Our History

Family Owned and Operated

Over three generations, this family owned business has grown from a small neighborhood grocery store into a regional broadline foodservice distribution business; one of the top 25 companies in the industry. Our success has been built on pride, dedication, hard work, and commitment to make customers feel like family. We continue to embrace modern tools, set and adopt industry best practices, and deploy technical solutions for improved efficiencies and service.

The Timeline

1920's The origin of Hawkeye Foodservice dates to 1921 when David and Aaron Braverman immigrated to Iowa City, IA from Eastern Europe. The brothers operated a small neighborhood grocery store, which grew to include other grocery stores and a wholesaling operation.

1950 - 1980's In the 1950's, David Braverman and his son Richard, current Chairman of the Board, redirected their efforts toward foodservice distribution. The company was incorporated in 1952 as Hawkeye Wholesale Grocery Company, Inc. In 1964, the company moved from its original location near downtown Iowa City to its present location in Coralville, IA. In 1984 the company changes its name to Hawkeye Food Systems Inc. Richard Braverman’s son, Jeff, joined the company full-time in July 1985 and was announced President in March of 1992.

1990 - Today Hawkeye Food Systems Inc. opened its second distribution site in May of 1995 in Danville, Illinois. On June 7, 1999, ground was broken to add a 20,000 square ft. freezer expansion to be completed in late fall of 1999.

In June of 1997 Town & Country Meats, located in Eldridge, Iowa, became the first subsidiary of Hawkeye Food Systems Inc. as a producer of portion control meats for the foodservice industry. Having a state-of-the-art meat processing facility dedicated to producing meat items gave Hawkeye the ability to respond more effectively to specific customer needs.

The Coralville facility has gone through several expansions over the years and has been able to endure growth to become one of the Midwest’s largest private, family-owned distributors of foodservice products. The trade publication ID The Voice of Foodservice Distribution ranked Hawkeye Food Systems as the 37th largest independently owned distributor in the nation for 1998.

In May of 1999 Hawkeye Food Systems selected a new name and a new logo. The company’s new name is Hawkeye Foodservice Distribution, Inc. Jeff Braverman, President, said that it was time to make a change. "As Hawkeye continues to expand geographically, we felt it was important for our name to be more representative of what we do." The updated name and look will help the public better understand what type of company the name represents. The new logo visually ties in the company's emphasis on food distribution. As a distributor of foodservice products, Hawkeye Foodservice serves as the distribution link in bringing food and food related items to institutional users such as restaurants, health care facilities, and schools. Hawkeye Foodservice's service area encompasses 600 miles and includes all of Iowa, Illinois and portions of contiguous Midwestern states.