![]() ![]() There also are broiled oysters, oyster shooters and a chilled seafood platter that comes at a relative bargain compared to other seafood spots in town ($70). The menu starts with a small selection of raw bar options, including market fresh oysters, served with a strawberry mignonette. It’s a great job of composing overall dishes.” It’s not just real great fish and proteins coming in with a great choice of sides. “You go back 20 years ago in the Real Seafood Company world, even 1975, and the tastes have changed. “Chef has done a great job of anticipating what we’re seeing in the market,” Gudejko said. It continues to carry on and evolve, at least as much as a seafood restaurant can. While it’s not here in Grand Rapids, the restaurant has been open in Ann Arbor for more than 40 years. It’s the top performers from those locations and some colorful plates with new ideas.” “It’s a combination of all those great menus. “The people of Grand Rapids are different than the people of Ann Arbor and even the seafood available in South Florida is different than that in Michigan. “We do have a bunch of restaurants, but it’s not cookie-cutter for us,” he said. While Mainstreet was opening a concept with multiple locations already, Mainstreet Executive Chef Brent Courson said that did not mean it was destined to be exactly the same in West Michigan. ![]() But as a growing city, there is more than enough room for multiple quality seafood menus. Since its closure, Leo’s has continued to carry the torch for high-end seafood in Grand Rapids. ![]() There’s not a lot of seafood to be had, so this was a no-brainer.”įor years, one of Grand Rapids’ favorite restaurants was Charley’s Crab - which for its time was a high-end seafood restaurant, a quintessential date night for many Grand Rapidians. We were already looking for what else we can do here that fits the need and the market. ![]() “The city of Grand Rapids, we felt strongly about. “One of the benefits we have is having four different concepts, so we can evaluate a market and determine what to do next,” Gudejko said. Real Seafood Company has locations in Ann Arbor, Bay City, Naples, Florida, and Toledo, Ohio. Thankfully, Mainstreet has multiple concepts already proven in various markets across the Midwest and Florida. Picking what went into the space was not a cakewalk, however. As Mainstreet has a solid relationship with CWD Real Estate Investment, which owns the building, Gudejko said they were able to claim the open space because of the COVID- 19 pandemic. The location was slated to be a Brazilian steakhouse chain, Texas de Brazil, but Gudejko said that ownership group couldn’t make the commitment to Grand Rapids. Gudejko said he had been interested in the new retail space in the redeveloped Fifth Third Building. Mainstreet has multiple concepts, so the Real Seafood Company was the next logical step in Grand Rapids. There are a lot of great people in Grand Rapids.” The community has made it a positive experience to come in and it’s a great market to hire in. “The city has done a great job of welcoming us and a lot of industries in town. “Those both have exceeded our expectations and it’s been a business- friendly environment,” Gudejko said. In 2017, the company opened the Italian-focused Palio on Michigan Street NE, near the edge of the Medical Mile as the company anticipated the accelerating growth of the city’s health care industry. The Chop House has been a staple in the downtown Grand Rapids dining scene since 2004. I feel really strongly about the city and west side of the state,” Gudejko said. “We made the commitment almost 20 years ago with The Chop House. The Ann Arbor-based Main Street operates much like a local company here in Grand Rapids and Mainstreet CEO Kevin Gudejko said it hopes to add to the increasingly vibrant culinary options in Grand Rapids. The fact Real Seafood Company is delivering should not be too much of a surprise, as its parent company, Mainstreet Ventures Restaurant Group, has delighted plenty of Grand Rapids diners over the years at The Chop House and Palio. ![]()
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