Lansing Restaurant Guide

I think people in Lansing have never had decent food before so their willing to put up with horrible service, sub par food & pricing. The food @ golden harvest is very good for lansing, this would be regular diner food done the way its supposed to be done in any other city. It comes a little inconsistent depending on who's on the griddle. That said u have your choice of inedible, dirty, poor service places in lansing to choose from so golden harvest seems like a diamond in the rough, hence the 5 stars on every review. Don't get me wrong I love the harvest but all of you put kid friendly on reviews that go back before the smoking ban in Lansing & the place was like eating in a house fire. Let alone the radio blaring the f bomb every other song. Which I don't care about but it makes me wonder about taking your 5 rating on anything else seriously. Not only that take it easy on praising the staff, besides zane I've had some downright horrible service in there but because lansing in devoid of a decent restaurant I go. & the wait being 25mins is a complete joke I've never for my food in under an hr unless the place was dead and even then its taking 25min. So again I love the harvest but all these 5 star reviews for this and deluccas and fleetwood and pablos, really!?! Are we just not going to hold places to a standard because we have nothing in this town. If u have ever traveled outside of Lansing ask yourself this, how would any of these places do in Ann arbor or Birmingham or Denver or Chicago & you'll find yourself hungry as ever with no choices in Lansing besides a place like the harvest where the food isn't amazing its just done the way its suppose to be done.

Been numerous times over 5 years. The place is always friendly. The Owner is the main cook. Food is good, usual wait is less than 25 min even with the place packed. If there is a line, I am speaking of once you are in a seat.
The eclectic collection of artifacts are great to entertain kids, or to distract the adult ;-)
The bathrooms are really cool too. They didnt use to have signs, but even though they now do (the owners wife found some Japanese ones at a trade show or something) they dont care if you check both out... you can write on the walls with chalk in the mens bathroom.

The food is great and the staff is unbelievable friendly. I would recommend eating here.

I love the place, it's got character and great food. A funky hippie heavy metal version of the Choo Choo grill in GR. I want to make it my second home.

The Golden Harvest is hands down the best place to eat breakfast in Lansing. Yes, the lines are long, and yes it may take some time to get your order, I look at this as a testament to how good the food really is. People flock to this diner, just relax, wait your turn, and enjoy the yummie goodness.

My first visit was followed by 2 more within a week! But my best visit was when I brought my parents who live 30 miles north of any civilization in the Upper Peninsula. For them, visiting me in Lansing is their opportunity for fine dining so they were skeptical of my insistence on a small, Old Town, corner diner. Dad decided that the quality of a breakfast menu can be gauged by the biscuits and gravy so he ordered them to rate my favorite restaurant. Mom got the blueberry strudel french toast. They loved being able to see the grill but their skepticism grew as the minutes ticked by... I was starting to wonder if this was a bad idea. My parents are not very good at trying new things. Then, faithfully, the food arrived steaming hot and I nervously awaited their reviews. Mom was won over instantly when see saw the delicious pile of blueberries. While chewing, Dad looked at me with an expression of pure confusion!? He refused to speak until he had finished his third bite and then declared, "You weren't kidding, I'm shaking that boy's hand, these are the best damn biscuits & gravy I've ever had!"

I went for my first time today after hearing rave reviews. Went near 2:00 pm, seated myself right away, ordered right away. Tick-tock, tick tock...Others came in after me,(bigger parties, I was alone) and received their food. I finally asked if I had been forgotten. Omelet was good initially. Took most of it home. Burnt REAL brown(the egg part) flipped over inside, to hide it. I don't like burnt eggs, clearly,.I had been forgotten for bigger parties. Sad.

Having lived from sea to shiny sea I've had some fine breakfasts and the Golden Harvest sets the bar so high that there is not much to compare it to.

It always worth the wait and don't limit yourself to the breakfasts either the lunch food is just as good right down to the Mac and Cheese.

I went there and I thougt the food was super good and a great value for what you got.

I think Golden Harvest is East Lansing's best kept secret. I didn't happen upon this little breakfast nook until after I graduated and unfortunately spent too many of my East Lansing afternoons with a stomach ache from IHOP. The food at Golden Harvest is a wonderful piece of comfort some of the items are better than my mom makes. The decor and vibe of the place are fun and relaxed and the staff is really fun and chill. I have cravings for the french toast, sausage, bacon, cheese sandwich and actually volunteer to pick up my little brother an hour away just so I can stop and get breakfast. Yes, the wait is long sometimes but you know what you're in for and the breakfast is beyond worth the wait.

As an owner of the Golden Harvest I would like to respond to the Jan 5 post. First, I would like to apologize for your order not being taken in its proper order. I agree that 20 min is too long. I assume you came on a Sunday which is a day of long lines and waiting and a 30 minute wait for the food is normal on Sat and Sun, especially if you notice the long line of ticket orders on the grill. The grease you mention in your breakfast sandwich is the clarified butter used on the egg and muffin. I also believe our ham and muffin to be of higher quality than McDonalds. The hash browns are one product we do not make homemade and are just like most places except for quanity. I am sorry your husband did not like the Hollandaise Sauce. I do object to your assuming it was old. Zane makes the hollandaise sauce fresh every Sunday morning by hand. It is real hollandaise made with butter, eggs and lemon, and not from a can or dehydrated mix. Zane has, on occation when the sauce curddled or separate, pull it from the menu and not serve it.
I hope you do try us again. If you order French Toast or Pancakes and do not want butter you can order it with no butter, request margerine or have items cooked in olive oil. We even have one customer who brings their own low-fat spread.

For a shorter wait-time come at 8:00 or 2:00 on weekends.
For a no wait-time; 7-9 on Mon - Thurs.

Thank you all for your feed-back.
Marie Vicknair, co-owner

After reading the reviews and hearing all the buzz about this restaurant, I was eager to give it a try. I must admit that I was disappointed by my whole experience. I had heard that the wait would be long, so I expected that. My husband and I waited outside for about 20 minutes, but no problem, I knew to expect the wait. The people in front of us were "experienced" Golden Harvest diners and told us what to expect. Since there were only two in our party, we were able to go in front of a few parties of 3 and sit at the counter when two places opened up. From here, it all went downhill. It took about another 20 minutes just for our order to be taken. The waitress waited on about three other groups before us, all of which came in after us. When she finally got to us, we waited another 30 minutes for our food to arrive. I ordered the breakfast sandwich with sausage and hash browns and my husband ordered the special, a slice of french toast with poached eggs, sausage, and hollandaise sauce and hash browns on the side. My breakfast sandwich was good, but nothing exceptional like all of the reviews claim. It was greasier than McDonalds though which I didn't care for. The hash browns were also good, but again, nothing exceptional. My husband didn't like the hollandaise sauce at all, which kind of ruined his whole meal. He said it was too lemony. Both of us were nauseous the rest of the day. Me, because of the excessive grease, and my husband because he thinks the sauce was old.

Will we go back? We might just to try something else like the waffles, pancakes, or french toast. These might be safer options. I understand why people like this restaurant: the food overall IS pretty good, the menu is large, the atmosphere is really neat, and I liked watching the food prepared in front of me! But people are making it out to be way better than it actually is. The extremely long wait is really not worth the food you get... perhaps people are so hungry by the time they get their food it just tastes that much better to them. And the price is not so reasonable. $17 plus tip for two people at breakfast is too much. I have had breakfast at other places that is just as good, with no wait, and much cheaper.

Great local diner with very good food at a great price. The staff is incredible..

it's pretty small. but i love it. the food and the atmosphere are great.

it's pretty cramped though. but i've always run into to someone i know, which is fun.

i think i'd be in support of some more organization to the way they seat their customers.

but just tough out the wait, the tastes and experiences make me feel like i'm in a movie.

one time i biked there with my boyfriend on a summer morning. it was adorable.

Today was our first visit to Golden Harvest. After waiting outside for 30 minutes (brrr) a staff member brought us some coffee, which was very thoughtful. Unfortunately, patrons inside were less so. One table finished their meals and just sat there for 30 minutes discussing their bill while staring at everyone waiting outside. Even the staff was getting increasingly annoyed with them. It was as if they were totally oblivious that there were cold and hungry people waiting outside. After we were finally seated it took another 30 minutes to get our food but it was worth it - absolutely fantastic! Of course, it would have been even better if we'd been able to eat our food hot. Since there were 6 or 7 total CLODS standing around the front door holding it wide open, our food (and us as well)got cold very quickly. Bummer. Will we be back? Not sure. Excellent food, wonderful vibe and decor but...they need to expand or provide some sort of covered waiting area outside.

Yes, the food is great. We split a garden omlette and french toast and we savored every bite. This place could benefit by greeting new customers at the door. My guest and I waited 15 minutes for a place to sit without anyone putting our name on a list, when a couple walked in off the street and sat at a spot at the counter that opened up maybe 1 minute beforehand. We waited another 10 minutes before the waitress asked us if it was just the two of us, with another 10-15 minute wait to actually get a table. Others waited outside and had to defend their place in line. Where do people wait when the weather is bad?

The food is great, but what makes Golden Harvest a Lansing treasure is the atmosphere. Words fail, you need to experience it to get it.

I Love This Place. Golden Harvest Restaurant is one of those places you can smell the food while you're still in the parking lot and you can't wait to get inside. Best Breakfast I've had since I left Grand Rapids and "Breakfast Just Breakfast" and That's Saying Something. Very homey atmosphere, intriguing old-time decor and did I say the food is excellent. My boyfriend had the breakfast burrito, and a side of light, fluffy, done-just-right Huge pancakes that smelled like heaven. Service and people were great, maybe a tad slow but they keep your coffee cup and water full, it's fun to check out the wall decor and when you get the food you KNOW it was totally worth the wait!! You gotta try this place!

best breakfast in the world..it has been closed for a month or so now for some reason! I drive by every week to see if its back up and running!

I love this place so much, I wrote an entire screenplay around it, produced it, and called the diner in the screenplay, "The Place Where Things Are As They Should Be." --Jeni Mc

This little diner has the best breakfast in Lansing. It is unbeatable. You have to try the breakfast burrito.

This place is one of my favorite places to eat breakfast on the planet. The food is great, the atmosphere is completely friendly and cozy. It is small, cramped, funky, eclectic and in a word "perfect". Try the Diner Breakfast with their own special spicy sausage.

my roomate and i used to go at least 3-4 times a week for breakfast or lunch. i now live back in my hometown in pittsfield, ma about 12 hours or so away and when i took my vacation time this summer to come visit lansing we drove straight through from Massachusetts to the front door of this diner for breakfast stopping for gas and bathroom breaks but no food. Zane's cooking is so good because he loves what he does and is happy in life with his wonderful family

By far the best breakfast available. Absolutely everything on the menu is excellent. Zane (the sole cook) is also co-owner of the restaurant so he has a vested interest in making sure every item is as good as it should be. I would rate his biscuits and gravy the best I have ever had. It is nice to see a family owned / family ran business doing so well. The restaurant is small (Maybe seats 20-30) but tables become available often so do not hesitate to wait in line!

There is nothing better than coming back to visit my family in Lansing and going to Sunday breakfast at this homestyle restaurant. The waitresses know your name, the cook knows your favorite meal. This is the only place to go.

This is the only place my family goes for Sunday breakfasts anymore... The folks who run the place are friendly, the staff members are always making the mood fun, the food is great, the atmosphere is loose and family-like!

Genius. Probably the best kept secret in my hometown. Just when I thought there was nothing else worth going back home for, I stumbled on this great restaurant. This place has soul.

Where else can you enjoy an incredibly good breakfast while listening to the Grateful Dead?