Grand Rapids Business Journal
Courtesy Mertens Hospitality
Courtesy Mertens Hospitality
The new chef at Mertens Prime finished creating his debut menu, and the restaurant is now taking reservations for its first day of indoor dining next week.
Paul Berglund, winner of the James Beard Foundation Best Chef Award Midwest in 2016, released his debut menu for Mertens Prime, at 35 Oakes St. SW in downtown Grand Rapids.
The new menu which has 20 additions created by Berglund can be viewed online at mertensprime.com, and the restaurant has begun taking reservations on the website. Dinner service will begin Wednesday, and the restaurant will be open 4-10 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday.
Mertens Prime hires James Beard Award-winning chef
James Beard Foundation
Paul Berglund, winner of the James Beard Foundation Best Chef Award Midwest, was hired to take the reins of the Mertens Prime kitchen in 2021.
Grand Rapids-based Mertens Hospitality said Tuesday it hired Berglund, former executive chef at The Bachelor Farmer in Minneapolis, to start as executive chef at the Mertens Prime restaurant at 35 Oakes St. SW in downtown Grand Rapids when indoor dining resumes.
As only the third James Beard Best Chef awardee in Michigan since 1984, Berglund said he is excited to bring his cooking to Grand Rapids, which he described as having a vibrant food landscape.