Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game alternatives

Users often leave Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game due to its aggressive monetization, requiring premium currency for progression and upgrades, and frequent technical issues like crashes. Alternatives offer different balances of ads, in-app purchases, and gameplay styles.

Why users look for alternatives to Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game

Players frequently encounter paywalls, needing to spend real money on rubies or gems to progress, upgrade kitchens, or purchase decor required for higher levels.^R1^R3^R4^R7
The game is criticized for an excessive number of pop-ups and hidden purchase options that constantly prompt users to buy gems and special offers.^R6^R15
Many users report significant technical issues, including frequent app crashes, especially after updates, and problems with the game not loading or losing progress.^R10^R18^R19^R33
Some players find the gameplay repetitive or boring after a while, with special missions feeling similar and a lack of new content or events once all restaurants are completed.^R8^R11^R20^R23

The alternatives

Cooking Madness-Kitchen Frenzy

4.9★ · 780,198 ratings · Free

Cooking Madness-Kitchen Frenzy offers a fast-paced and stressful, yet fun, cooking experience where players must promptly serve customers and manage upgrades ^R55. The game can be chaotic and may push players to spend money, but it starts without ads ^R55.

Better for: This game is better for players who enjoy high-adrenaline, rapid-fire cooking challenges and don't mind a potentially chaotic experience ^R55. It might suit those who are willing to tolerate ads or consider in-app purchases for a smoother experience, as ads can become frequent later on ^R54^R56.

Head-to-head: Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game vs Cooking Madness-Kitchen Frenzy

Cooking Fever

4.5★ · 339,566 ratings · Free

This alternative has too few reviews to judge its specific offerings or who it suits better.

Better for: This alternative has too few reviews to judge its specific offerings or who it suits better.

Head-to-head: Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game vs Cooking Fever

Cooking Craze

4.7★ · 257,302 ratings · Free

This alternative has too few reviews to judge its specific offerings or who it suits better.

Better for: This alternative has too few reviews to judge its specific offerings or who it suits better.

Head-to-head: Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game vs Cooking Craze

The Cook

4.6★ · 209,293 ratings · Free

This alternative has too few reviews to judge its specific offerings or who it suits better.

Better for: This alternative has too few reviews to judge its specific offerings or who it suits better.

Head-to-head: Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game vs The Cook

Cooking City

4.8★ · 168,077 ratings · Free

This alternative has too few reviews to judge its specific offerings or who it suits better.

Better for: This alternative has too few reviews to judge its specific offerings or who it suits better.

Head-to-head: Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game vs Cooking City

Stick with Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game if

You should stick with Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game if you find the gameplay addictive and fun, especially if you appreciate a cooking game with character customization and guild features . It's also a good choice if you enjoy a game with minimal forced ads and are comfortable with the pace of earning premium currency over time, or if you don't mind making occasional purchases to enhance the experience ^R2.

Evidence note: Cooking Fever, Cooking Craze, The Cook, and Cooking City had too few reviews to provide a detailed pitch.

Frequently asked

Does Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game require in-app purchases to progress?

While some users report reaching a point where progression feels impossible without spending money on rubies or gems for upgrades and decor, other players state they have played for years without making any purchases and still enjoy the game ^R1^R3^R4^R7.

Are there many ads in Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game?

Many players appreciate Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game for having very few or no annoying ads, especially compared to other games in the genre ^R2^R43^R44. However, some users note frequent pop-ups that are clever, hidden purchase options ^R15.

What are common technical issues with Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game?

Common technical issues reported by users include the game crashing and closing the app, especially after updates, and problems with the game not loading or losing significant progress ^R10^R18^R19^R33.

What reviewers actually said

Built only from these 64 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.

[R1] Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game 1/5 · GB Gems?!: From the bakery on you barely get any gems, yet every upgrade costs a lot of gems, so I can still play the levels but can’t upgrade anything ever? That kinda screams money grab to me. The game is nearly a copy and paste from similar games so it’s not worth paying for at all. All these cooking games are money grabs. I’ll find something else to play.
[R3] Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game 3/5 · GB Fun until it’s not: Been playing for a few weeks and really enjoyed it but you get to a point where it’s impossible to progress without paying - undowloading
[R4] Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game 1/5 · GB Worst update: I love this game, spent so many hours on it. But the latest update is awful. You now can’t pass levels above 80 unless you buy the restaurant decor. Having to spend gems on decor is so pointless and I’m not playing this game any more now I can’t keep playing a restaurant to build up my gems! Once you reach level 80, you don’t win enough money unless you purchase the restaurant decor.
[R7] Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game 1/5 · GB Haha: In some levels it’s so hard to pass on purpose just so u can spend actual money on rubies don’t get this game waste of time
[R6] Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game 3/5 · GB good concept: this game looked interesting in the ad (which is nothing like the actual game), not even a mini game that represents the ads. I started off ok and enjoyed it, I’m seasick with the screen constantly moving left and right after each level, the amount of cutscenes is ridiculous and very off putting, however, the ads to buy things come very thick and fast. There’s also low to little info
[R15] Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game 3/5 · GB So many pop ups: While I really enjoy this game, I have never had one that has so many pop ups! Brewery 5-13 each level. And by pop ups I mean the clever hidden purchase options to get you to buy more gems and “special one off offers” that come up constantly.
[R10] Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game 1/5 · GB New update: keeps crashing: Every time I open the game, within 5 minutes it crashes and closes the app. This has only started happening since the latest update.
[R18] Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game 3/5 · GB Having issues now: Game keeps closing automatically since the 6th birthday update. Prior to this I was really enjoying playing the game
[R19] Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game 2/5 · GB Crashes all the time: I love this game but it keeps on crashing all the time, this is the second time I’ve had to start the game from scratch, now I can’t get into the game again. I deleted it the first time and lost everything, 5 years of play.
[R33] Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game 4/5 · GB Won’t open app: I love playing this game , never had any issues until now. It’s recently had a update after Christmas and the app won’t open for me now ☹️
[R8] Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game 4/5 · GB A bit boring: I love this game but after a while it gets a bit boring maybe add a special event where you can cook pizza cakes and get rewarded
[R11] Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game 4/5 · GB Love it but!: I really love this game, it’s so much fun! However only downside is that some of the special missions seem a bit repetitive…. You guys used to have this turbo round! Where you would go to an old restaurant and just keep playing until you messed up I really miss that!
[R20] Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game 4/5 · GB Only one problem: Well, it is a REALLY fun game but the problem is when you finish all of the restaurants it gets really boring so enjoy it while you can!
[R23] Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game 3/5 · GB 💗: I’ve been playing this game since 2020 and I really enjoy playing it but I wish there were more stuff added eg more new hairs and clothing that are not for real money and also I would love it if you guys bring back the strangers things event! It was super cool!
[R54] Cooking Madness-Kitchen Frenzy 1/5 · US Ads, Ads, and More Ads!!!!: I have been playing cooking madness for years. I played so frequently that I PAID to remove ads from the game so I could keep playing as much as I wanted. Now when I log on, I see that in order to redeem the Weekly Pass rewards or other challenge rewards, I have to watch ADS??? For something I accomplished?????? So what was the point of me paying for no ads if now I hav
[R55] Cooking Madness-Kitchen Frenzy 5/5 · US Fun Serving Customers Food Items - Promptly: I have played many Merge games, but this one is different - and more fun. Carefully noticing if customers’ order include a beer, lettuce and/or sauce on meat. Also Deciding when/if I need to upgrade for more stove eyes, salad, etc. as the customers/ crowd increases. stressfully-FUN. Through Level 6, no ads!!!! I don’t know if ads will come later.
[R56] Cooking Madness-Kitchen Frenzy 3/5 · US Fun… at first.: This was fun at first, until the ads hit. Then you can only do one level at a time before you are hit with ads. Not just 1 but 2. Once 1 ad is over the next one starts. LONG ads too. Not 15-30 but 60-90 seconds each one. It killed it for me. Too many options of games out there to stick with a full on ad game.
[R57] Cooking Madness-Kitchen Frenzy 1/5 · US Expensive game: Yes, it’s technically free, if you ever want to pass a level or palsy for a side event, have to pay. I’m so frustrated that I bought the weekly pass, but since there wasn’t a new “restaurant” ready yet, the only to earn points for the pass is in side 3 restaurants, which for some is ridiculously difficult! I have played this game long time and it’s never been out of new restaurants
[R2] Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game 5/5 · GB 👍👍: Definitely a fun game to play. I like that’s there’s no annoying ads, would be nice to get gems after every mission, but you get 5-10 gems after every 10 times you do a mission. So to be fair very good.
[R43] Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game 5/5 · GB Very good: Very good game 5 stars for a game there is not alot of ads which is very good, you are truly great developers.
[R44] Cooking Diary® Restaurant Game 5/5 · GB Awesome: Really good game I like how there aren’t any ads which is quite rare for games at the moment but I like everything it’s not too challenging but it’s perfect defiantly get this game

Synthesized from 64 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store