Top 10 best restaurant simulation cooking games that give you an interesting operating space

Initial release date: June 7, 2016
Mode: single player
Genre: Cooking, Simulation
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developers: Maxis, The Sims Studio
Platforms: Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, Classic Mac OS
The Sims 4 has dominated the gaming space and has grown in popularity since becoming a free-to-play game in 2022. As a result, there's plenty of additional content, including restaurant simulation cooking title The Sims 4. Sims 4: Dine Out. It allows fans of The Sims series to get a first-hand experience of building and owning their own restaurant, while providing them with micro-management skills.

The Sims 4 allows many dreams to come true and can build anyone's dream restaurant. Not only that, players can also choose who they want to hire, uniforms for the staff, and manually choose the menu from scratch. While The Sims 4: Dine Out isn't an expansion pack, it does add exciting content that The Sims 4 players and aspiring chefs should definitely check out!

Initial release date: December 5, 2016
Mode: single player
Genre: Cooking, Simulation, Casual, Independent, Strategy
Publisher: Riff Studios, Kanstantsin Arkhipenka
Developers: Riff Studios
Platforms: Android, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS
In contrast to the business-heavy Coffee Tycoon, the experience of the restaurant simulation cooking game Coffee Shop Tycoon focuses more on the proactive aspect of management. In this quirky looking game, the player builds and takes charge of his cafe. They can start small with a space with a few tables, then turn into a large coffee shop suitable for executives and their favorite caffeinated drinks.

What makes Coffee Shop Tycoon interesting is its rather in-depth approach to the cafe management aspect. Besides taking care of customers, players also need to manage small things like equipment and inventory. In fact, they also need to pay attention to not only the amount of coffee stored but also their freshness.

Initial release date: March 22, 2018
Mode: single player
Genre: Cooking, Simulation, Casual
Publisher: Assemble Entertainment
Developers: Gentlymad Studios
Platforms: Microsoft Windows, Linux, MacOS, Classic Mac OS
Why choose a restaurant when players can finally create their favorite pizzas in their own pizzeria? With a restaurant simulation cooking game called Pizza Connection 3, players can bake the pizzas of their dreams, even covering them with pineapple! In Pizza Connection 3, players build their own restaurant from scratch - complete with nearby establishments that may or may not attract more customers.

As players build shops, they even need to choose names for certain rooms to denote their roles. Typical for a business game, Pizza Connection 3 will also require players to track stats, employees, marketing and research on the pizzeria. However, the game also has an in-depth menu option and a unique opponent destruction feature.

Original release date: June 1, 2009
Mode: single player
Genre: Cooking, Simulation, Casual, Independent
Publisher: Enlight Software, Paradox Interactive, Enlight Entertainment Europe Ltd.
Developers: Enlight Software, Virtual Programming
Platforms: Windows, OS X
In the restaurant simulation cooking game Restaurant Empire 2, the player is responsible for building and managing his restaurant. Players start by choosing their specific culinary expertise (like American, Italian, German or French) and create their own restaurant of choice. In addition, players need to pay special attention to specific statistics between employees and customers.

In turn, Restaurant Empire 2 has a small micromanagement element that has made some gamers a bit uncomfortable. For example, players have to keep track of how long customers wait in line as they become impatient. Instead, they sometimes boast high budgets in lieu of high quality expectations. Players who want to manage these tiny elements will appreciate Restaurant Empire 2.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Original release date: 8/13/2009
Mode: single player
Genre: cooking, simulation
Publisher: Glu
Developer: Glu
Platforms: Android
Nothing can beat the classics and nothing more classic in restaurant simulation cooking games, Cooking Dash really stands out. Despite its quirky comic-style graphics, Cooking Dash still brings many challenges to the time management gameplay. Basically, players start arranging dishes by going through the necessary equipment in the kitchen. They then need to serve these dishes to customers before they run out of patience.

The thing is, Cooking Dash intensifies the challenge quickly as players progress through the levels. In the end, players must continue to play it in the face of defying efforts to optimize their kitchen space.