We found the food, staff, and over all tidiness of the Little Crane to be a pleasant treat! Walking into the Little Crane feels like, "Welcome to Aunt Bee's kitchen, where breakfast is still served all day long"!!! The Little Crane is filled with interesting historic photos and the food your grandmother would make! "Mile High" biscuits, homemade potato and macaroni salads, juicy burgers, pies, and cakes, oh my! You will feel the rumble of the trains when they charge past, the crossing signals, "Bing, Bing", and the mighty engines horns trumpeting along. As the train fades away, you may hear country music coming from the kitchen. Sometimes the locals will sit at the counter where they can visit with the owner and cook, Jason. If it's not too busy, you may be treated to some historical facts about Vader. At one time Vader was a sprawling city with a huge hotel, opera house, and hospital! Even the story of how this onetime Railroad building, now restaurant, was named is interesting! For us it was like a micro vacation, history, food, and friendly people... only a short drive off of I-5! read more

Friendly service, great food love breakfast menus Love the little Crane prime rib is special cooked to order the atmosphere is quaint located along side a nice country hi- wa read more

I had the turkey dinner and was pleasantly shocked that it was home roasted, not just a slice. They make real mashed potatoes from scratch. Their soup was incredible and they make them all from scratch. Very impressed with this little spot read more

I just HAD to tell you all that if you haven't tried their cinnamon rolls yet, don't wait any longer! They're amazing! (Sorry for no picture, we attacked it as soon as it arrived!) Today, we sat just off of the kitchen where you see the staff filling orders so fast, they're a blur! Such an amazing team! read more

Little Crane Cafe - Chefs Deluxe Special with my own enhancements of a Ketchup Smilie, with Orange Marmalade on the FT! - American Near Me - Vader, Washington

Small diner, very good food, extremely busy. The only reason for 4 stars instead of 5, was I had to wait almost a half hour to get my sundae and check, I was sitting at the counter only 3 seats away from the register. It was one of the cooks that asked me if I was done.... The chicken fried steak, with the gravy on it was spot on, same as the mashed potatoes, and very filling. The place is tiny, and it was crowded, plus the phone, nonstop ringing from people ordering to go. I'll go back! read more

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Brot the crew pouring my concrete here for lunch. We all thot it was great!! Jason (owner/chef) and crew always get it right. I had my favorite prime rib dip sandwich with tots. The guys got steak and a steak breakfast. read more

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Amazing at least a pound of food here just the right amount of seasoning creaminess homemade biscuits Yum Yum Yum THANK YOU LITTLE CRANE !!! Team read more

Little Crane Cafe - Breakfast biscuits and gravy to go !!! - American Near Me - Vader, Washington

Cute little "roadside" dinner in Vader. Slightly off the beaten path and full of locals who all seem to know each. First, the service was excellent, very friendly and efficient. My food (Prime Rib Hash), was perfection. My son enjoyed his French Toast, eggs and bacon, however, my husband didn't love his burger (more bun than actual burger), but he did eat it all up, so it wasn't awful either. Next time he will order the double. This cafe is definitely worth a quick drive off the interstate if your hungry, and if they have the hash, get it! YUM. read more

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I have never had a bad meal at Little Crane Cafe. The staff were friendly, and our food came out quickly. We had the special ( vegetable beef soup and a BLT). The soup was fantastic. The sandwich was good too! We stopped in on a Wednesday afternoon, and the place was busy. They are definitely doing something right there. You won't leave there hungry. read more

Food can be hit and miss. In this visit, the biscuits and gravy was a horrible miss. No biscuits....instead it was chunks of dense bread with several pieces so hard they could not be cut without a steak knife. The gravy was watery and very little sausage crumble. In my 50+ years, I have never had worse. Wow. Very disappointed in my local diner. Server was great though and thought of all the details for the meal. Just couldn't control the kitchen. read more

Awesome country restaurant that has pleased generations!! Great home cooked food, friendly service and comfortable setting with an occasional train whistle for ambiance! read more

Where oh where do I start with this? Well, I can tell you that 5 stars is not enough stars for this restaurant. Yes, I'm from Seattle area and yes I am highly recommending, or maybe even strongly encouraging you to go to the cute little town of Vader, WA and eat at Little Crane. We always heard about how awesome it was from my father-in-law. So one time,during one of our trips to go visit our family, my father-in-law took us to eat breakfast at Little Crane. We were blown away at the way it felt like we were eating at grandmas house. A hearty, good 'ol fashioned breakfast was AMAZING!! Not only was the food amazing but everything about Little Crane was amazing, the customer service by all of the staff, the cleanliness of everything, the historic pictures and memorabilia on the walls is super cool. Even though the pandemic hit, and everyone had to figure out how to keep pushing through and keeping their business afloat, they did it. They had a tent set up , a gas heater to keep everyone warm, and it was all around a hometown feel that we received when we were there. And we don't even live there. We recently came down from Seattle to visit family again and we had the most important part of our trip set in stone. My daughter and I were counting down the days and she was counting down how long it would take to drive to Little Crane. Heck, we even planned out what we were going to eat. My daughter had Emma's special both days (also her Nana's fav) , I got chicken fried steak one day and French toast with a side of sausage. My husband and his Dad got the meat breakfast. Every single item was cooked to perfection, the hot cocoa was amazing, and the wait time for our meals, was minimal. So now that I am telling you about this hidden little gem in the cute little town of Vader, you must stop there if you are passing through. Thank you Little Crane staff for an amazing experience each and every time. (Just to add a little note to this, my family and I went and had breakfast at a restaurant in Bellevue the day after coming home, and I seriously regretted eating there because I ordered the same thing I did at Little Crane, and I would say it was a -5 stars. Yes, they actually owed me stars for eating there. Crazy huh? I'm sorry for eating breakfast out elsewhere Little Crane, it won't happen again) read more

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Little diner in Vader with great service and tasty food served in good portions for the price. Staff is friendly and helpful. Breakfast served all day which is a definite plus! Had the Country Benedict and enjoyed every bite! If visiting would recommend coming prepared to make new friends as it is small and usually busy so pretty close quarters. read more

Little Crane Cafe - Country Benedict - American Near Me - Vader, Washington

I go to this spot once a week at least! In fact I will go tomorrow as well to get my prime rib melt fix! Love this cafe

Delicious hamburger cozy cute little cafe worth your stop customer service with a smile read more

Little Crane Cafe - burger - American Near Me - Vader, Washington

The best meal around. Glad to say I lived there for 13 years and Jason went to school with Brian.5 stars.

We absolutely love the little crane cafe!! They have delicious food, we eat the crane salad with chicken most often but have had other food and all of it has been delicious!! Service with a smile is for sure what you get when you come see these guys, the cook will often sing and the waitresses join in, it's great and a small town cafe at its best!! You even learn the locals if you go often enough!! We will for sure return!! read more

Off the path and not on my radar but the breakfast was great and the home made biscuits Best ever worth the drive to a town named Vader

Amazing home cooked food and lovely humans working here. Great music. You want to stop and eat here. read more

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I moved from Vader in May of 2023. I have been craving on of their club sandwiches with potato salad. Both were at the time I left 100 percent perfect. They cost about $16.00. Well yesterday 2/28/24 I was in Vader visiting a friend, when I got ready to return home I called in a to go order for my sandwich. Got there to pick up at the window, the waitress came to the window to serve me. I gave her my card and she said $19.42 cents, I said wow they have gone up In price, she looked down at me and snapped" same price as the have always been!". She brought my card back for me to sign, I did added no tip as I never tip on my cards. I give cash. She looked at it and said oh no tip. I handed her $ 4.00 in cash she didn't thank me just closed the window. It's my last trip to the Crane. read more

Excellent! Driving from Gig Harbor to California - hungry for breakfast. Found this place. Home style and excellent! Prices good too. Highly recommend. read more

Great food. Great service. I get fish and chips usually, my wife likes their prime rib. Sundaes and salads are also great. Love hearing Fabio sing while we eat. Good old home town diner read more

I had halibut and sweet potato fries and husband had chicken fried steak. The place was fairly busy- Sat night..... but our gal who seated us was not in her element- no smiles, kind of grumpy....i got a very nice house salad first and enjoyed that very much. My fish was small and straight out of a freezer bag into the oil. Nothing to write home about there. Husband said he has had worse chicken fried steak. Well, if I do go back I will probably just have a salad or try a burger I guess. I do like places that serve breakfast all day. It was definitely not 5 star quality, sorry Little Crain. We had to go up to the register to get our check- no biggie but little things do add up to keep people from giving you a better rating. Oh! The place was nice and clean! read more

The service was amazing. We met friends here and had great food from pancakes to chili topped baked potato and delicious sandwiches. The service staff even sang happy birthday to my mom! read more

The food here is good. The service, however, is sorely lacking! I was there today with 2 others, and the waitress we had was absolutely rude and surly. You know who you are! For this reason, they lost 3 customers today. We are local residents, so this is a shame. This woman absolutely needs to get out of customer service immediately. She should never bring her bad attitude to work, especially in this industry. read more

Fantastic food. Reasonable prices. Outstanding service. If you are wondering if you should eat here, just go, you won't be disappointed. Great small town cafe, great food. read more

Delicious food. Great breakfast spot. Staff was lovely. I had the scramble and it was so great. Plenty to bring home as well

The food is ok. Our server was less than friendly. Chicken Fried Steak Hash, Hamburger. read more

Nice cozy little restaurant with big service and food! Try to stop in whenever I get a chance. Prime rib!!!!

We love Little Crane it is the most amazing little place. Peaceful and just AT HOME feeling. Amazing food and service.

Rode the motorcycle here from Seattle for the Cafe to Cafe challenge. I was not disappointed. Burger was cooked to order with fries. Both were delicious. The owner was cooking, and singing country music. He seemed to know every word from every song. It was a pleasure seeing someone enjoying work and life. Nothing but good comments from me! read more

Best fish and chips ever bar none! Love this place. The service is second to none. Happy place

My brother and I decided to meet at this halfway point due the Yelp reviews. I was shocked to drive up to this hole in the wall tavern 'in the middle of no where' that looked like a dive bar. BUT it turned out to be a down to earth, friendly, back home country pub with pleasant staff and great (delicious and big) burgers, very good fries and salad for a most reasonable price. Another customer said they had the best pizza which we didn't try. An unexpected treat was the chorus of tree frogs singing in the trees when we left at 9! read more

I went to the Little Crane Cafe for my first time and I was very impressed. Had the Prime Rib special and it was prepared perfectly. What also impressed me was the service. It was pretty crowded and the two waitresses were going non stop, sometimes even running to the kitchen to get orders and politely apologizing to customers for any wait while thanking them for their patience. The Little Crane Cafe is a hidden gem and I hesitated to even leave this review because I kind of want to keep this place to myself. But they work hard here to provide an excellent dining experience, so I wanted to acknowledge them. read more

We are new to the area and found this place to be a hidden gem! Service beyond belief from all the staff, including the singing Chef/order taker/ food runner! What a team. Love this place! read more

Standby for the main event----- Prime Rib Night! Saturday, it's on Friday too. Have had their PMS Omelettes before using the prime rib. But this time went for the gusto and ordered 15 ounce Monster, mashed potatoes with onions and mushrooms, and green beans with bacon. Clayton took our orders and was a very charming and professional server. Jason again performed culinary magnificence with his prime rib! Cut was perfectly marveled, had just enough fat, but too much as to spoil the presentation. Our four prime rib meals arrived hot out of the oven and per plated perfectly. I have got to say, the Little Crane serves the best ever prime rib in a down home warm friendly atmosphere. I mean how many places have you been where the diners have rollickingly good conversations? This is a must visit place! Neil read more

Little Crane Cafe - American Near Me - Vader, Washington

We love this place so much ! Breakfast is amazing awesome portions with great taste. Service is always on top of it . Burgers are great too!

Everyone was super friendly and greeted us the minute we arrived. Service was great. Restaurant has good character and cozy. The food was delish! We got the prime rib dip and waffle cooked to perfection based on very particular mom order...extra done...would definitely go back to try their other menu items. read more

Awesome breakfast and we'll worth stopping in. We live just a few miles away in Ryderwood and it's always hoping on Friday & Saturday.

Wow! What a wonderful restaurant. My friend and I came here for breakfast and everything was absolutely delicious! This little gem is off the beaten path, but well worth the extra few miles from I-5. I ordered corn beef hash and hashbrowns and scrambled eggs. I'm pretty picky, so I thought this would be a little test. If they can get the food to be great and non-greasy, then I'd be extremely happy. I love corn beef hash and whenever I order it, it's usually greasy and gross. This was not the case here at all! Everything was so delicious and not greasy in the slightest. Even my eggs were delicious! My friend ordered a prime rib omlette with mushrooms and she let me try a little bit. It was so flavorful and delicious. A must try when you stop in. I'm going to get that next time. The cook is part owner of this business and a great singer! One of the waitresses and the cook serenaded me happy birthday this morning. So sweet! I will definitely be back. This could be my new favorite place. :) read more

Little Crane Cafe - Prime rib and macaroni soup. Sooo good! - American Near Me - Vader, Washington

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