An 8-month-old diner in West Seattle's Morgan Junction, Meander's has swiftly gained such a devout following through word-of-mouth that it hasn't bothered to replace the sign of the prior tenant, a Chinese restaurant called Jade West. Meander's, which seats 13, features one four-top and nine counter stools, where all eyes are fixed on owner-chef Miranda Krone, who (wo)mans the grill five days a week. On any given Sunday, she's typically joined by her waitress and friend, Afton Larsen, an energetic redhead who's charged with enforcing a strict prohibition on outside beverages, especially from Starbucks (go-cups from nearby C&P Coffee Co. are happily exempted). The atmosphere is somewhat reminiscent of the original Shopsin's, the family-run Greenwich Village diner that was the subject of the documentary I Like Killing Flies. Not on the menu? Not a problem, provided Krone's got the ingredients on hand. And in a modern-day Seattle spin on the greasy spoon, Meander's sources the majority of those ingredients locally. MIKE SEELY 6032 California Ave. S.W., 932-9840