Restoration gets a bad rap but you're not totally wrong either. The issue is the vanilla perks are pretty underwhelming compared to what you get from Destruction or Conjuration, and potions are genuinely efficient if you're not broke.
That said, there's a perk tree path that actually makes it viable - the one that boosts healing spell magnitude and reduces casting cost. Stack those and Restoration becomes legit for keeping yourself alive mid-combat without burning through your potion stash. The perk that lets you heal while moving is also way more useful than it sounds for melee builds. You're not gonna stand there channeling like a mage; you cast once while backing up and keep fighting.
The real problem is Restoration scales badly on Legendary or higher difficulties because the spell just can't keep up with incoming damage, so people write it off. On normal/hard though, especially with the cost reduction perks, it's perfectly functional. Alchemy is still better value for your perk investment, but that's true for like everything in Skyrim.
If you're committed to trying it, grab the early Restoration perks and actually use the spells for a few levels instead of auto-dismissing them. You might surprise yourself. But ngl if you're already level 32 on a melee build, you're probably better off just finishing the run as-is rather than respeccing into a half-baked Restoration hybrid.
