It's the weekend and you want to go out for dinner... but where do you go? The generic bar and grill with the catchy jingle? Nah. A $5 meal deal from a fast food joint? Please! Take our advice, skip the bland chain restaurant, and visit one of these 12 incredible Kansas mom and pop restaurants instead:

1. Breck's Green Acres (Vassar)

♫ Greeeeeeeen Acres (with their homemade breakfast, lunch, and country-style buffet options) is the place to be! ♫

2. Ranchito Cafe (Lakin)

For authentic Mexican food as delicious as your abuela used to make, you must visit this Lakin favorite.

3. The Pad Restaurant (Topeka)

Is it just me or does it seem like really good pork tenderloin sandwiches are hard to come by? Thankfully, this isn't the case at The Pad, which serves heavenly pork tenderloin, burgers, and to-die-for onion rings.

4. K-18 Cafe (Lucas)

K-18 is an east-to-west running Kansas highway that takes travelers between US-24 and K99... the K-18 in Lucas is a cafe that takes made-from-scratch foods from their kitchen straight to your taste buds.

5. Town & Country Kitchen (Norton)

Down-home country recipes at an even more down-home country price... they sure don't make restaurants like this anymore!

6. El Rancho Cafe (Holcomb)

Everyday is a fiesta at El Rancho, which features fresh ingredients and creatively flavorful dishes! (Give me the El Rancho Special and a Corona and I will be the happiest girl in the entire world!)

7. Riverside Cafe (Wichita)

Who says you can't get a home-cooked meal in the city? As one Yelper perfectly states, "Riverside Cafe is a little slice of history combined with Grandma's cooking that makes breakfast the most delicious meal of the day."

8. Nu Grill Cafe (Fort Scott)

Don't worry, southeast Kansas; we didn't forget about you or your mouthwatering burgers and hand-battered onion rings...

9. Miss B's Cafe (Louisburg)

Let me put it this way: Miss B (and her incredible breakfast, lunch, and dessert options) will ruin you for life... You have been warned.

10. Paul's Cafe & Dining Room (Smith Center)

A good rule-of-thumb when it comes to restaurants: The more worn and dated the sign, the more tried and true the food! (This Smith Center institution is a true testament to this theory.)

11. Stephen's Restaurant (Sharon Springs)

Get ready for the biggest dilemma of your life as you choose between ordering the breakfast burrito or country fried steak... or giant cinnamon roll... or... well, you get the idea.

12. Cozy's Cafe (Overland Park)

Don't let the unsuspecting sign and location fool you; Cozy's Cafe (and their breakfast and lunch specials) is truly the best part of waking up!

Which Kansas mom and pop restaurant is your favorite?