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What you will find in St. Cloud is a lot of good food, but very little great food. The steady student population from SCSU & the migration of 20 & 30 somethings to the area have produced an overabundance of fast food & chain restaurants.

That being said, there are still locally owned places you can check out...most are in the old DT area:

For pizza...House of pizza is one of those typical local pizza shop that locals & students go to:

http://www.houseofpizzamn.com/HOP/HOP.html

For some killer sub sandwiches, Bo Diddley's is a local legend. I went to nearby SJU in collegeville and Bo Diddleys in St. Josoeph was one of the local hangouts...I lived off of those subs and gyros in college. Years later they established a location in DT st. cloud.

Bo Diddley's
(320) 255-9811
216 6th Ave. S.
St. Cloud MN 56301

Nearby is D.B. Searles which has been closed and reopened a few times, so not sure the status. The place is part supper club, part steakhouse in an historic building. If you are dining with others, this would be ideal...not the place for going solo.:

D B Searle's
John Timmerman
(320) 253-0655
18 S. 5th Ave.
St. Cloud MN 56301

As far as chinese food...dong kahn is an old school chinese place...buffet and all...again...only if you are in the mood for it:

Dong Khanh Chinese Restaurant
Giau Nguyen
(320) 251-0656
810 W. St. Germain St.
St. Cloud MN 56301

If Thai food interests you, Sawatdee is a family owned group of restaurants in Minneapolis that established a branch in DT SC about 10 years ago....Not the best thai you will ever have....but far better than most out there....

Sawatdee Thai Restaurant
Noi Sintasem
(320) 240-1135
800 W. St. Germain St.
St. Cloud MN 56301

For mexican style food...Mexican village is a locally owned version of the terracotta tiled chains...food is much better than what you would expect....decent margaritas & cheap..also a local fave...

Mexican Village
Greg Warnert
(320) 252-7134
509 W. St. Germain St.
St. Cloud MN 56301

2 other noteworthy places in the area:

Anton's Fish & Whiskey has been around since prohibition...it was an illegal gin joint & brewery back in the day....today it is a surf & turf supper club. They are known for their popovers served with honey butter...the place isn't elegant....very old school...but out of every place I've listed, truly the most unique & historic eating establishment in the area...technically it is in waite park, but that's really just on the other side of St. Cloud...about 15 minutes down division from DT:

Anton’s Fish and Whiskey
Fri.-Sat. 11 p.m.
2001 Frontage Rd North, Waite Park
253-3611

Finally....the Tincoln Depot is a cheesy local dive that basically serves burgers, steak sandwiches & beer....it is a bar and grill...but....the schtick is that it has a minature train that runs around the bar area:

Lincoln Depot
Visited at 6:15 p.m. Tuesday, Nov 23
629 Lincoln Ave. SE

If you are DT, the Mall St. Germain area has a lot of pubs, bars, restaurants and diversions. Mcrudy's pub is a great place to grab a guinness and sandwich, there are coffee shops, etc....

I have not lived in the area for almost 10 years, so take all of these with a grain of salt...I based my picks on what I liked when I lived there and what is still open...there may be new & better places.

Hope this helps.