The Crew Family Restaurant and Bakery — Restaurant in Portage

I just finished eating here and let me say, it may not be a five star restaurant decor-wise but I liked it enough to give it five stars. The booths all need to be reupholstered and the place was empty. I don’t know if it was empty because I came at 6 on the day after Xmas or if it’s just not popular. There was only three of us customers in the restaurant when I got there, but by the time I left, there was about twenty people and most of them were seniors or truckers. Both those groups I find are the ones who frequent low priced diners with quality food and that’s what this place is. It’s Americana food for an affordable price. I ordered the chicken with Swiss and mushrooms topped on rice pilaf. The waiter told me the rice pilaf was not that flavorful but that it was really good, which I thought was odd, but he was right. I’m from a family that overseasons food and this was not over-seasoned at all. It was perfectly flavored and the best rice pilaf I’ve had in a long time. And I’m usually not much of a rice pilaf fan because people dry it out. This was not dry at all. It was good. So was the chicken with Swiss and mushrooms. Chicken with Swiss and mushrooms is always taking a risk to order. It can be messed up if a chef dries out the chicken, or uses a Swiss cheese or a mushroom that is too potently flavored. This was a perfect blend of the three and I’m not sure what slight sauce they had between the chicken and the Swiss, but it was really good. I also ordered broccoli and asparagus as the sides and those were also fantastic. I don’t think there was any seasoning on it but they were perfectly cooked and tasted like summer veggies instead of winter veggies. I literally ate every bit off my plate which I normally never do. My favorite thing, however (funny enough), was the ice and the rolls. I literally took extra to go. I’m an ice chomper with sensitive teeth. This is soft chomping ice which is hard to find. The rolls have a hint of honey to them and are so soft and sweet. They remind of the Hawaiian rolls you can buy at the grocery store but a lot better. I was tempted to order a cookie even though they are $4 once I saw them. They are the size of a salad plate and the waiter told me they will last you about four days. (Pictures attached.). And finally, the service. I had Kevin and he was awesome. I really liked his honesty about the rice pilaf and his friendly attitude. If you don’t like booths with cracked vinyl, you can ask for a table with chairs. I saw plenty. But since food and price and service are what I look for in a good restaurant, this place is worth five stars. I will be back and if you are In The area, you should go too. Skip the Denny’s and Arby’s across the street since this place will cost you the same as the Denny’s but is way better...

Never eat at this establishment as they fail to serve people of color. My family and I sat down at 11 a.m. and ordered by 11:18 a.m. They never once began making our food. Their reasoning was “We were full when you got here.” They also served customers that came in and ordered after us their food. This left my son and nieces asking “Where is our food?” On multiple occasions. Not only that but we were placed in the back of the restaurant making us out of sight out of mind. Even though there was open seating in the front of the restaurant. Finally, when my family and I elected to leave around 12:18 p.m. the manager antagonized us on the way out by yelling, “NOT YOUR FAULT GUYS!!!!” To her line chefs as she made eye contact with us. I have been living in Kalamazoo since 2013 and have never been treated like this at any restaurant. Again I urge you all to not eat at this establishment. Especially if you are of color. You will not be waited on or treated with respect.

Response to whom responded: Removing race from the discussion, I express my disappointment that you did not provided adequate service to my family and I. While I understand that you may have experienced the loss of a beloved owner, I believe that this should not be an excuse to treat customers poorly. Your owner would likely want their establishment to be a place where all customers feel treated with respect and dignity. Furthermore, we had ample time to prepare for our flight before being seated in the “back room.” This incident demonstrates your ineptitude in serving your customers on a timely basis. Unless you are admitting to intentionally delaying our service. Additionally, we sat down before anyone else was seated in the “back room” and yet we still watched other customers being served their food before us, even though we had placed our order before theirs. Furthermore, we had small children with us who were constantly asking where our food was. Ultimately, I hope that you and your staff will learn from this experience and improve your business practices. You should strive to serve all customers, regardless of their race, background, or circumstances. For your information, we recently buried a family...

The Crew was formerly a Perkins and, according to their menu, was reopened by those workers because they were so tight-knit that they hated to see the restaurant close.

The staff is incredibly friendly and accommodating. We almost always change up the items in our order a little bit and they are always happy to oblige and get it right. The food is great. They are open all day but we often go for breakfast... which could be at 5 p.m. Anywhere that serves all-day breakfast is already on my good side.

I wouldn't say the food is extra remarkable but the quality and taste is solid and the food is always hot and fresh when it comes out. The prices are also very reasonable. One exception... THE PANCAKES. They have the BEST pancakes I've ever had. I don't know if there's some vanilla cake batter in there or what but they are so full-flavored and it is more than just a little vanilla extract in there. I pride myself in having a palate that can pick out subtleties like that but these pancakes elude me. I never get toast as my side here. Pancakes every time.

It is kid-friendly and the clientele (when I've been there) has been primarily senior citizens. That being said, I have learned from experience that seniors know the best places to get breakfast. The decor is... well, basically an old Perkins though a little nicer feeling. Nothing fancy, but nothing awful. Just a...