Grizzly Manor Cafe Brings Big Breakfasts to Big Bear
This tiny, popular cafe earns strong marks for huge pancakes, hearty portions, friendly service and solid value, provided diners arrive early.
More photos
Photos published by diners on Google, not AI generated.
What stands out
- Huge, moist pancakes
- Hearty, very large portions
- Friendly, hardworking staff
- Good portion-to-price value
- On-site parking
Worth knowing
- Small dining room with limited tables
- Lines and waits during busy periods
- Online orders can add pressure
Suggested meals
Dishes that come up most in public reviews
- Pancakes
- Eggs
Worth a visit?
What the ratings suggest
Grizzly Manor Cafe carries a 4.6 Google rating from more than 2,800 reviews, a strong showing for an inexpensive breakfast restaurant with limited seating. Public feedback consistently frames it as a casual Big Bear Lake favorite rather than a polished, leisurely cafe. The appeal is straightforward: substantial breakfast food, welcoming staff and portions that feel generous for the price.
The sample reviews are notably steady in tone. Some diners call the food exceptional, while a more measured account describes it as simply good. Even that less enthusiastic review praises the portion-to-price ratio, moist pancakes, eggs and hash browns. Taken together, the feedback points to a dependable, filling meal whose value and scale are at least as important as refinement.
Pancakes lead the menu conversation
Pancakes are the clearest recurring recommendation. Reviewers describe them as huge, moist and difficult to beat, making them the cafe’s safest consensus order. They also fit the broader pattern of hearty servings. Diners repeatedly warn, directly or indirectly, that the amount of food can be considerable.
Eggs also recur across the reports, both as part of breakfast plates and alongside French toast. One first-time visitor singled out a French toast combo with eggs and bacon or another side, calling the toast fluffy and the overall serving very large. Other named orders include the Rudy Scramble and Polar Bear, though the available reviews do not provide enough detail to assess their ingredients or compare them with the better-documented pancakes.
The breakfast focus dominates, but one group reported arriving around 1 p.m. for lunch and receiving food fairly quickly after a short wait. That makes the cafe a plausible later stop, although its reputation in these reviews rests primarily on classic morning fare.
Service keeps pace with the crowds
Friendly, hardworking service is another repeated theme. Reviewers noticed staff moving quickly during busy periods, including a Christmas Eve service and a rush of online orders. One party described the staff as amicable and said food arrived fairly quickly. Another praised the team for trying to accommodate a full house.
Those comments matter because the room is repeatedly characterized as small, cozy and popular. There are not many tables, and waits can form. One group reported waiting about 15 minutes around lunchtime, while regulars strongly recommend arriving early. On-site parking is a useful practical advantage, but it does not solve the limited indoor capacity.
The editor’s take
Based on its high-volume rating and the patterns in public reviews, Grizzly Manor Cafe is best treated as a hearty, no-frills breakfast stop. The pancakes are the headline order, portions are a major part of the value proposition, and the staff earns credit for staying cordial under pressure.
The trade-off is predictability at peak times. A small dining room, strong local popularity and substantial online-order demand can create waits or a hectic atmosphere. Early arrivals have the best chance of catching the cafe at its most enjoyable. For diners who prioritize large breakfasts and friendly service over space and quiet, the evidence is firmly favorable.
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Research-based review: our CA editor synthesized 2825 public reviews and the current 4.6-star rating, not an anonymous visit.