These copycat Red Lobster cheddar bay biscuits are buttery, garlicky, and ready in 25 minutes!

This copycat recipe makes savory, buttery biscuits with that signature cheesy garlic flavor. These homemade cheddar bay biscuits are quick, fast, and fresh so enjoy them warm from the oven or for a snack the next day.

brushing butter over Red Lobster Cheddar Bay

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.

Holly’s Recipe Highlights

  • Flavor: This cheddar bay biscuit recipe is light and fluffy with that buttery garlic flavor we love so much.
  • Prep Note: Make them from scratch or save a few steps and use a box of Bisquick biscuit mix as a base.
  • Serving Suggestion: Quick and easy to make, Cheddar Bay biscuits go with anything. Enjoy them fresh out of the oven, dunk them into soup or chili, or use them as buns for a breakfast sandwich.
flour , baking powder , baking soda , cheese , butter , milk , garlic powder and other ingredients to make Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuits with labels

Ingredient Tips for Copcat Cheddar Bay Biscuits

While you can purchase Red Lobster biscuit mix, they’re so easy (and less expensive) to make at home with mainly pantry ingredients.

  • Biscuit Dough: Like most drop biscuits, these can be made from scratch with a little flour, baking soda and powder, sugar, and as much or as little garlic powder as you like.

Shortcut Tip: If you’re looking for a shortcut, use biscuit mix (like Bisquick) and follow the directions for drop biscuits. Use the topping below for that Red Lobster biscuit flavor.

  • Cheese: Cheddar Bay biscuits wouldn’t be the same without heaps of sharp cheddar cheese, but experiment with a mix of cheddar and Swiss, or cheddar and bleu cheese crumbles.
  • Buttery Topping: This is where the magic is! Melted butter with garlic powder and seasoning makes the perfect topping for this recipe.
  • Variations: Feel free to mix in other seasonings to match the meal. For chili night, make spicy biscuits using homemade taco seasoning, some zesty Cajun seasoning, or even Old Bay seasoning. Mix in some chopped black olives, green onions, bacon bits, diced ham, or even jalapenos.

How to Make Cheddar Bay Biscuits

  1. Mix dry ingredients in a bowl. Cut in cold butter (full recipe below).
  2. Stir in milk and cheese.
  3. Scoop onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake until golden brown on top.
  4. Melt butter, add seasonings & fresh parsley. Brush over the warm biscuits.

What to Serve with Cheddar Bay Biscuits

Red Lobster cheddar biscuits are delicious on their own and pair perfectly with seafood dishes. Try them next to easy grilled salmon, asparagus salmon foil packets, easy baked tilapia (or cod), shrimp etouffee, or creamy seafood chowder.

Turn this recipe into a filling skillet chicken & biscuits recipe, or use them to dunk into any soup recipe.

Leftover Biscuits?

Keep leftover Cheddar Bay biscuits in an airtight container or freezer bag at room temperature for up to 4 days. Enjoy them as is, or reheat them in the microwave. Freeze biscuits in zippered bags for up to 2 months.

More Quick Biscuit Recipes

Perfect for dipping, dunking and smearing with butter, here are some of our favorite biscuit recipes.

Did you make these Copycat Red Lobster Biscuits? Leave us a comment and rating below!

image of Everyday Comfort cookbook by Holly Nilsson of Spend With Pennies plus text
plated Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuits in a stack
4.94 from 254 votes

Copycat Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuits

Servings 12 Biscuits
Tender flaky cheddar bay biscuits are loaded with buttery garlic flavor.
Servings 12 Biscuits
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Email this recipe!
Enter your email and we’ll send it directly to you, plus get even more tips & recipes!

Equipment

Ingredients  

Biscuits

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup milk more if needed
  • cup cold butter
  • ¾ cup shredded cheddar cheese

Garlic Butter

  • ¼ cup melted butter
  • 1 teaspoon dried parsley
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning optional

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 400°F
  • Mix together flour, baking powder, sugar, garlic powder, baking soda, and salt.
  • Add butter and mix with a pastry cutter or fork until crumbly and the butter pieces are about the size of peas.
  • Stir in milk and cheddar cheese
  • Drop dough by heaping spoonfuls onto a parchment lined pan
  • Bake 12-15 minutes or until lightly browned.
  • While biscuits are baking, combine melted butter, parsley, garlic powder, and Italian seasoning if using.
  • Remove from oven and let cool 3 minutes.
  • Brush warm biscuits with butter mixture and serve warm.

Notes

To make with biscuit mix, combine the following:
  • 2 cups biscuit mix or Bisquick, 2 tablespoons softened butter,  cup cold milk, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ¾ cup shredded cheddar cheese
  • Prepare and bake as directed above. Brush with melted Garlic Butter as above.
Keep leftover biscuits in an airtight container at room temperature for 4 days. 
4.94 from 254 votes

Nutrition Information

Calories: 195 | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.4g | Cholesterol: 32mg | Sodium: 198mg | Potassium: 166mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 385IU | Vitamin C: 0.01mg | Calcium: 124mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.

Course Side Dish
Cuisine American
close up of Red Lobster Cheddar Bay with a title
crisp and cheesy Red Lobster Cheddar Bay with writing
Red Lobster Cheddar Bay on a sheet pan with writing
Red Lobster Cheddar Bay close up and bottom photo on a sheet pan with a title

Categories:

,

Recipes You’ll Love

About the author

Holly Nilsson is the creator of Spend With Pennies, where she creates easy, comforting recipes made for real life. She is also the author of “Everyday Comfort,” which promises to inspire even more hearty, home-cooked meals.
See more posts by Holly

Free eBook!

Subscribe to receive weekly recipes and get a FREE Bonus e-book: Quick & Easy Weeknight Meals!

You can unsubscribe anytime by clicking the “unsubscribe” link at the bottom of emails you receive.

4.94 from 254 votes (180 ratings without comment)

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Comments

  1. Made the recipe as written, question med the 1 tablespoon of baking powder. We could not eat them, the baking powder was so strong, very unpleasant. Is the recipe correct as written? It seems like 1 tsp would be more correct.2 stars

    1. It’s correct as written, 1 tablespoon of baking powder to 2 cups flour is a fairly common ratio for baking powder biscuits. I made biscuits for dinner this evening (using this drop biscuits recipe) and didn’t notice an off flavor so I can’t say for sure what went wrong.

  2. These are absolutely fantastic. Couldn’t find the red lobster box mix, so we thought we’d try this. Got huge compliments and they were super delicious! Will be sticking with this recipe going forward.5 stars

  3. We did a taste test challenge in our home tonight. My son was convinced the “box” brand was the better way to go. The family all voted and your recipe was the winner! I didn’t add Italian seasoning though rather onion powder and salt to your buttery topping.5 stars

  4. I tried your cheddar biscuits recipe tonight and they came out amazing! I used some extra cheese and a little basil….so delicious Thanks for sharing I really enjoyed this5 stars

  5. Came out exactly as I had hoped! I don’t own a pastry cutter, so I just use my handheld mixer throughout the process and worked great! Loved how easy the recipe was and how simple these were to make – thank you5 stars

  6. I made these biscuits for a soup lunch in our apartment building, lots of compliments… I ran out of milk so used 1 cup milk, 1 cup buttermilk from powder. Sorry I didn’t even get to taste one!
    Guess I’ll have to make another batch!. Love your recipes!
    Ruth5 stars

  7. I have been a cook for about 30 years and been the head of a gourmet cooking club. These were really good biscuits, but what they were missing is buttermilk. It acts tenderizing agent. You can never underestimate what buttermilk can do. It results in a tender texture: Buttermilk’s acidity breaks down gluten and protein strands, resulting in a more tender crumb. I have always made my own and tried this recipe recipe and I would say it is really good, but you can’t forget the buttermilk. If you don’t have buttermilk mix, sour cream, lemon juice, and milk. I have been making these for years and the homemade buttermilk makes a difference in flakiness

  8. Absolutely amazing. Came out perfect.
    Excellent copy cat recipe, much better than box mix. Closer to restaurant.

    On second attempt, I made a bit more garlic butter… just because it was so good.5 stars

  9. These are definitely the best copycat from Red Lobster! The biscuits are light, fluffy and delicious! This will be my go to recipe!5 stars

  10. Big hit with the family! I used plant based butter, oat milk (plain) and added half teaspoon cayenne pepper.They turned out light brown, soft inside and wee bit crispy inside. They were fantastic and I highly recommend. I will be making these again for sure.5 stars

  11. These were delicious!! I added more cheddar cheese and instead of Italian seasoning I added paprika to the butter. Thank you so much for this recipe!! My partner says these are way better than Red Lobster and I agree!5 stars

  12. I made these biscuits exactly as so when I am a baker and these are taste nothing like red lobster biscuits whatsoever. They are tough and they are flavorless. They don’t look like the picture that is posted here. Save your money and your time.

    1. Thank you for trying our recipe, Kay. I am sorry it wasn’t quite what you expected.

    2. If your biscuits are tough, then you are doing something wrong. Our grandma’s made biscuits making look easy, but making good biscuits takes trial & error. keep trying