FOR THE LOVE OF FOOD CAFE
Hoppen Hierarchy:★★★★
District: Belleuve
Burritos & breakfast sandwiches
Perfect For: Breakfast/brunch; Casual Dining; Lunch; Takeout
Standout Dishes: Breakfast Burrito; Burrito; Original Im-Pressed Brekkie Sammy
There’s really no question what makes For the Love of Food Cafe such a special place. In fact, it’s right there in the name, and you’ll find “love” in every part of this charming Bellevue eatery.
There’s the love owners Jacklyn and Moises Salgado have for their guests, each of whom receives a warm greeting, a hearty, helpful explanation of the menu, and a better mood than they entered the restaurant with.
There’s the love the husband and wife have for one another, strengthened over 10 years of operating a tiny food truck out of a converted delivery van before opening the cafe in early 2024.
And there’s the clear love for the food itself, which is evident in every bite. From the flavor of each housemade component to the way the dishes are composed, it’s clear that a massive amount of thought and intention went into the food… and that’s why it tastes so damn good.
For the Love of Food built its reputation as a food truck that drew diners from all over Omaha, eager to experience the hype these breakfast burritos garnered. The goal: make homestyle-cooked meals reminiscent of what mom would make you when you didn’t feel good, things you can’t find anywhere else.
That ethos still exists now in the cafe, located near Bellevue University, and the additional space has allowed the Salgados to expand the menu. Every day, you’ll find the familiar staples: from 6-10AM, a breakfast sandwich and breakfast burritos, then burritos for lunch from 11AM-1:30PM. But it’s what’s inside those burritos that shows off the couple’s culinary talent.
The available proteins change daily, and often evolve from breakfast to lunch. One day your options might include Nashville Hot Chicken, Tender Steak Bites, and Fully Loaded Chicken Enchilada. The next, the menu might feature Italian Pork, Chorizo Seasoned Pot Roast, and Hot Garlic Maple Glazed Chicken. The cafe is excellent about posting the upcoming menu on Facebook, so check ahead of time if you want to know your options going in.
Whatever filling you choose, you can be assured of 3 things:
- The burrito will be massive, weighing in at over a pound.
- It’ll include tender rice pilaf, creamy beans, and plenty of cheese.
- It’ll be finished on the griddle, giving it great crispy texture, grilled flavor, and structure to hold in the incredible amount of ingredients.
The breakfast burritos are what made For the Love of Food famous, and it’s not hard to see why. The eggs are rich and buttery, cooked down to a near creamy consistency. They’re seasoned well, but play more of a background role to the protein. Again, these change each day, but if the Jerk Chicken is on the menu, do not hesitate. These smoky, slightly spicy hunks of poultry will take you right to a Caribbean beach.
What’s really impressive is each burrito’s construction. So many burrito joints don’t roll properly, resulting in ingredient compartments and inconsistent bites. For the Love of Food layers in a way that each bite delivers each element, ensuring balance and maximum flavor.
The lunch burritos offer a similar experience, but with two differences. First, there are no eggs, which mean the protein is given even more space to shine. This is where For the Love of Food Cafe’s creativity comes in. They transform meats with unique flavor profiles such as Cheezy Corn Chipotle Chicken, Japanese Inspired Honey Curry Chicken, and Carolina Golden BBQ. The Raspberry Chipotle Roast Pork is a great example, as the tender pork is rich and smoky, but also has just a touch of tang from the strawberry.
The second difference is the cheesy blanket the cafe uses to seal the burritos, creating additional texture and ensuring every bite has plenty of delicious dairy.
The Im-Pressed Breakfast Sandwiches may not have the heft of their burrito brethren, but they don’t fall behind in flavor. Each starts with buttered bread that’s ultimately pressed onto the flattop, creating a flavorful, crusty exterior.
What’s inside can change by the day, but the Original Im-Pressed Brekkie Sammy best shows off the cafe’s skills. The perfectly fried egg is joined by ham, a sausage patty, pickled jalapenos, and creamy aioli. Melted American cheese provides the spackling that holds it all together.
And not that this sandwich needs extra calories, but it comes with a sidecar of thick sausage gravy with a peppery punch.
Given the portion sizes at For the Love of Food Cafe, your doctor would be horrified if he or she knew you ordered dessert as well. But good luck seeing the goodies in the pastry case and resisting.
Cake in particular is the cafe’s calling card, and most of its confections have a very moist, tender base, kind of like a soaked angel food. The Pina Colada Cake mixes the sweetness of pineapple with the richness of coconut cream with aplomb, and the Very Cherry Cake combines a fluffy, airy whipped frosting with the sweet, tart flavor of cherry Jell-O.
Then there’s the Triple Chocolate Fudge Cookies & Cream Cake, a rich, dense cake filled with layers of thick chocolate ganache and topped with Oreo crumble. This is an Oreo lover’s dream.
The cafe is small and intimate, with only 5-6 tables. But the open kitchen allows you not only to watch your food be cooked, but also to converse with Jacklyn and Moises, who are more than happy to strike up a conversation.
It’s a cash-only restaurant, and the prices are extraordinary. The burritos range from $10-12, which, considering the quality of the ingredients and the fact that they’re big enough for two meals, is an absolute steal.
It’s easy to see how For the Love of Food created a devoted following on the truck, and that fandom has only expanded with the opening of the brick and mortar. Jacklyn and Moises love what they do, who they serve, and what they cook, and that’s why For the Love of Food Cafe is absolutely worth the drive to Bellevue for.