Not much to say here aside from the fact that this is probably my favorite restaurant on earth. I'm a sucker for small family diners though. Nutcracker delivers time and time again with American sized portions for prices that leave me genuinely confused why they are so cheap. And don't even get me started on the pies...hands down the best I've ever found. And made to order if you just give them a call. Plainly said, this place has it all and is a very, very regular spot for my wife and I when we don't feel like cooking. read more

Very good breakfast joint! They must be doing something right because the place was packed on a Sunday morning. The service was friendly and attentive, the portions were aplenty, and the price was fare. My omelette was out of this world. I'm not in the area often, but if find myself in this part of the world again, I'd love to go back. read more

Love this place! Cozy, great food, lots of menu choices and great service! Everything including those great pies, well priced!

Got their meatloaf combo with a Mac n cheese side along with a slice of blueberry pie to go.The wait wasn't long at all surprisingly for a restaurant. The meatloaf was served on top of mashed potatoes and a slice of bread, it was pretty good. Serving size was nice as well. The pie was cold unfortunately but still pretty good. read more

Really enjoyed this place. The 50's style diner-type atmosphere is comfortable and I love the selections up front of whole pies, chocolates, candies and even a nut variety in a warming case by the cash register. The biggest cashews I think I've ever seen! I had the 50's Club and onion rings, as well as a cup of their clam chowder. The clam chowder was actually quite good and that's coming from someone who's pretty picky about that particular soup. The sandwich was HUGE and I could only get through half of it, but it was very good. My son had the fried bologna sandwich, coleslaw and the Mac & Cheese Wedges. I tried one of the wedges and wow, those were yummy. He loved the bologna sandwich, but said the slaw left much to be desired and had a weird aftertaste. I tried a bite and he was right. Very strange in flavor. Although not horrible, we wouldn't order it again. Despite it being very busy (lunchtime on a Friday) the service was great and the food was very good. We'll definitely go back. read more

The absolute worst pie that I've ever had! Was told that the snickers pie won an award??? How? Horrible! ! read more

Nutcracker Family Restaurant - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Pataskala, Ohio

Everything delicious you would expect from a small town mom and pop restaurant, except the service was incredible. Her effortless recommendations completely fit what I needed this morning, and my day is going to be great because of it. read more

I loved this really neat restaurant. I recently had surgery and was having trouble eating and so I got the chicken and noodles and it was perfect. They also have the best homemade deserts including several types of pie. Highly recommend the snickers pie. read more

So many of the reviews of this great restaurant irritate the hell out of me. Reviews should be about the food. That the waitresses did not fawn over you or the service was a little later than you found acceptable or the parking was not up to your standards are just ridiculous. If it is really bad that needs mentioning in the comments but as far as the star rating is concerned just rate the damn food. This place is excellent. Had the country fried steak. It was as good as I have had. Perfectly done with plenty of delicious gravy. Outstanding potatoes and eggs down just right. My wife is the country fried steak expert. She tried mine and said it was the best she has had in central Ohio. My wife had a skillet breakfast. She hummed her approval all through the meal. Eggs with cheese and sausage. Biscuit and gravy was top drawer. Potatoes are not frozen and outstanding. I have seen complaints about service. I experienced none of that. It was pretty busy when we arrived. It is not a small place. It was about three quarters full at the time. We had all our needs taken care of, and in good time. From my experience anyone complaining about service is just too whiny and needy. Parking is plentiful. As I said the place was pretty busy but we found a parking space easily and a very short walk from the door. Atmosphere was a delight. There is a 50's nostalgia theme but they also had a good number of interesting nutcrackers all around the place. The only negative I could offer is it is off the beaten path. It is a good long drive from our southwest Columbus home. If we are in the vicinity we will absolutely revisit this great diner. read more

Went in there with our baseball team today. So we brought 25 people and everyone ordered. Some of the kids were still hungry after their meal being teenage boys and ordered extra meals. So we were there longer than a normal party would be. I could not believe how rude the manager was to us. She came over and started to clean up and made comments like "how much time do you need to be here really?" And "time to get going." There were definitely several ways she could have handled it without being rude and offensive to us. It was off hours and dinner had not started yet and there were other tables in the restaurant that were open and available. What she prevented was a lot of people ordering dessert which we were about to do. It was a real head scratcher because we were all polite. There are of course two sides to every story so I would love to hear what she was thinking. read more

Don't come here if you want to feel welcome. My parents and I came here hoping to get a nice lunch. We walked in and waited to be seated. We waited at least 5 minutes. We had several employees walk by us without even acknowledging our presence. Every employee looked angry and there was not a smile to be seen. We felt like outsiders and were super uncomfortable. As someone who is on the keto diet, there weren't many options for me to choose from. I ended up getting the Big Breakfast. That included multiple breakfast meats and eggs. With potatoes, toast, and biscuits and gravy. All of which I cant eat. I asked the waitress if I could not get any of that and just a couple pieces of sausage in its place. She said that's not allowed but I could add sausage for 4 more dollars... so they couldnt make a substitute for my diet but were happy to charge an outrageous amount for a couple pieces of sausage. My parents and I both left here sick. My mom was sick the rest of the day. If I had the option this would get 0 stars. Only person who greeted us the whole time was a cook on their cigarette break as we were leaving. Average food, overpriced, would not recommend. read more

Nutcracker Family Restaurant - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Pataskala, Ohio

We had driven by here several times before, but never realized it was a classic retro 50s diner inside. You'll find tons of retro candies for sale, and there are nutcrackers all over the window sills. Not sure with the nutcrackers have to do with the 50's theme but it makes it kind interesting. We waited about 10 min for a seat on Sunday around noon. Not bad. Our waitress was friendly and got our drink order quickly. I ordered an omelette with meat and cheese and tons of veggies. Sourdough toast was not toasted and limp and soggy. Omelette was pretty good-lots of fillings with real Swiss cheese. $10 though, and that's without potatoes. He got meatloaf with mashed potatoes. Meatloaf was rather bland and pedestrian, and potatoes were from powder. Also $10. We will probably come back once more and try the lunches. They looked yummy as they traveled to other tables read more

A marvelous place to eat. Great for children and adults also. Food is homemade and simply delicious. Daily specials and home made pies. 5 STAR rating. read more

Best classic diner ever, the owners are involved in the community, the food is excellent and the decor is really awesome

Been going here for the past few years. Too be honest I have had very little disappointment with my food only twice in all the time I have been coming here. That's really good in my book. Not every place can be perfect all of the time. This place is pretty close in my book. I have greatly enjoyed the atmosphere with all of the iconic variety of nutcrackers on display. Wow!! The 50s decor is fun and love the food! I enjoy how the recognize and honor our veterans and current military personnel on Memorial Day with free meal and also special event deals through 4th of July. Our favorite server is Chad. He's genuinely friendly and actually glides so smoothly from table to table making his patrons feel special. We have had other servers and they also are really friendly and good as well. They serve breakfast all day, lunch and dinner. They open early and close by 8 pm Don't come on Monday's because they are closed on Mondays. You will not be disappointed. read more

Very cute atmosphere, very 1950's, with nutcrackers thrown in. The food was good, hubby had one of the specials, I had a grilled tomato and cheese. Very friendly and great service, kept our water glasses full. Nothing fancy, just good food, and very reasonable prices! We have become regulars. Went on Memorial Day, we are vets, and vets eat free that day. Staff more courteous than usual (if that's possible). Was not just a few select items, their entire menu plus an extra menu of specials. If nothing else go for the desserts. They are all homemade and delicious . Great. Place to eat!!! Update: went to lunch today, everybody running crazy because of corona virus. We needed some "normal". Went to lunch, they are being so meticulous with their cleaning!! Had a great lunch, put life back in balance. And had a GREAT piece of pie, after all it is Pi read more

Good home cooking in a quaintly decorated diner. We really enjoyed our dInner. They have old fashioned candy as well; the kind you would get as a kid. read more

So much fun! Kitschy. Awesome decor. Super fun jukebox. Really good comfort food. A mean Vanilla Coke, and I mean that in the best possible way. Really good coffee. The open face beef sandwich was delicious. Meatloaf stack was very good. Very fun candy selection. Just a great time all around. Loved our waitress. Teenage girl who knows her stuff and can out-wait lots of adult waiters we've had elsewhere. Worth the trip, we will be back. read more

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Disappointing and dirty. Menu is just basic. Food is very bland. The multitude of nutcracker figurines everywhere are cool, but thick with dust. I guess it would be hard to keep a restaurant clean with so much clutter..... read more

Amazing little gem of a restaurant! From the outside it looks quiet and quaint, but it is bustling and busy! A little hole in the wall but so worth the stop because the food is fantastic, the coffee was always refilled without any asking or prompting, and the service was superb! I loved that it is Christmas themed and decked out wall to ceiling in decorations and they roast their own nuts in house so it smelled yummy too! I will eventually revisit them! read more

Might be a family restaurant. Everything comes out of a box. Nothing but desert is homemade. Not a favorite

Awesome place, such friendly employees and customers. They Make you feel like your home. I had the nutcracker and it was perfect. Thanks for the memory. read more

Stopped in spur of the moment being on this side of town. Service was amazing the food was AMAZING. Dessert even better. After reading the negative reviews I'm confused seems like they didnt go to the same restaurant I did.b read more

The hamburger & fries were great, as was the salad with cauliflower burger. The hamburger was a bit overcooked but still good. The fries were perfect .. along with the cauliflower burger, the best part of the meal. I also ordered deep fried corn on the cob but it never arrived. Then there was the service. We waited a looong time for our order. Realizing we should order dessert quickly, we did so as soon as the food arrived. We were done and waiting again for some time before the banana cream cake and malt arrived. The cake was good but had way too much caramel syrup. The malt arrived in stages, with the overflow cup, spoon and napkins coming about 10 minutes after the malt itself. So, some good food, some not so good, and interesting service. read more

This is a fun little restaurant/diner kinda place. It is full of nutcracker - I have seen so many different kind of nutcrackers. And the food and service and spot on. I would go here more often if it was closer but it's in Pataskala and I'm near Bexley so it's quite a little ways away. But it is so good we tried to get in for Christmas eve morning and they were booked so my cousin mad reservations for NEXT year. read more

Our first time here and we love it! Such cute 1950s decor. The walls are covered! We ordered mac and cheese bites, meatloaf dinner and all-you-can-eat perch. All was delicious and the staff were extremely friendly! Thanks so much for such a positive first experience here. We will definitely be back! read more

Nutcracker Family Restaurant - First time here and it was delicious! Will definitely be back! - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Pataskala, Ohio

I was just here tonight...I laugh at Shana B's review! The food is always fresh and mostly homemade. This is one of the best family restraunts ive found in central ohio! read more

Nutcracker Family Restaurant - creampuff - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Pataskala, Ohio

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I love nutcracker I recommend the honey mustard with the chicken tenders and Mac&cheese

We love this gem hidden in plain sight in Pataskala. Service is outstanding, the staff is super friendly and attentive. We even ordered a take out order and first, the young lady who answered was so nice and helpful. Second, the food was still just as good. read more

If you're anywhere near Pataskala, this is a pretty solid breakfast choice. They do serve breakfast all day but cheesy hash browns only until 11. Service is fast and friendly, coffee is good, biscuits are awesome. Comparable to Grill & Skillet or Frank's in Eastmoor but not divey. It's more of a 50s diner theme but since the owner collects nutcrackers, there are lots and all sorts of them. Dinner is not quite as good as breakfast but good, great pies! read more

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Love everything about this place. We've never had bad service and the food is always good!! Great homemade deserts as wel!!

Best country fried steak I have ever had and so good with their cheese potatoes. We also ordered a grilled cinnamon roll which was really tasty. It's definitely a solid, dependable, breakfast spot. The atmosphere is cool with the 50s diner country store theme. I look forward to bringing friends and family here. read more

Whoa! Totally random stop. I wanted something that was "mom and pop" and found it! The interior looks nothing like you would expect from the outside...very cute, 50's style diner with nutcrackers everywhere! Very family oriented, closes at 8pm. Great decor, love the red and white sparkly booths! Lydia, our server, was great! Great hospitality! She told us the history of the building and the restaurant itself. Food was great! All you can eat perch and pollock, was very good! Go with the pollock over the perch though in my opinion...great breading on both! Lynd's Farm Cinnamon Apple Sauce was delicious! The deep fried corn on the cob was so good! Cannot wait to come back! read more

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If you want to see me become a kid in a candy store, take me here. A friend told me several months ago he needed to take me here. You see, I collect Nutcrackers. I have 80+. And my friend knows I like retro stuff. Now, the food isn't what really makes the place as all the Coke memorabilia and retro candy but the food was satisfying enough. I had the all-you-can-eat fried chicken (drum stick & breast), mashed potatoes, green beans, and deep fried corn. I really liked the chicken and the waitress was happy to bring more. The mashed potatoes tasted instant but I sometimes liked instant mashed potatoes as a kid so I was ok with that. The green beans was hoe mom made green beans...with bacon! The deep fried corn cob was tough so I won't care to get that again. I loved the retro kitchen table tops and the shiny booths!! It's a really cool places. There is ample parking but be careful about the time you go as they have limited hours. I look forward to trying their breakfast and lunch. Staff were friendly and ready to serve you. Just check it out. You'll have fun. Just remember, only children can ride the horsey. read more

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I discovered this charming little dinner when I started boarding my horse in Pataskala, and it's become one of my favorite places in the Columbus area. The key is to remember that it's a *diner*, so if you want to have a decent meal there, you should order something diner-ish. In other words, if I wanted a steak, I'd go to a steak house. If I wanted a really great slice of meat loaf, or a fried fish sandwich, or an omelet for breakfast, I'd go to the Nutcracker. There's usually a daily special, and Thursday (all-you-can-eat fresh fried chicken) and Friday is often all-you-can-eat fish night (with perch, pollock, or both.) Some menu highlights/stuff I like: --applesauce from Lynd's, which is exceptionally good. If you can get this as your side dish, do it. --meatloaf, very "diner style" and very good --patty melt --milkshakes --some of the pies, which are made pretty locally. Ask them what they have that day. --country fried steak, very competently made, not quite up there with Cracker Barrel's version but pretty darn good --chicken or steak fajita salad --Tyler's Wrap, a good choice if you're looking for something a little lighter. Some menu "misses," in my opinion: --mac and cheese wedges appetizer - basically just Kraft mac n' cheese covered in a beer batter and fried. Not as good as it sounds. If you're into this kind of thing, go to the Cheesecake Factory and get their fried mac n' cheese balls. --any kind of vegetable side. It's usually some steamed veg from a freezer bag. --steak/prime rib. The one time I ordered it, it was overcooked and nothing to write home about. The fries are good but not OMG exceptional. I like their waffle fries a little better than the regular fries, and the sweet potato fries are good, maybe even above average. One peculiarity of the Nutcracker: service seems to be better when the restaurant is really busy and much slower when service is slow. I hypothesize that this is a function of the country town where it's placed: the Tuesday 2 p.m. customer tends to be a farmer or retired person who just wants to hang out and enjoy a long, slow, leisurely meal, and slow service would facilitate that. If you want great service, go when the joint is hopping, like on a Saturday or Sunday morning. Warning: the Sunday hours are pretty bad, just 7 to 2. But they're open 7 am to 8 pm all other days, including Mondays. read more

This is one of my favorite places to go! I drive 25 minutes just for their burgers! The atmosphere is great & really reminds you of a true old-skool diner. Tonight, i decided to try the "old fashioned diner dinner" and was NOT disappointed. It was amazing & their french fries are great! The service was spectacular. As a nutcracker collector myself, i love going around and looking at their different nutcrackers. I love coming here in the winter time around Christmas because it puts me in a holly jolly spirit. This was mr first time here in awhile & i'm glad nothing has changed. I'll definitely continue coming here & will be back. The menu is very reasonable for the great quality of food your served. Don't forget dessert! This is definitely one of Licking County's gems. read more

Nutcracker Family Restaurant - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - Pataskala, Ohio

Great food, great atmosphere and great service. Bought some chocolates to share with my co-workers tomorrow. Everyone was very nice and the menu is fantastic. read more

Basically just edible food. Let's leave it right there and only there. I guess you could call at farm to table but I think it would be more like frozen food aisle to table. Imagine Denny's but it sucks. I will say that they have on tap root beer and it literally almost makes up for the food! read more

Food is average and probably only deserves 2 stars but the theme and decor are adorable and fun! While we waited for our order we all picked out our favorite nutcracker. The entire 50's soda pop shop restaurant is lined with them. We ordered an app of fried green tomatoes--delicious but dripping in oil. Ordered the chicken and noodles atop mashed potatoes with a fried corn-on-the-cob as my side for $10. The mashed potatoes were definitely from a box which made me sad and the noodles had a funky taste. Large chunks of juicy chicken though. Never had fried corn before and wasn't sure if it would come breaded or not. It was flash fried and dipped in melted butter--about a 3" section. It was guilty but good! My friends ordered the Reuben and a breakfast platter. Ate them, but again it was an average meal. They have lots of house made pies and desserts which we didn't get but they looked yummy. They also have retro candies you can grab at the register when you pay. Fun little place. read more

First time here, had heard many great things about this place so I thought I'd give it a try today...definitely a mistake. I walked in and people were swarming everywhere, I saw an open dinning area in the back that wasn't being used for some reason, they just had everybody crammed in the front. I was by myself so I decided to eat at the bar. My server was very nice but my anxiety was at an all time high because the other servers kept throwing stuff on the bar right where I was sitting (receipts, handheld computers) and kept talking with each other about how long each table has been there, if they've paid yet and how quickly they think they can get them out the door. It was very uncomfortable. I ordered a hamburger, fries and a side salad. The side salad was straight from a bag ....gross but expected. The hamburger was a fresh made patty but had no flavor...fries were the best part. I hurried and ate so I could get out of there. I got my card out to signal I could pay on one of the handheld computers because I felt very pressured by the 'back room talk' that I was forced to listen to and the host quickly came over to cash out. I didn't pay attention to the total until I got home and realized I was charged for somebody else's bill. I gave a 25% tip because I always do and saw on my credit card the base charge (before tip) was $21.75...oh well. Lesson learned. Hopefully whoever's bill I paid enjoyed their experience more than I did. read more