Making Thyme Kitchen makes a move to the Downtown Market

After eight years of making and selling ready-to-cook meals for busy households from a storefront in East Hills and a downtown church kitchen, Making Thyme Kitchen is moving to new digs: the Grand Rapids Downtown Market (435 Ionia Ave. SW). The Market is scheduled to open in August 2013.

"We're very excited about the move," says Karen Bryan, who owns Making Thyme along with her husband, Ken Bryan. "We'll have a big, brand-new kitchen built to our specifications, and we'll get more exposure to people shopping for food. It also puts us closer to our producers and fresh food ingredients. And the larger space will enable us to offer a bigger variety of menu items."

Making Thyme Kitchen plans to continue to offer its popular meals, including Beef Peanut Satay, Sicilian Chicken with Pine Nuts and Raisins, and Mushroom Nut Loaf with Marinara. In addition, they will introduce new, ready-to-eat, fully cooked meals, as well as products by the pound, such as Green Beans with Butter and Lemon, Gingered Snap Peas, and Cuban Black Bean Salad.

The Bryans eat what they cook, so customers know it's good. Not only does a meal from Making Thyme Kitchen save time in the home kitchen, it cuts down on waste, too.

"Making Thyme Kitchen redefines what 'fast food' can be," says Mimi Fritz, president and CEO of the Downtown Market. "In five minutes, a customer can stop at the Market and pick up the kind of dinner you would make for yourself if you had all the time in the world."

The Downtown Market follows a long tradition of urban markets that were once central to the food systems in American cities. Today, these up-and-coming markets cultivate positive relationships among people from all walks of life, provide a forum for artisan food entrepreneurs and their crafts, promote sustainable food production, and encourage healthy living.

Sources: Karen Bryan, Making Thyme Kitchen; Mimi Fritz, president and CEO of the Downtown Market
Writer: Victoria Mullen, Do Good Editor

Images: Courtesy of Making Thyme Kitchen