Michael Grant stands before the storefront that will house his restaurant, The Island. The building was long the site of the celebrated Ishpeming restaurant Ralph’s Italian Deli. (Journal photo by Jessica Potila)

ISHPEMING — Food truck owner Michael Grant said he has no illusions about replacing the celebrated Italian restaurant that was Ralph’s Italian Deli.

“We’re taking over a community staple that’s been in this city for generations,” he said.

Ralph’s went out of business in September when owner Bruno Gervasi retired, much to the dismay of countless devoted customers.

The Ishpeming building that housed Ralph’s for nearly 40 years will now be home to The Island, an extension of Grant’s mobile business The Island Food Truck.

“It’s not going to be Ralph’s per se anymore. We’re not going to even try to replicate what Bruno was doing,” Grant said. “I ate at Ralph’s all the time. I loved his cudighis. I was just as sad as anyone else here in Ishpeming about him closing down. It kind of left this hole out here.”

Perhaps Grant can patch that hole with his popular sandwiches, such as Duke’s Revenge and Benji’s Best, named after his family dogs; gyros; breakfast burritos; hot dogs; and fries.

Grant said serving food out of a storefront is a natural progression for a food truck owner.

That he has reached this stage in his entrepreneurial evolution is a testament to Grant’s perseverance.

He said he worked in other people’s restaurants for most of his life, including at Stuckos Pub and Grill in Marquette for many years. When a Stuckos food truck came up for sale, Grant partnered with a friend he knew had some capital on hand and they purchased the truck together.

But Grant found himself back in the Stuckos kitchen when a 2019 fire destroyed the food truck as it was parked in a Marquette storage unit that went up in flames.

“Once you get the taste of working for yourself and not for other people, it’s really hard to go back to work for other people, it really is,” he said.

So when another friend received a small inheritance, they purchased a new food truck, which is now The Island. That friend has since been bought out of the business and moved on to other endeavors, Grant said.

An Ishpeming building was the logical choice out of which to operate The Island. Grant lives in the town along with his fiance Amanda, 3-year-old son and 18-month-old daughter.

“Both of my children were born out here at Bell, and both will graduate from Ishpeming High School. I like it here. I don’t plan on going anywhere,” Grant said.

He said he was impressed with the gigantic prep kitchen in the back of the former Ralph’s building.

“I’ll be able to run both the (food truck) trailer and business out of the same building and that sounds great to me,” he said. “This building is just as much this community’s building as it is my family’s now. I hope we come together and make some good food.”