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    Laughing Water Restaurant

    3.7 (81 reviews)
    ModerateAmerican
    Closed 11:00 am - 4:00 pm
    Updated over 3 months ago

    Laughing Water Restaurant Photos

    Business Info

    LAUGHING WATER RESTAURANT ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Quiet
    Casual
    Touristy
    Good for groups

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    Recommended Reviews - Laughing Water Restaurant

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    Crazy Horse - See the Crazy Horse Monument and lunch at the Laughing Water.  Don't miss the stew!
    Brian B.

    Tatanka Stew with Indian Fry Bread! Don't miss this one folks. It was perfect for a cold, snowy day at the Memorial Tender chunks of buffalo/bison taters carrots peas and a perfectly spiced brown gravy sauce! Why not have dessert. If you have never heard of Kuchen (Koo- Gen) give it a shot as well. I had the cherry at it was gone before I knew it

    Kuchen
    Jack H.

    Quick service and they serve buffalo burgers and stew. The local dessert was also tasty.

    Hamburger
    Alfonso M.

    Great place to eat while visiting Crazy Horse. We got seated quickly. Ordered cheese burger with French fries. Great service from staff. We also ordered the fry bread.

    Tatanka stew and Indian fry bread

    Best tatanka (bison) stew I ever tasted. Recommended by a friend who had it there years ago. The Indian fry bread was good too.

    Buffet Area
    Kristian D.

    I came here for two reasons. It was lunch and they had a Fry Bread Taco on the menu. Laughing Water Restaurant is located inside the Crazy Horse Memorial and is open during its hours. Parking is part of the overall complex and is a bit difficult. The restaurant is large and understaffed making service difficult. Their lunch buffet seemed to be popular as it may have been part of the many tours passing through. I wanted the Fry Bread Taco so I ordered it and looked at the memorial through the large windows. The taco was good. I'm used to a southwestern style which is usually thinner. This fry bread was more thick so I had to eat the taco with a fork. It was loaded with bland ingredients but the strength of the fry bread still came through. If you're stopping here around lunch it's good to stop here for lunch. They also have a quick service counter which may help. Overall it's just a normal park cafeteria with all the normal issues. But get the fry bread!

    Taco
    CeCe S.

    Great view of Crazy Horse while you eat. They offer buffet on the menu for an affordable price and had decent options like fried chicken, Salisbury steak, full salad bar, etc. However, I opted for the Indian taco, which was really good. The Indian fried bread was very unique. It came with a lot of lettuce and tomatoes, it was more of a taco salad. The kids grilled cheese was delicious as well, they were generous with the butter on the grilled cheese bread. The service was decent too, although we never got refills on our drinks.

    Native Taco Salad
    Linda R.

    If you are at Crazy Horse during lunch, this is your option. It was ok, albeit a bit heavy. Lots of fries options on the menu. There was a buffet with salad bar and soup with two hot entrees. I had the soup, slip pea and ham. It was fine. Service was friendly. View from dining room was of the monument. Pretty.

    Phillip A.

    The bbq buger is good the ppl are to. The vibes are good the service is good to. Mmmmmmmmm

    Jack Daniels Burger
    Ben C.

    I was torn on what to say about this. You are welcomed and seated. We had a nice view of Crazy Horse site while we ate. I ordered the Native American Taco. The flavors were decent and the portion is huge. Come hungry. It had a nice addition I have never had is refried beans. The waiter didn't fill our water so that was kind of disappointing. My wife had the jack Daniels burger. It was really good. The flavors left a party in your mouth.

    Restaurant week menu
    Bernie S.

    Came for restaurant week. Everything was great as was the service. Great food & desserts. Will be back for sure for the regular menu they have. Has a nice big seating area & we had a good view of Crazy Horse while we ate.

    Native American Taco
    Taj T.

    Perfectly serviceable. The food doesn't have quite the same wow factor as the Crazy Horse monument, in respect to flavors or ingredients. The Sweet Potato Fries and the Coffee are real standouts, genuinely well cooked and generously given. I visited for the "Native American Taco", which was solid - don't get me wrong - but it wasn't amazing. I appreciated the fresh toppings and that the waitress was so kind as to check if the beans were vegetarian or not (yes, the service is great here!). The dishes that disappointed were the burgers. They looked like school cafeteria burgers and were rather dry - the grilled chicken the worst offender, the buffalo patty not as bad. The "Garden Burger" was decent though, it had some nice flavors. Glad that I'm supporting the monument by eating at Laughing Water, and I encourage you to do the same (at least the Native American taco if you've never had), but I wish they could dress up the food just a little bit.

    Prime Rib dip w sweet potato fries.

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    2 years ago

    Best Burger and stew ever! Wish we had them in Colorado! Friendly service! Great end to our Crazy Horse tour!

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    Prices are great! The food is amazing! We loved the Tatanka Stew w/ honey butter Indian bread!!

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    Page 1 of 3

    Ask the Community - Laughing Water Restaurant

    Do you have to pay the entrance fee to eat at this restaurant?

    Yes, we ate at the restaurant which is within the park grounds. The park does have an entry fee.

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    People searched for American 171 times last month within 15 miles of this business.

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    Powder House Restaurant

    Powder House Restaurant

    4.3(637 reviews)
    10.5 mi
    $$

    Very Delicious fresh food super Amazing Service and…read more Really Kind staff. Enjoyable little cafe

    If you're visiting Mount Rushmore and looking for a place to eat before or after your visit, I…read morecan't say enough about the Powder House restaurant. It is a must stop. Service was really good from the time I called to be added to the waitlist to our hostess all the way to our server. The food came out at a reasonable time. Ordered: -Kids spaghetti -Kids cheeseburger and fries -Ribeye- a little chewier but still a great cut. -Prime rib made perfectly very flavorful I was super surprise and highly recommend prime rib if you are a prime rib fan. It comes with two sides which I got to pay extra and ordered the garlic fries. Overall, I highly recommend stopping by here to dine. I have no complaints whatsoever. It was actually the best meal I have had during my visit to this state. When my sister in law recommended this spot, I did not think that I would have enjoyed it as much as I did. Just because there is not much food options in the area and I didn't think that this spot could produce really good food since I am from California and am a foodie. And well Powder House is kinda in the middle of no where. Well, 2 thumbs up from this Yelper. Add this spot to your bookmark and make sure you go! Tips: -Call ahead to be added to their waitlist. -Indoor seating only -Alcohol served here -They have a kids menu -They have their own private parking lot -Credit card accepted -They do charge for splitting plate of eight dollars. -Restroom available. -Very laidback casual atmosphere.

    Photos
    Powder House Restaurant - Inside

    Inside

    Powder House Restaurant - Game Kabobs and peach drink

    Game Kabobs and peach drink

    Powder House Restaurant - House salad and wine

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    House salad and wine

    Dockside Grill

    Dockside Grill

    3.9(21 reviews)
    9.5 mi

    The family made reservations for Mother's Day based on their menu online. But when we got there,…read morewhat was seen online was not on the menus that we had we still stayed in order anyway the food was excellent. If we would've came at noon, we would've been able to have the Mother's Day special. But we were able to have the Mother's Day dessert which was carrot cake. It was to die for our waitress was very cordial and accommodating. It's a smaller restaurant, but it is rustic. I'm definitely going back this summer to the restaurant.

    Ended up grabbing a bite here while visiting Custer State Park this past summer. Ate outdoors with…read morea few of the lake and surrounding terrain. With the sun going down, it was a almost picturesque. This eatery is attached to a shop selling souvenirs, snacks and drinks. Appears to share the same parking lot so that wasn't an issue. Free to boot and no restrictions that I could see. But I didn't look. After shopping and eating, it was back on the road to go look for some wildlife. Service was ok. I say ok as there was a mistake with an order which was offered to another table. The dish wasn't touched but I guess standards are different because in restaurants I've eaten in and work at (in another life), a mistake would be discarded. Who knows what could have been done to the dish - not that I did anything. Just left a sour taste because after the dish was offered to another table, server seemed to go MIA. Almost felt like it was avoidance after the error. So, condiments, refills and service in general took long enough that at one point my friend and I had to go in to ask for things. As for the food - it was ok. It's definitely prepared differently than what I'm used to. So, I have to admit, feeling the food was ok could have been due to this and possibly because the service had went downhill after the error. Would I go back? For the view

    Photos
    Dockside Grill - Legion Lake

    Legion Lake

    Dockside Grill
    Dockside Grill

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    Miner's Cup - The Prospector

    Miner's Cup

    4.7(87 reviews)
    4.9 mi

    We randomly came across Miner's Cup while driving along Mt. Rushmore Road, and it ended up being…read moreone of those places we're really glad we stopped at. It's a tiny setup with only a few parking spots and a drive-through, but they make great use of the space. The menu is surprisingly extensive for such a small spot -- specialty coffee drinks, Lotus energy drinks, breakfast sandwiches, wraps, and plenty of quick meal options. We tried the cappuccino, caramel macchiato, and the Gold Digger sandwich with chicken, avocado, roasted tomatoes, and provolone on ciabatta. Everything tasted fresh and satisfying. What I liked most is that they don't try too hard to be trendy or overcomplicated -- it's simply well-made coffee and solid grab-and-go food. Service was great. Perfect stop if you're passing through and want something quick that still feels quality. Would absolutely come back again.

    We frequented this place so much that we made 3 stops during our vacation! What a gem of a place to…read morehave in the city of Custer! Many times they were busy and they handled the rush so well... we were quite impressed! I enjoy stopping at various coffee shops to try them out and this one has been memorable for me. The flavoring is always on par + so smooth. Their customer service is great and timely. The look of their shop and option of drive-thru a plus! I feel like you can't go wrong with this place + they really are a standout coffee shop. I even purchased a tumbler from them to remember our times out in Custer with. Drinks ordered were an Irish cream latte, huckleberry latte, + English toffee latte. I'd recommend them all! There wasn't one that was a miss... all were great with flavor + not syrupy tasting/ smooth. Although I do have to recommend sipping on a huckleberry latte while hiking around lake sylvan! (; I also ordered an outlaw breakfast sandwich was to die for! So flavorful + tasty! Thanks so much, Miner's Cup!

    Photos
    Miner's Cup
    Miner's Cup
    Miner's Cup - Iced Coffee

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    Iced Coffee

    Laughing Water Restaurant - tradamerican - Updated May 2026

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