If you trace Trimell Hawkins’ path to this moment, it reads less like a résumé and more like a carefully composed menu—each step deliberate, each experience building toward something bigger. That vision comes to life with the opening of Trust, his long-awaited dream restaurant in downtown Grand Rapids.
Born in Chicago and shaped by his service as a U.S. Marine, Hawkins’ earliest lessons in leadership and discipline were paired with something warmer: the kitchen of his grandmother, who cooked daily for a household of ten children. “I grew up in the kitchen,” he says. “I fell in love with food and hospitality because of her.” That love carried him through ice cream shops, chain restaurants, and hotel kitchens, and eventually into entrepreneurship with Poetry on Plates, the catering and cooking-class company he launched in 2022.
A graduate of the Secchia Institute of Culinary Arts at Grand Rapids Community College, Hawkins has since become a recognizable force in West Michigan’s food scene. He’s led kitchens at Gravity Taphouse, Black Heron, and Forty Acres Soul Kitchen, earned GRCC’s Young Alumni Award, and — just as importantly — claimed the title of Top GR Chef in the 2025 Girl Scout Cookie Challenge.
Now, with Trust, Hawkins is focused on something deeper than a great meal. He’s creating an experience —intentional, intimate, and immersive. “You only get one chance to make a first impression,” he says, and he’s made sure every detail counts.