing. You’re gonna love it.” While the our waitress, Shauna was amazing and the atmosphere was cozy. I was very disappointed because the food I remembered from my last visit at Yoders wasn’t the same quality. They did not have the potato cakes on their menu, which for me was a highlight and a staple the last time I visited, they also seem to have disappointed on the fried chicken. That was the whole point was Yoder’s famous fried chicken! Honestly, I hate to say it the best part of the whole meal for me was the dinner rolls and cornbread. 😬 I was seriously disappointed. We then walked next door to the market, coffee shop and gift shop they have had a renovation since I was last there so it looked pretty but that’s all I thought…it looks pretty. I did get two mini pies at the coffee stand and I also got hot apple cider. I was disappointed to see a plastic container of cider because I think they just steamed that and put caramel sauce in it. Which I guess is what I ordered but I was so sad because I just talked to this place up only to walk out and we both said, “One out of 10. Where would you write Yoders and both my friend and I said 6/6.5 if we were pushing it.” 😥

Maybe it was just an off day, but the minute I heard they discontinued the potato cakes, I realized it would NOT be the same experience. Not sure if it has changed owners or just tried to evolve with the time, but it was not the best! Oh my gosh! I just remembered the first comment we both had when we looked at the menu! The PRICES, were CRAZY! I spent $20 for a veggie plate and a drink! TENTY DOLLARS for 4 veggies - 2 of which I never ate because I wasn’t impressed and a drink! (I did leave a tip too, our waitress was wonderful). I think I spent $17 on me mini pies and small cider. 🫣 …Also, I only paid for one person. Just me, walked out spending $40 to be really disappointed. 🤷‍♀️ Probably would give it one more try. I’m always a second chance to redeem yourself kind of girl. But it will not be a priority when picking restaurants to attend...