Restaurant Equipment and Supply for Kalamazoo, Portage and Battle Creek
Kalamazoo grew up on celery, beer and a downtown coney counter. Dutch immigrants turned the muck lands around town into celery fields, Larry Bell sold his first Kalamazoo Brewing Co. beer in 1985, and the downtown Kalamazoo's Coney Island dates to 1915.
In Calhoun County, Battle Creek is the Cereal City, where the Kelloggs and C.W. Post started a cereal industry in the 1890s. Next door, Portage runs a Sunday farmers market that moved into a new 50-stall pavilion in May 2026.
Since 2015, The Restaurant Warehouse has shipped to thousands of commercial kitchens in every state. Southwest Michigan orders ship from our Chicago warehouse, so Kalamazoo-area restaurants get the same low prices and freight delivery right to Kalamazoo, Portage, and Battle Creek. The most common orders here are reach-in refrigerators, draft beer coolers, back bar coolers, griddles, fryers, and food truck equipment.
Battle Creek, the Cereal City
Battle Creek's visitors bureau says the Kellogg brothers' flaked cereal started by accident in the 1890s, when stale boiled wheat was rolled, flaked and toasted. C.W. Post, a former Battle Creek Sanitarium patient, launched the Postum Cereal Company in 1895 and Grape-Nuts in 1897, and W.K. Kellogg founded the Battle Creek Toasted Corn Flake Company in 1906. A Historical Society of Battle Creek volunteer told WKAR that the early 1900s had "like 100 cereal companies in name" in town, most of which failed. Ferrero closed its purchase of WK Kellogg Co in September 2025 and said Battle Creek would remain a core location as its North American cereal headquarters. Every June, on the second Saturday, Cereal Fest carries on its World's Longest Breakfast Table tradition with tables along McCamly Avenue, with volunteers pouring Kellogg's and Post cereal and Prairie Farms milk. The festival entered the Guinness Book of World Records in 1979.
Diners, bakeries and breakfast spots in Battle Creek run on griddles, ranges and ovens, work tables, and reach-in refrigerators for milk, eggs and batter. Festival and catering crews add undercounter refrigerators and ice machines.
Bell's and Kalamazoo Craft Beer
Larry Bell ran a homebrew supply shop downtown from 1983 and sold the first Kalamazoo Brewing Co. beer on September 19, 1985. Oberon was first brewed as SolSun in 1992, the Eccentric Café opened on June 11, 1993, which Bell's says made it the first Michigan brewery with an onsite pub, and Two Hearted followed in 1997. The Comstock brewery opened in 2003, and in November 2021 Bell's was sold to Lion, a Kirin subsidiary, with about 550 employees in Comstock and Kalamazoo at the time. The Eccentric Café still pours beside the original brewery site, with a beer garden and music venue. Every winter, Kalamazoo Craft Beverage Week fills a week with food and drink pairings and events.
Taprooms and brewpubs need draft beer coolers, back bar coolers, and glass door merchandisers for cans to go. Pub kitchens pair them with fryers, charbroilers, and sandwich prep tables.
Celery City, Bank Street and Kalamazoo's Coney Island
Kalamazoo was known as Celery City. According to the Kalamazoo Public Library, accounts credit Scotsman George Taylor or Dutch immigrant Cornelius De Bruin with starting the crop in the 1850s-60s, and more than 1,000 acres were still in celery in 1939. The city market opened in 1916 and moved in 1947 to a former muckland tract on Bank Street, where the new market had 64 stalls. The Kalamazoo Farmers Market at 1204 Bank St. still runs Saturdays from May through November, plus Tuesdays and Thursdays from June through October. Downtown, Kalamazoo's Coney Island dates to 1915, and Michigan Public calls it "the longest continuously-operated coney island restaurant in Michigan."
Market vendors, coney counters and farm-to-table kitchens order griddles and reach-in refrigerators, sandwich prep tables for the line, countertop display cases for baked goods, and freezers to hold peak-season produce.
Restaurant Supply Store in Kalamazoo
We ship straight to your Kalamazoo restaurant. Most Southwest Michigan orders arrive in 1 to 3 business days from our Chicago warehouse, with free freight and free lift gate service. Southwest Michigan calls usually come from taprooms adding draft lines, diners replacing a griddle or reach-in that quit mid-shift, and new food trucks and market vendors getting ready for summer. Tell us what you cook and how much space you have, and we will help you size the line. Will-call pickup in Chicago is available for verified restaurant businesses, but most kitchens skip the trip and let us ship it.
Why Kalamazoo Restaurants Buy From The Restaurant Warehouse
Every piece of new Atosa equipment we sell is run-tested for 24 hours at the factory before it ships. It carries Intertek's ETL Sanitation and cETLus listings, which certify it to the NSF/ANSI food equipment standards and US and Canadian safety standards that inspectors from Kalamazoo County Health & Community Services and the Calhoun County Public Health Department look for. Refrigeration comes with a 3-year parts and labor warranty and a 5-year compressor warranty, gas cooking equipment comes with a 1-year parts and labor warranty, and extended warranties are available.
- Free freight on qualifying orders, no lift gate fees
- Built for scrappy startups, food trucks and independent kitchens
- Founder Sean Kearney answers calls, texts and email at (206) 419-5801 or therestaurantwarehouse@gmail.com
Serving Kalamazoo, Portage and Battle Creek
Kalamazoo is our hub for Kalamazoo County and Calhoun County. Restaurants in Kalamazoo, Portage, and Battle Creek get the same equipment, free lift gate freight, and warranty, and they talk to the same team.
Kalamazoo
From Bell's Eccentric Café to the Bank Street market, Kalamazoo kitchens order draft beer coolers, bar refrigeration, fryers, and reach-in refrigerators.
Portage
The Portage Zhang Farmers Market, running since 2016, opened its 50-stall, $3.25 million pavilion at 125 E. Centre Ave. in May 2026, and runs Sundays from May to mid-October. Portage restaurants and market vendors order sandwich prep tables, undercounter refrigerators, food truck equipment, and ice machines.
Battle Creek
The Calhoun County Public Health Department inspects about 500 food service establishments in the county, from restaurants to college cafeterias and mobile units. Battle Creek kitchens order griddles, ranges and ovens, freezers, and chef bases.
Kalamazoo Restaurant Equipment FAQ
Do you ship restaurant equipment to Kalamazoo?
Yes. The Restaurant Warehouse ships commercial restaurant equipment to Kalamazoo and the rest of southwest Michigan by freight, with lift gate delivery to your door.
Do you deliver to Portage and Battle Creek?
Yes. We deliver across southwest Michigan, including Kalamazoo, Portage, and Battle Creek.
How fast is delivery to Kalamazoo?
Most Southwest Michigan orders arrive in 1 to 3 business days from our Chicago warehouse, depending on item availability and carrier routing. Contact us if you need equipment urgently.
Do you offer free freight?
Yes. Free freight is available on select models and qualifying orders. Contact us to confirm freight options for a specific item.
Do you charge lift gate fees?
No. We do not charge lift gate fees.
What types of restaurant equipment do you sell?
We sell commercial refrigerators, freezers, prep tables, griddles, charbroilers, deep fryers, ovens, ice machines, bar refrigeration, and food truck equipment, plus many other categories for professional kitchens.
Can I get help choosing the right equipment?
Yes. If you can't find what you need, call or email us and we'll help you source the right product for your kitchen.
Can I pick up my order?
Yes. Verified restaurant businesses can arrange will-call pickup at our Chicago warehouse. But why lose a day renting a truck, strapping it down and unloading it yourself? With free freight and free lift gate service, most Southwest Michigan orders arrive at your door or curb in 1 to 3 business days. Call (206) 419-5801 to set up either option.
To the north, our Grand Rapids page covers Wyoming, Kentwood, and Muskegon, and to the east our Lansing page covers Lansing and East Lansing.
Restaurant Equipment Across Michigan
The Restaurant Warehouse delivers commercial restaurant equipment across Michigan from our Columbus and Chicago warehouses. Find the page for your region: