Field & Fire Cafe — Restaurant in Grand Rapids

Seems to cater to a younger demographic; maybe mid-20s to late 30s. Lots of soups, salads, and lighter fare. Soft drinks only, no beer, wine or liquor. No table service; order at the counter and they appreciate it if you clear your own table afterwards.

Some stools at the counter and maybe a dozen tables (2 tops and 4 tops). Seats are not great, but we're Olds so we may not be the best to judge comfort. Most of the other patrons were -30 our age and they looked perfectly comfortable :-)

The baked goods and pastries looked wonderful, although only a limited selection remained when we got there late (after 11:30 AM). Probably need to hit them early for the best selection of bakery. If the bread they served with my lentil soup was any indication, it is worth being there at opening time for the baked goods. Really good!

My salad consisted of fresh and crisp field greens and romaine, assorted veggies and with a nice light vinaigrette dressing. Very tasty. And the abovementioned lentil soup was good as well. My wife had the special of the day, a teriyaki bowl - a little too salty for our tastes, but the tofu was yummy and the broccoli was plentiful as were the mushrooms.

The menu includes both vegetarian as well as vegan options. There were three couples while we were there with toddler-aged (or younger) children, and high chairs are available, so this is a kid-friendly place as well.

As I said, this looks to be great place for the Youngs looking for a quick bite or a cup of latte and a macaroon while doing internet stuff or maybe getting some bakery to go. as well.

Worth checking...

Food and drink are very good and tasty!

Hubs had the Eggs Benedict special and I had the Vegan "hot mess". I was wondering where the Nutcase vegan sausage was, but it was (very) lightly portioned and crumbled on top, I would've liked a bit more!

I like that they use a high end local coffee roaster, Madcap at time if writing this review. I know for a fact that Madcap uses a natural decaffeination process for their decaf (effervescent I believe) which you have to watch out for at most restaurants which use low grade coffee and a very harmful chemical process for decaffeination (like formaldehyde!).

It is self-seating and self-service and I only knocked a star off because I felt they could add a bit more nicety in this area like just checking on you and that the food is okay rather than just dropping it on your table without a word or a smile. We still always tip at the register for self-service. Also, some items were a bit overpriced for the what you get. The gal making coffee was hustling and great though!

Quite a bit of seating available, but it can get full at busy times. Only street parking and a paid lot across...

This place is a circus of inhospitable stress and COVID derangement. I've visited two times and both have been miserable experiences. Chairs are upside down, passive aggressive signage, employees who look like they're under severe stress, paranoid theatrics, the works. There's a dude behind the counter who goes around hounding customers whether they're inside or outside. If they're inside he demands that everyone mask up and shambles around like he's in the midst of a manic episode. If they're outside, he patrols the igloos demanding that they make reservations to sit outside (who even makes reservations at a take out sandwich shop). One might think that making it unnecessarily difficult for people to sit outside would contradict the goal of indoor "safety" but I suppose there's not much logic to a place in the hospitality industry that places hospitality last. Anyways, world class worst service aside, the food is mediocre and expensive. My sandwich tasted like burnt cooking oil and cost roughly $14. Life is too short and sweet to waste on Field & Fire Cafe and there are too many other amazing businesses with great...