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The owner of Gaia Café is a 35-year restaurant veteran who believes you have to be insane to be a chef.
Keeping the faith
S
urely Gaia, the mythological Greek goddess of the earth, is casting a smile on Grand Rapids. After all, her all-vegetarian namesake, Gaia Café, is approaching its 30-year tribute in her honor. Owner Rick Van Dam has kept the vegetarian faith, offering fresh and faceless fare in homespun surroundings at 209 Diamond Ave. SE for close to three decades — quite an accomplishment when trans-
lated into restaurant years. As a 35-year restaurant industry veteran who is not a vegetarian, Van Dam initially honed his skills at a popular steakhouse. Through stints at various fine-dining establishments, he realized his calling and earned a culinary arts degree from Oakland Community College. Today, he says he continues to feed off the energy of the kitchen. “You have to be insane to be a chef,”
he said. “It’s almost heroic what chefs do, making every dish the same every day and of the same quality every time — and you hope that it is or you’re going to hear about it. You have to demand of yourself constantly.” Gaia Café’s menu includes soybean products such as tempah and, occasionally, tofu, while Gaia cookies — famously loaded with chocolate chips, granola, dates, coconut ribbons and walnuts —
> riCK VAn DAM Title: Owner of Gaia Café
PhotoGraPhy by michaeL buck
Location: East Hills
82 GrmaG.com \ June 2012
GRM_06.12_PG66.95.indd 82
5/8/12 3:59 PM