Osta's will be first sidewalk café in East Grand Rapids to serve beer, wine

By: Deborah Johnson Wood

Osta's Lebanese Cuisine, a longtime eatery on the East Grand Rapids scene, received the city's first permit to serve beer and wine at a sidewalk café located on city property. The restaurant began in downtown Grand Rapids in 1990, moved to 2228 Wealthy SE in 1993, and has had a few dining tables outside its front door for several years.

"Our customers requested we serve beer and wine outside, and it's something unique for the area," says John Aouad, chef, and co-owner with his wife, Diane. "We're trying to bring a bit of the big city to our city."

"We want to keep people in Gaslight Village longer into the evening to promote the downtown area," says Diane Aouad. "Instead of going home to watch TV or rent a movie, they can stay around here and bring life to the area."

The city stipulated that the café area be fenced. The Aouad's will do that in time for next summer's outdoor dining season. Because the restaurant gets a lot of business from students who attend the high school next door, the Aouad's also agreed to stop serving alcohol outdoors on Labor Day, before the school year begins.

John came to the US from Beirut in 1989 after graduating from culinary school in Lebanon. His father, a well-known chef, taught him how to cook and how to run the family restaurant business. John named the restaurant Osta's in honor of his father who dreamed of opening a restaurant in the US, but passed away before he could fulfill that dream. Osta is a Lebanese word meaning "master chef."

Source: John and Diane Aouad, Osta's Lebanese Cuisine

Photograph by Brian Kelly

Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at [email protected].