The Garden of Eat'n is  located on 200 W Grand Ave. Bryce Reedy | Criterion
The Garden of Eat’n is located on 200 W Grand Ave. Bryce Reedy | Criterion

By Bryce Reedy

    Healthy substitutes to fast food can be hard to come by in a college town, but Grand Junction is not your typical college town. The Garden of Eat’n, located on 200 W Grand Ave, is one of the town’s few healthy alternatives. The restaurant is currently owned and operated by Kirk Griffith and has been in the city of Grand Junction for just under nine years.

“We got through the recession,” Griffith said. “That was a challenge as it was for everybody. But we made it through that by the grace of God and continue to [succeed].”

Despite being located in Grand Junction for eight plus years, The Garden of Eat’n, is currently occupying its second building.

Resturant offers a variety of salad topings to make every visit to your liking. Bryce Reedy | Criterion
The Resturant offers a variety of salad topings to make every visit to your liking. Bryce Reedy | Criterion

“We moved to this location [four years ago] this January,” Griffith said. “I didn’t know if I was going to be able to keep the business going because of having to reinvest a bunch of money into building the place out. But I was able to have a lot of miracles that fell into place and be able to keep

this thing going. It wasn’t all by my hand that is for darn sure.”

The Garden of Eat’n’s top selling entrée is their salad bar, which includes a variety of different items to provide a new twist to your salad and make every visit a unique experience. However, if you are not feeling a salad they do offer other options including sandwiches, soup and baked potatoes.

“A long time ago I learned that when a guy and a girl would come in here the girl was the one that usually wanted to stay and eat and the guy was the one that would duck out and leave,” Griffith said. “So I put the [soup and sandwiches] out as an option to keep them from going somewhere else.”

Going along with their healthy motto, Griffith will often go to local growers to purchase the variety of veggies for his salad bar while also trying to help smaller local businesses in the community.

“When it is available I like to buy from the local people from downtown,” Griffith said. “Taylor Produce, a couple of different places I like to get my peaches from, so I like to try and keep some of the business here local rather than go through the mass produced ones.”

    The Garden of Eat’n has been a staple in Grand Junction for almost a decade, and they hope to continue to be one for a long time to come.

“I tell everybody that comes in here that I hope this is the last job that I ever have,” Griffith said.