Real Food Cafe was created by Frank & Renee Amodeo, a married couple who have a combined 60 years experience in various parts of the food service industry. Frank has worked as a Corporate Chef and an Executive Chef, and Renee a Food Product Development Technologist and a Pastry Chef. Opening a restaurant of their own was their dream since the beginning.

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Real Food Cafe is, and always has been, a labor of love for owners and operators Frank & Renee Amodeo. They put their hearts and souls into making a restaurant that is the kind of place they can be proud of and would want to eat themselves. The food is just as the name says: real food, made from scratch. Eggs are cracked daily, pancakes measured & mixed from Renee's original recipe with real buttermilk, sausage patties seasoned & hand formed from fresh ground pork, corned beef brined & sliced in-house. High quality ingredients are sourced and prepped by caring employees everyday right along side the owners. A commitment to great service is passed on to all employees, who do their part everyday to guarantee a great experience for our valued customers. 

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IN THE BEGINNING

 

The first Real Food Cafe opened its doors in August 2000 on Eastern Avenue in the Alger Heights business district. It quickly became a neighborhood fixture with lots of everyday, even twice a day, regulars. Although we have expanded the building to its limits over the years, the restaurant has retained its quaint, neighborhood roots. 

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When it was time to consider expansion, a second location was found on the north end of metro Grand Rapids, and in September 2006 the Northland Drive Real Food Cafe location opened. It quickly found its following and continued to be successful for 10 years. Seeking building ownership, the couple decided to relocate the Northland Drive location to a building purchased a few miles south - the current Plainfield Avenue Real Food Cafe location. The new location has plenty of parking for customers and, for the first time in Real Food history, ample prep and kitchen space!

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