5 /5 Evan Lau: After a long flight, we immediately went straight to the nearest Cheddars since there’s only a handful in the U.S. but somehow Tampa has six restaurants. So we went for dinner and yes, it was exactly how we remembered it. Pure Heaven I say. Now I don’t have much expectations from American chains but Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen is truly one of a kind.
Every dine in experience comes with honey glazed croissants which always come out phenomenal. We ordered Chips & Homemade Queso for appetizers. Not once in my life have I seen additional ground beef in a queso dip on the house. Afterwards, we got our main entrées: Bourbon Glazed Salmon & Shrimp, Lemon Pepper Chicken, Grilled Pork Chops, and New Orleans Pasta. Everything turned out great as we expected. The Bourbon Glaze had a sweet and savoury taste of salmon and shrimp along with smooth bourbon sauce on the side. The Grilled Pork Chops were cooked perfect as in no rawness but tender to remember. The Lemon Pepper Chicken was balanced in taste and size. And lastly, the New Orleans Pasta had a top notch Cajun sauce with a bit of spice flavour kicking in, blended with the chicken, shrimp, sausage, and pepper, onions, and penne. It even came with garlic bread We also ordered some signature margaritas on the rocks and frozen. Both turned out amazing.
The service was great and the atmosphere was well organized. The prices are reasonably affordable compared to others The place was quiet since it was still 4 p.m. that time. Overall, Cheddar’s still amazes us in many ways, even though this chain’s really underrated. Never has any of their restaurants disappointed us. We hope to stop by on our next trip to Tampa or the nearest one. I’m still flustered the nearest Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen is 2 hours away. We need more up North.