The Little Diner offers outstanding comfort food with a twist in Vail

What’s better than the best breakfast in town? Adding a breakfast cocktail. The Little Diner, Lionshead’s quintessential eatery, has long been the go-to for hearty breakfast platters, generous lunch options and griddled favorites that dance from sweet to savory. But because they’ve always been a little bit extra, Brian and Peggy Little introduced a menu of breakfast cocktails, dubbed “eye openers,” a few years ago. And if 2024’s Best of the Vail Valley win for Best Bloody Mary is any indication, they nail it with the same blend of quality and creativity that has become synonymous with their culinary offerings. And yes, they scooped a win for Best Breakfast Spot, too.

For the Hatch Green Chile Bloody, guests can decide if they want it as a Mary (vodka) or Maria (tequila). Both include a kick from New Mexico’s famous Hatch green chiles.

“We doctor it up,” says Chef Brian. “People like what we call the salad bar up top — the pickled okra, the Sweety Drop peppers and a gherkin pickle. I like that it features ingredients local to the region, with the Hatch green chile.”

Other cocktail favorites include the mimosas, with choices like passion fruit, blood orange and guava added to the standard Prosecco and OJ. The Spiked Peanut Butter Hot Chocolate is built on Sheepdog Peanut Butter Whisky — talk about putting some warmth in the belly. And craft beers, a wine list and more cocktails round out the list.

It’s fun to have a nip of something at brunch — even better when the meal that comes with it checks all the boxes. The Littles are a bit over the top in their commitment to quality, whether it’s ordering the best product available (notice the thick slices of applewood-smoked bacon, the 100% Angus grass-fed beef burgers) or cooking things from scratch (such as the corned beef brisket that is steamed fresh daily). As evidenced by the name they chose for their eatery — The Little Diner — it’s personal to the Littles.

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Though it’s easy to describe why the food is so good, what’s more elusive but just as essential is how it feels to eat at The Little Diner. The entire staff, from host to cook to server to dishwasher, seems to have internalized a deep commitment to a job well done, and done happily. That is to say, the warmth of the experience isn’t just from the brunch cocktail, or the slow burn of the pork green chili, but from the staff’s attitude, and the customers’, too.

 “One of the cool thing about the diner: It’s the great equalizer,” Chef Brian says. “Everybody likes diners, everybody likes diner food.”

Especially when it’s scratch cooking made with premium ingredients, served in paradise.