Chef: A Restaurant Tycoon Game

73%
Game Brain Score Based on 697 reviews
  • gameplay
  • graphics
  • story
Chef: A Restaurant Tycoon Game Game Cover
Starting at $15.82Buy now
Get on Steam

In Chef: A Restaurant Tycoon Game, players manage their own restaurant and kitchen, from designing the layout to purchasing equipment and ingredients. Hire staff, create menus, and serve customers while keeping an eye on finances and reputation. The ultimate goal is to build a successful restaurant empire and satisfy hungry customers with delicious dishes.

Play Modes

Reviews

73%
Audience ScoreBased on 697 reviews
gameplay29 positive mentions
stability29 negative mentions
  • The recipe creation system is engaging and allows for a high level of customization, making it fun to experiment with different ingredients.
  • The game offers a unique blend of restaurant management and cooking simulation, appealing to fans of both genres.
  • The developers are responsive to player feedback and actively work on updates and improvements, showing commitment to enhancing the game.
  • The tutorial is lacking and can be confusing, making it difficult for new players to understand the mechanics of the game.
  • There are numerous bugs and performance issues, including glitches with staff and customers that can disrupt gameplay.
  • The game can become repetitive and lacks depth in late-game content, leading to a feeling of aimlessness after achieving initial success.
  • gameplay91 mentions

    The gameplay of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players finding it simplistic and lacking depth, often comparing it unfavorably to idle games and other management sims. While some appreciate the recipe creation mechanics and potential for customization, others criticize the repetitive nature, poor performance, and unintuitive controls, leading to a frustrating experience. Overall, the game seems to struggle with balancing engaging gameplay and user-friendly mechanics, leaving many players feeling underwhelmed.

    • “The gameplay is enjoyable, and my only complaint is the occasional bug.”
    • “Gameplay is the meat here; and the overall feel of owning a restaurant is there; in particular, there is an amazing recipe creator that allows you to make what you want.”
    • “The gameplay is awesome, totally reminiscent of old-school tycoon games but with a lot more choices and customization.”
    • “The gameplay, which should be the heart of the game, is where it truly falters.”
    • “The cooking mechanics, a crucial element of the game, are disappointingly simplistic.”
    • “Its lackluster graphics, repetitive and shallow gameplay, poor performance, and frustrating AI combine to create an experience that is more tedious than enjoyable.”
  • graphics82 mentions

    The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the colorful and cute art style, while others criticize the visuals as bland, outdated, or lacking polish. Many users note graphical glitches and performance issues, suggesting that the overall aesthetic could benefit from improvements. Despite these criticisms, some find the graphics charming and fitting for a light simulation game, indicating a divide in player expectations regarding visual quality.

    • “The graphics and art design is lovely.”
    • “The drawings are very cute and fit well with the game's general atmosphere; the in-game graphics are really nice.”
    • “Really really cute graphic design, relaxing soundtrack too.”
    • “First off, the graphics and presentation are underwhelming.”
    • “The visuals are bland and lack the polish expected from a modern simulation game.”
    • “The ugly visuals with ugly paintings ripped from some garbage wallpaper site are the cherry on top of this pile of shit.”
  • story36 mentions

    The game's story mode is criticized for being confusing and lacking tutorials, making it difficult for new players to succeed. Many users recommend starting with sandbox mode instead, as it offers better guidance and a more enjoyable experience. Overall, the story is seen as underdeveloped and aimless, with players expressing hope for future updates to enhance its depth and engagement.

    • “Easy enough gameplay to learn through tutorials, immersive storyline, and devs who listen and take action.”
    • “The story mode is difficult, but I like how there are multiple strategies that work to accomplish the goals.”
    • “They intend to implement story as time goes on and are increasing the depth of the simulation.”
    • “When you start the game, avoid story mode; you'll be left confused since the game has zero tutorials in story mode, but has some tutorials in sandbox.”
    • “Story mode also comes with an asinine 'make $50' initial quest which basically throws you to the wolves as a newbie, micromanaging salaries and ingredients to actually make that $50.”
    • “There are no quests and the decisions have no follow-up; you see no evident result.”
  • stability30 mentions

    The game's stability is heavily criticized, with numerous reports of frequent crashes, glitches, and slowdowns that significantly hinder gameplay. Many users note issues with object placement, recipe creation, and overall functionality, leading to a frustrating experience. While some players acknowledge minor bugs typical of early access titles, the overwhelming consensus is that the game is riddled with critical errors that detract from its potential.

    • “Runs smoothly and is not buggy at all.”
    • “The game maintains a consistent frame rate, providing a seamless experience.”
    • “I haven't encountered any crashes or glitches, which makes for a stable gameplay experience.”
    • “Frequent crashes, glitches, and slowdowns make playing chef a frustrating ordeal.”
    • “This game is riddled with bugs, glitches, and errors.”
    • “Officially stuck at the loading screen and the game either freezes or crashes.”
  • music21 mentions

    The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players praising its cute and calming qualities, while others find it repetitive and lacking in variety. Many appreciate the soothing soundtrack that complements the game's aesthetic, though some express a desire for more engaging or customizable music options. Overall, while the music is generally seen as pleasant, it may not suit all players' preferences, especially in a high-intensity gameplay context.

    • “I hope Luigi Di Guida was given a bonus for his amazing music.”
    • “The music is pleasant and didn't become annoying in my (quite long) first gaming session.”
    • “Very nice artworks and soundtrack, they both make the game a pleasure to watch and play.”
    • “The repetitive music is annoying.”
    • “While the game looks decent and the soundtrack is calming, the general sound ambience is minimalist to put it mildly.”
    • “Game music is boring and feels irrelevant.”
  • optimization19 mentions

    The game's optimization is widely criticized, with users reporting significant bugs, poor performance, and frustrating AI, leading to a tedious experience. Many players experienced crashes and low frame rates, particularly in late-game scenarios, indicating a lack of effective optimization efforts from the developers. Overall, the game requires substantial quality of life improvements and bug fixes to enhance performance and player enjoyment.

    • “Needs some quality of life improvements, bug squashing, and optimization.”
    • “Runs smoothly and not buggy at all.”
    • “I think it needs performance optimization to become a widely available game.”
    • “Moreover, the game is plagued with bugs and performance issues.”
    • “All I can say is that you should wait a little more before buying this game; some bugs are pretty big (like your head chef disappearing along with his skills) or the bad optimizations. Late game, when you have many clients, you get 18-25 fps.”
    • “Major bugs everywhere; you can't put decorations on some walls because they're glitchy as hell. Performance is so bad my gaming €1.5k PC couldn't run it properly, and it crashed in just 30 minutes of gameplay.”
  • monetization18 mentions

    The monetization aspect of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players feeling it leans towards a cash grab due to its heavy reliance on advertising and in-game expenses. While the game offers depth and customization typical of tycoon games, many users express frustration over the high costs of advertising and maintenance, which can hinder progress and create a sense of unfairness. Overall, the balance between monetization and gameplay experience appears to be a significant concern for players.

    • “If you like old school restaurant games (not the awful in-app purchase ones that are everywhere these days) that have a lot of depth and can sometimes be tricky, this is the game for you.”
    • “In another, I'm dozens of hours in and still have almost no advertising available.”
    • “I love the idea of running your own restaurant, and an actual game instead of an app filled with microtransactions?”
    • “At this point, it just feels cash grabby, and I cannot endorse it anymore... since it's pretty much the same game I played at the start.”
    • “So, basically, you have 1 day to make enough money to pay an entire week's rent, staff salary, maintenance, advertising, and cleaning, which feels extremely unfair.”
    • “I've had 3 careers now, all of which failed because I can't get anyone other than cheapskates in my restaurants who refuse to pay for anything and give me bad chef advisor reviews. But maybe I'm just missing a trick, and I know you can pay for advertising, but it doesn't bring in many people and is very expensive.”
  • grinding15 mentions

    The grinding aspect of the game is frequently criticized for being tedious and time-consuming, with many players feeling that it detracts from the overall enjoyment. While some find the initial grind confusing but ultimately rewarding, others express frustration with repetitive tasks and a lack of engaging content, leading to a sense of boredom. Overall, the grind is seen as a necessary hurdle to reach the more enjoyable elements of gameplay, such as recipe creation and competition.

    • “At this point it gets very boring and grindy, and I cannot really understand why the game got such positive reviews.”
    • “Most of your time is spent grinding to get to the actual fun parts, which is creating your own recipes and seeing how they do.”
    • “It is very tedious and time-consuming to go through all of my recipes to upgrade the ingredients, especially ones you may use in just about every one of them like black pepper.”
  • humor11 mentions

    The humor in the game is a mix of dry wit and playful absurdity, often found in the text descriptions and quirky graphics, though it may suffer from some language issues. Players appreciate the comedic elements, such as the absurdity of certain gameplay mechanics and the humorous interactions with customers, which enhance the overall experience. While the humor is entertaining, it is complemented by a challenging business simulation that allows for a range of restaurant styles, from casual to upscale.

    • “There is an unforgiving business simulation hidden beneath the cute, simple graphics, sarcastic humor, and calm atmosphere.”
    • “It's surprisingly funny too, and the customer class system was an excellent idea that gives you quite a few ways to steer your restaurant.”
    • “I love the recipe editor; it's especially funny because you can create the recipe with the weirdest combo of ingredients and names ever, and people in your restaurant will lose their minds.”
  • replayability9 mentions

    Replayability in the game is a mixed bag; while some players appreciate the potential for endless replayability through randomization options and mod support, others find the lack of engaging content and challenges leads to little incentive to replay. DLCs and updates have been noted to enhance replay value, but for some, the game lacks sufficient depth to warrant multiple playthroughs. Overall, opinions vary widely, with some players enjoying the replayable aspects while others feel the game falls short.

    • “Adding an option to randomize starting ingredients could make for a whimsical challenge and give a bump to replay value.”
    • “I love the endless replayability of this game!”
    • “The replayability is fairly high, with little details revealing themselves through playthroughs that you will want to fix on the next go.”
    • “Unfortunately, I don't see any replayability in this game, since I have absolutely zero interest in ever playing it again. I would only recommend this game for about $5; anything above that, you shouldn't get it.”
    • “Surpassing a Gordon Ramsay parody in the game's fictional best chef list only offers a brief enough distraction from the lack of replayability of the game.”
    • “As it is a cheap indie game, some replay value for a few playthroughs should be enough.”
  • atmosphere9 mentions

    The atmosphere in the game is a mixed bag, with players appreciating the cute graphics and calm ambiance, but criticizing the overall hollowness and limitations in customization options that affect the restaurant's atmosphere score. While the interior design elements can enhance the experience, the slow unlocking of decorations and harsh penalties for low atmosphere detract from the enjoyment. Overall, the game has potential for a more vibrant atmosphere, but it currently feels lacking and could benefit from adjustments to the atmosphere mechanics.

    • “There is an unforgiving business simulation hidden beneath the cute, simple graphics, sarcastic humor, and calm atmosphere.”
    • “The recipe editor is very inventive and a lot of fun to work with, and while the customization options for your restaurant are limited at the beginning, it is very satisfying to create the atmosphere for your location.”
    • “The drawings are very cute and fit well with the game's general atmosphere; the in-game graphics are really nice.”
    • “The atmosphere feels very hollow in the game.”
    • “Players do not need very fancy and realistic scenes for a simulation game, and I just hope the chef can make the atmosphere (and the GUI) more lively.”
    • “Also, it takes forever to unlock new decorations, so you're constantly being dinged for 'atmosphere'.”
  • character development2 mentions

    Character development is praised for its depth and customization options, allowing players to fully personalize their restaurant, character designs, and menus. The variety in character design, coupled with effective animations, enhances the overall experience.

    • “I love how in-depth it gets with the recipe editor and the ability to fully customize your restaurant design, character design, and menu!”
    • “The character design is nice and varied, with some effective animation work.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Buy Chef: A Restaurant Tycoon Game

Play time

13hMedian play time
14hAverage play time
6-28hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 15 analyzed playthroughs

Videos

Similar Games