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Rating
- Meat is the first ingredient – 1 Star
- Uses some unnamed meats – 1 Star
- Above average protein content – 0.5 Star
- Less than 4 controversial ingredients – 1 Star
- Catological Discretionary Rating – 1 Star
Bravo Feline Cafe Chicken Fricassee is one of our top 5 choices for best wet cat foods overall.
Here’s a few important points:
- Packed with meat
- Uses organ meat for a more natural, vitamin-rich meal
- Almost no carbohydrates
- Chelated minerals for better digestion
- Near-perfect macronutrient profile
The Bravo Feline Cafe product line includes 6 wet recipes/flavors.
Each recipe below includes its related AAFCO nutrient profile when available on the product’s official webpage or packaging: Growth (G), Maintenance (M), All Life Stages (A), Supplemental (S) or Unspecified (U).
The star rating is a rough average of all of the flavors in a single line of food. If an individual recipe scored lower or higher, we will mark that below, next to the flavor.
- Bravo Feline Cafe Beef, Turkey & Liver (A) 4 Stars
- Bravo Feline Cafe Chicken & Liver (A)
- Bravo Feline Cafe Duck, Turkey & Liver (A)
- Bravo Feline Cafe Chicken Fricassee (A) 5 Stars
- Bravo Feline Cafe Beef Fricassee (A)
- Bravo Feline Cafe Turkey Fricassee (A) 5 Stars
Bravo Feline Cafe Chicken Fricassee was selected to represent the other products in the line for this review.
Bravo Feline Cafe Chicken Fricassee
Wet Cat Food
Estimated Nutrient Content |
Protein | Fat | Carbs | |
---|---|---|---|
Guaranteed Analysis | 9.5% | 5.5% | NA |
Dry Matter Basis | 53% | 31% | 0% |
Calorie Weighted Basis | 42% | 58% | 28% |
Estimated Dry Matter Nutrient Content
Fiber (guaranteed analysis)
1%
Calories/100g
97
Is real, named meat the first ingredient?
Yes
Ingredients
Chicken, Chicken Broth, Chicken Heart, Chicken Liver, Dried Eggs, Natural Flavor, Chicken Gizzards, Agar-Agar, Cranberries, Salmon Oil, Dried Green Lipped Mussels, Dandelion Greens, Parsley, Salt, Calcium Carbonate, Choline Chloride, Taurine, Turmeric, Potassium Chloride, Iron Amino Acid Chelate, Magnesium Amino Acid Chelate, Zinc Amino Acid Chelate, Manganese Amino Acid Chelate, Copper Amino Acid Chelate, Sodium Selenite, Calcium Iodate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Niacin Supplement, Vitamin E Supplement, Calcium Pantothenate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Folic Acid.
Ingredients in red are controversial or of questionable quality.
Ingredient Breakdown
The first ingredient in this cat food is chicken. Good.
While quality of the individual ingredient can vary, chicken is a good protein source for cats.
It’s also important to note that chicken contains about 70% water, so when it is processed and cooked for use in cat food, it will become a smaller part of the total recipe.
The second ingredient is chicken broth. Good.
Instead of using water for processing, chicken broth is added for moisture.
Broth may contain vitamins and nutrients from the original animal (chicken, in this case), that water would lack.
This is usually a sign of a high quality food.
The third ingredient is chicken heart. Good.
You may not love the sound of it, but your cat sure does.
Organ meat has vital nutrients your kitty needs.
It is pure muscle, which means it’s full of protein. It also has minerals and important vitamins that white meat does not have.
This is usually a sign of a high quality food.
The fourth ingredient is chicken liver. Good.
Liver is an important organ meat that your cat would eat in the wild to get extra protein, vitamins, and minerals.
This is usually a sign of a high quality food.
The fifth ingredient is dried eggs. Good.
Even though eggs are not meat, they are a highly digestible form of protein.
In fact, they are one of the most complete, bioavailable forms of protein for both humans and cats.
As long as it is not the main protein ingredient, the addition of egg is a quality ingredient.
Ignoring natural flavors, which are fine, the sixth ingredient is chicken gizzards. Good.
Another part of the guts that your cat would eat in the wild, chicken gizzards are high in protein, minerals, and vitamins, especially B vitamins.
The seventh ingredient is agar-agar. Good.
Agar-agar is derived from a red seaweed, but is different from carrageenan.
It is used as a “gelling” substance, which helps keep food together.
Although they are both red seaweeds, it seems agar-agar does not suffer from the same potentially carcinogenic qualities as carrageenan.
Until we find research to prove that they are the same just because they both come from red seaweeds, we believe agar is a better gelling agent than most others used.
The eighth ingredient is cranberries. OK, but with reservations.
While cranberry can help with urinary tract trouble, there is likely not enough in this recipe to actually help in that regard.
While not harmful, it is typically a gimmicky addition to cat foods.
The ninth ingredient is salmon oil. Good.
A good source of omega 3 and 6 fatty acids.
Fish oils, like this salmon oil, support the health of the skin, coat, joint, kidneys, heart, and immune system, and may even help with serious illnesses such as cancer.
This recipe includes a number of other ingredients, but once you get down this far, none of them will be in large enough quantities to make a real difference, except for the added vitamins and minerals.
However, there are still a few things you should know about.
This recipe utilizes chelated minerals, which may be easier to digest and more bioavailable for your cat. This is usually a sign of a high quality cat food.
To read a more in depth article about any of the ingredients listed here, check out our Cat Food Ingredient Wiki (currently under development).
The Catological Verdict on Bravo Feline Cafe Wet Cat Food
From top to bottom, this is an above average wet product.
From the abundance of meats, including organs, to the lack of carbohydrates, to the addition of important minerals and vitamins, this just ticks all of the boxes.
This is a perfect example of the type of food you should be feeding your cat.
Since meat shows up frequently, and right at the top of the ingredient list, we can assume that this is a meat-based cat food, with enough meat to make it biologically appropriate for a cat’s dietary needs.
To review, on a dry matter basis, this food is 53% protein, 31% fat, and 0% carbs.
As a group, the brand has an average protein content of 50%, and average fat content of 34%, and an average carb content of 1%.
Compared to the other 2000+ foods in our database, this food has:
- Above average protein.
- Above average fat.
- Below average carbs.
Because it is full of quality meat products and biologically appropriate, our rating for this brand is 4.5 stars.
Highly recommended.
Bravo Cat Food Recall History
We do not believe that a recall indicates a low quality food or company, and we respect the fact that sometimes things happen that cause a manufacturer to recall a food.
Usually these things are non-life-threatening, and we think it’s important to take a moment to be thankful about just how few recalls there really are in the industry, considering the enormous volume of food produced.
However, we do believe that a history of recalls may point to a larger issue with a company, and that discerning consumers want to know who they’re buying from, especially when it comes to something as important as the food you feed your beloved cat.
Here is a list of recalls that have affected the Bravo brand in the past:
- December 2015 – Potential for salmonella – 4 recipes affected
- July 2015 – Potential for salmonella – 4 recipes affected
- September 2014 – Potential for salmonella – 4 recipes affected
- May 2014 – Potential for listeria – 7 recipes affected
- April 2013 – Potential for salmonella – 3 recipes affected
- March 2013 – Potential for salmonella – 1 recipe affected
- June 2011 – Potential for salmonella – 1 recipe affected
- September 2007 – Potential for salmonella or listeria – 3 recipes affected
If you want to stay up to date on the latest recall information affecting your cat’s food, sign up to our email list and receive an email every time a recall is announced. We’ll also let you know about any updated ratings, recipe changes, or new cat foods on the market. (Our alert system will be launched shortly, check back soon.)
Where To Buy Bravo Feline Cafe Cat Food
We recommend purchasing your pet products from Chewy.com. They continually prove that they walk the walk while talking the talk, and I’ve never dealt with a more dedicated pet-parent base of people than those who work at Chewy.
Plus, they offer 20% off and free shipping on lots of orders.