THEY SEE ME ROLLIN'... and when the food tastes this good, no one's hating. Earlier this year Andrea Reneau, founder of Egg Rolls and More, officially became the owner of the building she has served out of since 2022 – marking a milestone moment for the Altoona eatery.

What’s in a name? For Egg Rolls and More (1419 Lynn Ave., Altoona), it could be easy to say, what you read is what you get – but there’s been nothing easy about the local eatery’s journey.

While one Facebook post from Andrea Reneau, made around the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, sparked the creation of Egg Rolls and More – Reneau’s post offered to take orders for homemade egg rolls and resulted in a total of 500 ordered – the restaurant has been decades in the making.

Reneau grew up about a half hour outside of Eau Claire in the village of Fall Creek, where her parents owned and worked on dairy farms. In Reneau's late teenage years, her parents pivoted from agriculture to food service.

“They went from the hardest jobs ever, to one of the next hardest jobs ever,” she said.

In turn, the doors of The Secret Garden first opened in 1997, located in what is now home to Altoona Family Restaurant. Reneau’s mom, Eunyoung “Kim” Reneau, opened the restaurant with friend Pam Feller, bringing one of the area’s first Korean restaurants to life.

Then, the local food scene was less diverse than it is today (it’s worth noting Eau Claire did not see its first Korean BBQ and hot pot restaurant until two years ago) and The Secret Garden brought brand-new flavors inspired by Kim’s native Korea alongside its Mongolian-style grill.

“It was honestly ahead of its time,” Reneau said, noting the success of another hot pot chain restaurant, Hu Hot, in the later 2010s – after The Secret Garden had closed.

Just about everything on the Egg Rolls and More menu is made fresh to order. The meat used in its dishes and rolls is hand-ground (sourced from area butchers like Off The Rail Meats), the eggs bought locally from Amanda's Eggs and the recipes from Andrea Reneau's noggin'.

At the time, Reneau resisted the idea of restaurant ownership, yet continued working in the food service industry through her early adult years. After graduating high school, she spent her early 20s in the Minneapolis area, working at her aunt and cousin’s Korean BBQ restaurant, Hoban.

After a while, her hometown called Reneau back when she began a family of her own – and she hasn’t left the area since.

Working her way up to the management level in local restaurants, Reneau seemingly blinked and had over two decades of food service expertise. “After working for someone else for so long, you’re like, ‘Why don’t I do it?’ ” she said.

"We have a lot of people that have been (coming to eat) here since day one. I don’t plan to expand (seating) though – I need my freezer space."

ANDREA RENEAU

OWNER, EGG ROLLS AND MORE

That fateful 2020 Facebook post was the first domino in what became Egg Rolls and More. As of Jan. 2 this year, Reneau now owns the building – formerly the Altoona VFW’s building – she has operated out of since 2022.

Reneau’s Korean roots particularly shine in dishes like the Jap Chae Noodle Stirfry and fried egg-topped Bibimbap, though the restaurant’s namesake remains the No. 1 customer favorite.

While owner Andrea Reneau's go-to order includes any of the menu's Korean soups, she often recommends the fried rice entree (as all meals are made-to-order, spice level can be customized) or, for seafood lovers, the seafood pancake. (Bibimbap entree, pictured.)

Locals don’t have to travel too far to find egg rolls in restaurants these days, Reneau noted, though it’s unlikely foodies will find anything similar to her specialty rolls.

This March, Egg Rolls and More sold thousands of Rueben egg rolls – “we only do those one month out of the whole year, they go so crazy,” Reneau said – while others like buffalo chicken, ham, pickle and cream cheese, breakfast, mac ’n cheese rolls and others have rotated in and out too.

Those ideas, alongside just about every other item on the menu, are inspired by what Reneau eats in her own home.

“That’s how I came up with the buffalo chicken rolls,” she said. “I have leftover food at home and I’ll just roll it up and see if it tastes good.”

The chicken or pork egg rolls are likely the top-sellers, perhaps due to the bulk orders made by customers throughout the year. At any given time, the freezers just behind Egg Rolls and More’s register are filled with large quantities of the house-made egg rolls – but they don’t stick around long.

“We have a lot of people that have been (coming to eat) here since day one,” Reneau said. “I don’t plan to expand (seating) though – I need my freezer space.”

Reneau said she often sells out of egg rolls weekly despite the small team’s ability to roll thousands in a few-days stretch. There are folks who special order rolls in bulk ahead of holidays, for random events or family get-togethers – people even travel across the country to stock up.

“There’s a guy who lives in Tennessee who comes up about twice a year to stock up,” Reneau said. The customer had grandkids in the area and, some years ago, got a taste of Egg Rolls and More. He hasn’t kicked the hankering since.

Merchandise available for purchase can be found displayed on the false half-wall separating the seating area from the register and freezers. A world map adorned with pins, marks the home states of patrons (mostly in the Midwest; some pins dot the west and east coasts, down to Florida and all between).

Outside Egg Rolls and More, the American and Korean flags are flown high on a shared flag pole. The building, owned by the local VFW until it was signed over to Andrea Reneau on Jan. 2, continues to be frequented by VFW members who Reneau got to know over the past few years.

Egg Rolls and More, for previous and regular customers, isn’t too different than it was a few months ago. Its seating has expanded and feels more permanent, decor feels unified and the building is now owned by Reneau, yet the food is thankfully as flavorful and fresh as ever.

“I really don’t know,” Reneau said, pondering what led to Egg Rolls and More’s loyal local following. “But people love it.”

When asked if she loves it too, she immediately replied, “I do, yeah. A lot.”

The family passion for food and customer care has clearly passed along through Reneau – and she has more ideas in the works for what the Egg Rolls and More space could offer in the future.

This spring marks 15 years since the passing of Reneau's mom, Kim. While she joked her mom would tell her, “wasn’t I right?” about the sometimes tough realities of owning a restaurant, one can imagine a mother's pride in seeing their family’s food continue to fill locals' bellies and bring people together.

Altoona's Korean food purveyor is on a roll, folks. Swing by soon to taste it for yourself.

Egg Rolls and More (1419 Lynn Ave., Altoona) is currently open from Monday-Tuesday, 10am-7pm and Wednesday-Thursday, 10am-5pm • Catering is available by inquiring online or calling (715) 497-2034 • Keep up with Egg Rolls and More on social media to hear about specials and future updates