Introducing the Cedar Point Farmhouse

Editor's note: Justin Dietz is a Register correspondent representing CPFoodBlog.com and @CPFoodBlog on Twitter. SANDUSKY — Not long ago, Cedar Point used to be known for some of their famous "fair" style foods like chicken tenders, fresh-cut fries, elephant ears and cheese-on-a-stick. Today, guests can still get all those menu items, but the food scene continues to evolve at Cedar Point much in the way roller coasters come and go. This weekend, Cedar Point debuts its new concept, the Farmhouse Kitchen & Grill, in the hopes of winning you over with the next level of park food. Let's start with the elephant in the room: Cedar Point removed the Antique Cars/Autos attraction, adjacent to Maverick, during the offseason. Anytime a ride gets removed, even though there is another drive-your-own-vehicle attraction at the front of the park, guests often get upset. However, one thing to keep in mind, the park does not remove rides lightly. They realize that, while food venues bring in additional revenue streams, the rides are their bread and butter. So the Antique Autos got removed, and in its place is the brand new, state-of-the-art Farmhouse Kitchen & Grill. This massive new double-sided, cafeteria-style restaurant is outfitted with a gorgeous wood-fired grill that greets guests as soon as they walk through the door. The building is absolutely stunning with a lodge-type feel and rustic adornments. Where it really gets impressive is the new menu: sliced wood-fired steak with herb pesto, artisan linguiça sausage, slow-roasted porchetta, spiced and grilled chicken drumsticks, hand-breaded chicken tenders, campfire steak, among other items. What is an entrée without a side? The new Farmhouse Kitchen & Grill does not stop short on fries. Instead, they offer spiced corn ribs, which are the most unique presentation of corn we have ever experienced, and they were fantastic. Our other personal favorite, the smashed fire-roasted potatoes: cooked, smashed and crisped up to perfection. Farmhouse also offers sweet potato fries, cowboy caviar with fresh tortillas, potato salad and side salads. Where it really got surprising is with the dessert. Pie just happens to be one of our personal favorite items on this Earth, and Cedar Point's head bakery chef and fine-tuned a cherry pie into something that was exquisite. Where the new Farmhouse Kitchen & Grill does not have any indoor seating, it makes up for it by having plentiful outdoor tables with many of them under covered awnings. Also, many of the original trees surrounding Antique Autos have been preserved, adding to the ambiance of the area. The Cedar Point Farmhouse Kitchen & Grill brings a gorgeous new, high-capacity dining establishment to Frontier Town that also offers an incredible new menu. The chefs even tell us there will be occasional limited-time menu items coming in the future.