The allure of having access to a farm, and working with its owners again, has pulled a James Beard Award-nominated chef to a tiny diner in east Mesa.
Steadfast Farm owners Erich and Yvonne Schultz have tapped their friend and one-time farm hand Derek Christensen for their latest venture, Steadfast Diner. The restaurant is part of a growing set of small, food-driven amenities that the Schultzes are building into the Eastmark development.
It started in 2018, when the couple moved their farming operations to a one-acre plot near the entrance of the 3,200-acre planned community just northeast of Mesa Gateway Airport. They have since opened a farm store that sells their vegetables, eggs and bouquets of cut flowers, along with coffee, breakfast tacos and products from dozens of other local purveyors. In November, the Schultzes announced they had taken over the diner, which had closed abruptly in July.
“We always were neighbors to it and we’ve always seen a ton of potential,” Erich says. “We just want to see it live to all of its potential.”
The Schultzes and Christensen opened Steadfast Diner on Jan. 10. Their aim is to showcase true farm-to-table dining, sourcing the vegetables and greens grown less than 100 paces from the restaurant.
”It’s not any old farm to any old table,” Christensen says, pointing to the diner from where he stands along a pathway in the farm. “It’s this farm to that table. And that’s great.”
Here's a look behind the scenes at Steadfast’s farm and recently opened diner in Mesa.
In addition to its fields, Steadfast Farm has several areas sheltered with domed tunnels to protect against the elements.
Jacob Tyler Dunn
Steadfast Farm employs eight people full-time. While the farm's production slows down during the summer, it never stops.
Jacob Tyler Dunn
Steadfast Farm is biointensive, meaning that vegetables are planted and harvested several times a year. While items grow in the field, others are sown in greenhouses so that they are ready to be planted once space is available.
Jacob Tyler Dunn
About half of what Steadfast Farm grows is salad greens, which briefly air dry before being packaged.
Jacob Tyler Dunn
Along with vegetables and other produce, Steadfast Farm grows and sells fresh flowers.
Jacob Tyler Dunn
Steadfast Farm is seeing growing demand for its flowers, which are bundled into bouquets.
Jacob Tyler Dunn
Steadfast Diner operates from a restored Valentine diner that sits just south of Steadfast Farm. There are nine seats inside and an expansive patio where customers can order via a server or at the window.
Jacob Tyler Dunn
Steadfast Diner serves lunch and dinner, including a selection of coffees and cocktails to pair with its diner-inspired bites.
Jacob Tyler Dunn
Not all of Steadfast Diner's offerings are stick-to-your-ribs comfort dishes. The menu includes salads and bowls, such as the Farro Bowl. It's made with wheat berries from Hayden Flour Mills, roasted sweet potatoes, radishes, baby kale and broccoli shoots, topped with tahini dressing.
Jacob Tyler Dunn
Steadfast Diner’s Crispy Chicken Sandwich is topped with a hot honey aioli and the farm's lettuce.
Jacob Tyler Dunn
“We’re trying to balance out casual, comfortable diner food with the freshness of what you would expect from having a farm at your general disposal,” chef Derek Christensen says.
Jacob Tyler Dunn
The Steadfast Double is a smash burger made with beef from Wickenburg’s Capital Farms and Phoenix’s Noble Bread.
Jacob Tyler Dunn
Milkshakes are made with Thrifty Ice Cream. They can be given a twist with the addition of malt or a shot of booze.
Jacob Tyler Dunn
A portion of Steadfast Diner's patio, which its owners call the beer garden, overlooks Steadfast Farm. The team has plans to erect a building there that's climate-controlled and keeps its farm views with a wall of windows.
Jacob Tyler Dunn
The menu at Steadfast Diner will rotate to make use of the farm's freshest produce. The trio behind the new restaurant plan to learn and grow along with the diner.
Jacob Tyler Dunn
