Tiny Diner

Just moved to Minnesota. Excellent lunch here. Can’t wait to try it for dinner and drinks!

We (my family of 4, kids aged 6 & 9) have been to Tiny Diner at least 5 times, always for dinner. Each time there has been at least one thing that turned me off and made me hesitate to go back. Twice the reason was that they refused to seat us even though there were tons of open tables. One of the two times they explained they didn’t have enough staff so they wouldn’t seat us until they could serve us. OK, but could we sit down at a table instead of your parking lot? I’d be fine waiting (as long as they told us the same message). Lately my disappointment has been with the food. The current philly cheese steak special is thick-​cut and chewy. Not even close to a philly. The salt cod is mostly rice and lacks flavor. The schwarma burrito meat was tough and overall the dish was disappointing. They will only cook children’s burgers well done so my 9 year old has to order the adult burger (because he doesn’t like charred, dry meat, who can blame him?). Last night there was water dripping from the ceiling. We casually mentioned it to our waitress in a ‘not sure if you guys had noticed this…’ kind of manner and she just dismissed it (saying, «are you getting wet?») and said she would tell her manager. You’re probably wondering why we keep going back. They only reason we went yesterday was because my younger son really wanted their pancakes. Next time we’ll choose a different place. I REALLY want to like this place but there are just too many strikes out.

I’ve been to the diner once for dinner. I ordered a cheesesteak with fries and then got an apple crisp for dessert. It was pretty good, but it was a little on the expensive side. I would eat there again, but it didn’t blow me away.

Every since I moved to Minnesota a yr ago. The Tiny Diner has been my favorite place to go and have breakfast and some awesome hot cocoa. The staff is great awesome cooks and they just make you feel so welcomed to be in their establishment. Keep up the great work!

I wanted to try the Social Cider that was on tap and was very happy to see that the waitress brought me a sample of it first before deciding on what to order. Not a lot of restaurants do this and it’s a great touch.
Beautiful atmosphere and location. Delicious food.

This was a quick find when I discovered that the place I wanted to go was closed. The food was tasty enough. I had the biscuits and gravy which were solid though not a ton of flavor. Our waitress was attentive though a little busy today. I would definitely come back to try some other items from their menu.

Consistency is a major problem.
I hate giving this place three stars– I am all over their ethics, their politics, and their service which is consistently brilliant. But I’ve had four breakfasts here and the FOOD is just not consistent.
Take my favorite dish, the bruleed grapefruit. It’s a masterpiece of flavor: honey torched over half a grapefruit so at its best you have a medium-​thickness layer of brittle honey and enough cook that it melds with the fruit. I crave this dish. This dish is someone’s best idea.
The problem is, I have had this same dish four very different ways on four separate occasions: totally torched and thick layer of honey (pretty damn good), medium torch and medium honey layer (pretty good), and then twice it’s been very light on honey, light on cooking, which ends up being a letdown.
The breakfast dishes I’ve had alongside the grapefruit (breakfast nachos, blue corn pancakes with green chilies, red flannel salted cod hash, mushroom/​swiss omelet with hashbrowns) have all been absolutely meh. The pancakes were super dry; the hashbrowns were chewy and cold; the salted cod was so powerful that it obliterated the beets, and the nachos tasted like someone had called it in that morning.
I want to love this place, but I cannot keep spending $ 4 on half a grapefruit that’s gonna bum me out half the time.

We got here around 11:15 and the place was hoppin. My boo and I were given a 30 minutes wait before being seated so we walked around outside and through the little garden they have. Tiny Diner is awesome because they are all about reducing and eliminating waste. They have a solar paneled roof and have gotten awards for their work with the watershed. Super cool business.
So back to the food. My boo and I were seated at the bar and since I checked in I got to order from the happy hour menu for my drinks. Boo thang got a michelada and coffee, I ordered the brut. The michelada was on point. Not too spicy, but not tomato juice either.
The food menu is awesome and I had a hard time deciding on what to get. I ordered the biscuits and mushroom gravy and he got the beet and chorizo hash. Sooo good. Both dishes arrived beautiful with eggs our way. I wish I had gotten double the food but that could be because I was at a Hmong wedding the day before eating everything in sight! I can’t wait to hit this place up for happy hour and eat even more! It’s gonna be epic.

Everything super fresh and original, while also affordable. I want to try everything on the menu and come back often. Loved the strawberry basil housemade soda. My partner’s medium rare burger-​of-​the-​week (cheddar, apple, bacon) came out perfect. The NE sociable cider werks and dangerous man collaboration of chocolate apple beer was fun. Try the jalapeño buttermilk! Pretty sure the espresso shake was the best blended drink I’ve ever had

Tiny Diner isn’t named ironically, as the inside is exactly as the moniker implies. That said, when the patio is open in summer there is definitely more room to sprawl. The patio is also one of the most unique around, with a solar array providing cover from the elements and a garden utilized by the kitchen. It’s got atmosphere in spades.
The food hasn’t always lived up to ambiance, but overall it has been enjoyable for the most part. I can’t speak to much of the brunch fare yet, but it seems that the closer you stick to more typical bar/​casual eats the better off you’ll be. They make a mean burger (grass fed beef), fry a good wing and have plenty of veg-​friendly options. From a libations standpoint, it’s beer and wine only, but they have a reasonable selection of both available.
The Tiny Diner has a lot going on for such a small space and it’s definitely unique — a great addition to the neighborhood.

REVIEWING: SHRIMP & GREEN CHILIES OMELET WITH HASH BROWNS & BELLINI (Fancy Mimosa).
Saturday morning ‘breakunch’ time… driving down Cedar Ave hoping that Matt’s Bar (repeatedly award winning Jucy Lucy burgers… lines out the door) maybe, just maybe would be serving an egg on their burger and calling it good. No go… gotta wait till dark sans the egg.
Anyway, pulled out Unilocal and Tiny Diner it is, and what an «IT IS». Starting with my refreshing Blood Orange Bellini, then onto Shrimp (actually chunks of prawns is my guess) and Green Chili Omelet was perfect for me. Folded like a big burrito, it was large but not because of a lot of egg, (the egg portion was thin, thin, thin and oh so delicate) but big because of the quantity of filling. Flavorful and quantity of shrimp/​prawn & blackened mild green chilis obviously hand blackened in-​house. Oh, and steaming hot, right off the grill to table… comfort. The hash browns were actually brown, just how I like ‘em, crunchy. (I forgo toast because I belong to the clean plate club. I’m sure it’s also comment worthy.)
My only gripe has nothing to do with the establishment, just the rabid woman in a BMW who came zooming into the «parking lot», cutting off my exit. When I say parking lot, Tiny’s says it all, it’s one of the most unusually creative use of parking (but it worked wonderfully… smart), excellent back-​up skills are mandatory, or maybe a back-​up camera savvy driver. But hey, there’s PLENTY of on street parking for ‘reverse challenged’ drivers.
GO Tiny Diner.

First off, Tiny Diner has atmosphere for days. A spacious patio where patrons are not jammed elbow to elbow, surrounded by a vegetable garden and walking path. Inside, the a small bar (wine & beer) at the back and a modern, comfortable dining room with small tables and great natural light. I love the look and feel of this restaurant.
We put our name in with the host and proceeded to the bar to grab a drink for our short wait. The bartender was also serving a few of the tables nearby and seemed mildly confused that we were grabbing drinks. She acknowledged us but waited a bit before she got our drinks going. Strange. They make some interesting cocktails with wine or beer in place of liquor. I stuck with good ol beer.
We were promptly seated, so let’s get to what matters.
Food
Ancho chile rubbed wings for the app. These were really, really good. I think they entered my top 5 wing list for the TCs.
Kale salad. Would you be surprised if I told you that this was my favorite item we ate? You should be. It was so simple but so bursting with flavor. I kept coming back and fork fighting with my lady over the next bite.
Mole Pulled Chicken Burrito. ²⁄₅. I mean, it was good. It’s a burrito. But it was very average.
The pasta. So I wanted the Fresh Cut Linguini but they had a pasta special not on the menu that was taking it’s place that night, so I went with that. It was similar, it was very good, it was creamy, it had great fresh pasta, it was not warm enough. That is the most memorably thing, I wanted it to be warmer immediately after the first bite. But I ate it all because it was good.
We were full and fairly satisfied. So I ordered dessert because duh.
They have some great shake & malt flavors and after trying their ice cream, you can guarantee I’ll be back for that. I ordered an apple cherry crisp with vanilla custard. The crisp was great but not a crisp in my eyes, much more like a cobbler. The custard. Ooof. Seriously some of the best I’ve ever had. Just simple vanilla. I could have bathed in it.

Met my friend for breakfast around 830. Luckily it was not too packed to the point we had to wait, but it was well on its way to getting packed. Cute little neighborhood place. We debated whether or not to sit inside or out. The sun was pretty severe, so we found a table inside by the counter.
Menu was decent.
Food ordered:
Banana chocolate chip muffin
Breakfast Nachos
Chive scramble with bacon
The breakfast nachos were really good and plentiful. Scrambled eggs with chorizo. chips and two big dollops of guacamole– they were delicious.
Service was okay– our server was personable enough.
I’m a huge fan of ice and ice cold water. I don’t like warm water. That would be my only suggestion. I asked for ice and they had it; so not a big deal.
Nice patio area.
Decent clean bathrooms
Would absolutely return.

My friend and I came here during the menu change, so we got the brunch menu and, initially, the service was a little disorganized. We waited at the outdoor host stand for a while, and no one appeared so we eventually walked into the restaurant where a server immediately saw us and got us taken care of. I’m not sure if there actually was a host/​hostess working at that particular moment we arrived (and the server wasn’t sure either), which seems more like awkward timing on our part than a massive dysfunction in the restaurant as it was clearly the time of shift changes before the dinner rush.
The outdoor patio is fascinating. There’s a «roof» of solar panels, and it’s surround by a garden you can traipse through. There’s also a garden on the roof. The metal chairs aren’t the most uncomfortable thing in the world, but I suppose they’re not that great, either.
I had the ham sandwich, which came piled high. I did not expect such a giant sandwich, and I’m glad I didn’t order fries or a salad with my sandwich. It was a little awkward to eat due to the size, but it held together pretty well and was really, really delicious.
My friend had the grass-​fed burger, which he said was good, but with one major caveat: the bun sucked. It did not hold together at all, becoming soggy and unmanageable pretty quickly. About halfway through he gave up and had to use a knife and fork to eat his burger.
The highlight was the sangria, which we each had two of. The first one was definitely better than the second (I think the second had more wine), but they were both still good. Nice balance and really refreshing with a hint of citrus. Perfect for the humid afternoon.
The service is attentive and pretty fast. However, it was really weird that our server just brought us the check without asking if we wanted anything else, and then was surprised when we said we wanted something else. Maybe don’t assume that just because it’s the middle of the afternoon we don’t want anything else?

The outdoor patio at Tiny Diner is a great summer neighborhood spot! Chairs are metal & uncomfortable but it’s easy to look past that when you’re eating produce grown fresh on their rooftop garden & service is top-​notch. Beers & specials are rotated often & are locally inspired. Try the happy hour deviled eggs!
Thursday night mini farmers market in their lot from 6−8pm weekly!

I’ve eaten at Tiny Diner a number of times since it opened a year ago, and just like all of the other restaurants that Kim Bartmann has created, this is another home run!
My favorite mealtime to go is for their breakfast selection. A particular favorite is the 1930s Red Flannel Hash (I would lick my plate clean if there was a guarantee that no one would be looking).
And like the other Bartmann restaurant establishments, she has created another winner dining environment that everybody involved wins from!
I LOVE the outdoor setting with the surrounding gardens and scenery. Having a garden on-​site piques all diners curiosity and appears to be a welcome relief to parents for something kids can go check-​out and learn from while waiting for your food to arrive. Also knowing that Tiny Diner grows a lot of the food they serve is comforting to know while it backs up their commitment to serving local, organic, & fresh food to their eaters.
I also admire that they offer on-​site classes that teach us about gardening and other related techniques to sustainability. The class topics alone are a great gift to the community.
I’m thrilled to have another high-​quality choice to dine at in South Minneapolis. Based on the creative menu with classics AND fun twists on the classics, the friendly wait staff, the ambiance, and MOST ESPECIALLY the delicious food, this is one of my favorite places to dine at as well as recommend to others!

This is place is AWESOME! It checks the boxes for everyone, without compromising anything. It has incredible food, it has great service, it has outdoor seating as well as indoor, it is hipster loving without being too out there, it sources a lot of local food and they even have their own garden for crying out loud! They have solar cells and recycle rainwater… On and on.
Organic junkie? Love it. Like hip places? Get on it. Green doer? Winner. Love incredible food? Check, check and triple check.
They swap our their menus every couple of months and take on a twist from a different city. Right now they have a spin of Milwaukee WI so everything has a German and maybe even Austrian spin. Schnitzel and Weisswurst, pumpernickel bread, Pilsner soaked apricot jam… Wow. Loved this place and I’m sure you will too!!!

Came here for dinner on a say day night. The person who sat us was super duper friendly which I really liked! We ordered the following:
Chili cheese fries
Pork snitznel
Brat
Milkshake
And were told they were out of brats and the milkshake machine didn’t work so we ordered a burger instead.
Here is how the food fared.
Chili cheese fries-​chili was good, fries were super salty and not enough cheese! It looked like they broke up half a slice.
Pork snitznel-​was tasty. The spatzle could have been warmer but the mustard and cabbage was really good. The pork was pretty good too and not greasy.
Butter burger-​was a tasty burger. Was told any cheese could go on it-1.50 for a piece of cheddar is insane!
Our server was nice so that was a plus. There are some other things on the menu I would go back and try. I hoping they are better than this first round so I can update my review with some better options!

After a mix up at the Kenwood seen us arrive too early for the brunch menu, we decided to trek to Tiny Diner and give them a shot.
First off, as you’d expect, a tiny parking lot, so street parking is the order of the day.
During the summer, the patio would be an amazing place to sit and gives the place much needed extra seating for how busy it gets. Luckily, we arrived JUST before the crazy brunch rush hit and we had no wait to get a seat.
There are two things that catch my eye on a breakfast menu. First, we all know, and say it with me… bacon pancakes. Feels good to say eh? The other is when someone puts «breakfast of champions» on the menu. I mean, what the hell, how could I pass up something like that? It almost taunts you to get it. Well, hook line and sinker, I went for it. The better half decided to mow down some pancakes loaded with chocolate chips and bananas. For good measure she got some pig too in a side of bacon.
Very long wait for the food. At the very least, 20 minutes, closer to 25 though. Considering we had our order in well before the rush hit, I was kind of taken back by the wait.
Food arrived though, and it looked solid. The one request the woman made for some peanut butter took a very long time to get fulfilled as did getting our water glasses filled up.
The chocolate chip-​banana cakes were pretty damn good flavor wise. They do need to reconsider the batter though as the structural integrity of the cakes were non existent and they pretty much fell apart with the mix-​ins. If you’re going to offer the mix ins, better have a batter ready for the job. This, not so much. Bacon was very thin sliced and on the chewy side. In the pic, you’ll see how thinly sliced with them being nearly transparent in the light.
My breakfast of champions… three eggs, short stack, hash browns, maple sausage, toast. I ordered the eggs over easy, and they definitely weren’t that — more of the over medium to hard variety. Whatever, they’re eggs I’ll eat them and given the wait, if a server were to reach for the plate I’d probably bite the hand off at the wrist. Short stack was… ok? I really have nothing to say about it other than ok. The pure maple syrup was killer though! Hash browns were very good. Not over greased, and had a solid crunch. Would have been better with some egg yolk, but, to hell with luxuries I order! Sausage patty was pretty good. Decent hint of maple, would have liked it to have stayed together instead of falling apart like it did so I could cut it and eat it easier. but oh well I guess. Toast was good, and the raspberry jelly was good.
I’ve had this place bookmarked forever so having to grade it so poorly I do not like doing. But, food took forever, service was dreadful, couldn’t get eggs right and things were just overall «I’ve had better.» The woman said things were A-​ok for her though, so 2 – 3’ish we’re going with on this adventure. I’ll round up from my 2 to a 3 although I have no ambition to come back and give it another shot.

I wanted to love it! It has such good reviews on here! And the menu looked delicious.
Someone posted a beautiful picture of the red flannel hash on instagram today so I went up there because I was inspired by it! I was torn between trying the red flannel hash or the tofu scramble. My server was very nice and patient with me and I ended up settling on the hash (still thinking about the beautiful photo), plus the combination of beets, hash browns, and salted cod sounded intriguing. I ordered my eggs sunny side up so I could have dippy eggs for my toast. I excitedly waited for my food.
When it came out I was disappointed– it looked nothing like the photo. My hash browns were burned and greasy. The eggs were over easy, not sunny side up. The server told me he must have written it down wrong. There was nothing special about the hash browns, they tasted like regular burnt hash browns, no real beet or cod flavor.
My server noticed I didn’t care for my food because I barely touched it so he offered me a sundae instead but I didn’t want a sundae, I wanted real substantial food. They took it off my bill for me which was very nice, but overall I was disappointed by the while experience.
I would come back, because it’s a charming place. I do want to try that tofu scramble or something else, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to make a special trip like I did today.