Restaurants in Hutchinson

The first IHOP—the dream of founders Al and Jerry Lapin—opened in 1958 in Toluca Lake, California, and was originally dubbed the International House of Pancakes. Since then, rapid expansion has led to myriad milestones across the company's colorful history, from introducing its modern IHOP acronym in 1973 to its 1,000th restaurant opening in Layton, Utah, in 2001.

Today, the company stands strong with around 1,500 locations across North and Central America, each one an enthusiastic dispenser of pancakes, french toast, and tables constructed entirely out of bacon. Though IHOP is known as a bastion of breakfast, it also stays open during the day and into the evening, delivering lunch and dinner as well.

Ruben’s Mexican Grill’s cheerful sign invites diners inside the casual family-owned restaurant, where plates of steaming, freshly made Mexican dishes tango with chilled margaritas on the palate. Chefs whip up classic burritos, tacos, and enchiladas, and extend their culinary prowess toward specialty carne asada dinners and shrimp rancheros with fresh peppers, onions, and guacamole. An accommodating wait staff tends to indoor and outdoor dining areas, making guests feel like family even if they believe people come from storks.

Upon walking into Riverside Café, one online reviewer remarked, “It truly was like one of those diners you see on TV, but never thought you'd find in real life." And while each of the 50s-style eatery's three locations boast touches such as checkerboard floors, vinyl booths, and table-side jukeboxes that call to mind the fictional hangouts––Arnold's, Mel's––that once set up shop in every American living room, it's the welcoming, family-like atmosphere and hearty cuisine that really make patrons feel at home. Fans of chicken-fried steak with biscuits and sausage gravy or thick, Texas-size French toast can relax knowing that breakfast is served all day, assuming they can pass up black angus burgers topped with guacamole and Swiss or served open-faced with chili and cheese. The homemade pies may be the biggest draw, however, baked fresh each day in a rotating selection of flavors, and available whole, by the slice, or folded into a crane.

Owners Chris and Sheila Hare keep their menu simple, comforting, and hearty. Signature homestyle dishes include the Kitchen Sink omelet, plumped with five eggs, ham, sausage, bacon, and enough healthful veggies to help a child grow to the size of a small adult in just a few years. Amid burgundy booths and golden-tiled floors, tables populate with syrup-slathered pancake stacks, juicy burgers, and entrees of chicken-fried steak and meatloaf.

After noshing, guests can put their reflexes to the test on the dining room's air-hockey and pool tables or retreat to the sun porch, where a video-game room features such vintage classics as Area 51 and ATM Here.

More than 81 beers settle into glasses at Pour Haus before making their way into the lineup of German-tinged pub eats. Boneless buffalo chicken wings receive an infusion of Tallgrass Buffalo Sweat stout, and beer-cheese soup combines aged cheeses with Fat Tire ale. In addition to the alcoholic edibles, the kitchen also churns out meaty burgers such as Lucy’s Other Brother, a beef patty stuffed with cheese, bacon, and jalapeños that tests sibling rivalry when placed between fraternal twins.

Kumeo Komazaki, known to friends as "Koma", relocated to New York City from Japan 30 years ago, bringing with him the culinary skills he learned as a chef for Japan's Imperial Palace Hotel. While working as a chef in New York, Komazaki happened to read the address on a box of beef shipped from Wichita, then seized the opportunity to establish his own restaurant there. At the Wichita location and its sister restaurants in St. Louis and Omaha, chefs entertain diners as they prepare steaks, seafood, and chicken at teppanyaki tables, flipping sizzling victuals through the air and searing meat to perfection. Sushi chefs roll and slice fresh seafood into bite-size pieces, which can be brought to mouths with chopsticks or hunger-induced telekinesis.