Erin Holm has had a long and successful career in the cooking and restaurant industry. Graduating from Dubrulle Culinary Institute, and specializing in nutritional cooking –before it was trendy – Erin has had the opportunity to reach and change the lives of many along her path. She began in the restaurant industry, but quickly found her niche in private chef’s work –working with well-known celebrities such as Tom Arnold and Shakira, private trainers and corporations.  Erin has designed spa menus and taught healthy cooking classes. Today she frequently consults on healthy menu and recipe development for restaurants in her community, while also working on a number of critically acclaimed recipe and health books. 

Erin Holm has always been passionate about great food and nutrition. After graduating from the Dubrulle Culinary School in Vancouver, British Columbia in March of 1991, her first experiences in the gourmet food business were working in the kitchens of Leslie Stowe and John Bishop, who she felt were leaders and teachers and developing the Vancouver culinary scene.

Self-taught and having attended many conferences later in the arena of nutritional cuisine, Erin has an instinctive understanding of how to make healthy food taste great. Armed with this skill set, Erin went into a private market, cooking for executives who had little time for meal preparation but desired to maintain their health. In the spring of 1993 Erin met Peter and Rita Thomas and became their corporate executive chef.  She cooked privately for the couple on their yacht and at their homes in Vancouver, BC and Scottsdale, AZ.  In addition, she catered for their numerous corporate parties and functions.

By 1994, the growing trend in private chefs encouraged Erin to open her own company, The Essential Ingredient, providing personal chef services to clients who needed to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Erin taught cooking classes and healthy cooking techniques, developed Vancouver’s Spa at the Century’s spa cuisine, and prepared healthy meals for people requiring specialized meal planning and dining services. Erin’s celebrity clients include actors Tom Arnold, Alicia Silverstone, and Lisa Rinna, as well as pop music star Shakira.

In 1997, Erin’s personal life took a career in a different direction. A new marriage and move to Toronto, Ontario landed her a job as a menu development chef with Canadian food services giant Cara Operation’s Airport Terminal Restaurant division. Returning to Vancouver in 2000 to start a family, Erin spent some time writing her first LifeDiet cookbook with her long-time friend and co-author Rita Thomas. The book was published in 2006. She also continued to work on local restaurant menu projects like Langley’s Coza Tuscan Grill, The Red Door and Luke’s Corner Bar and Kitchen.

In 2010, Erin and her restauranteur husband Wayne Holm partnered in a new restaurant group, Extra Mile Hospitality with Jim Romer and Kelly Gordon. The Extra Mile Group includes Vancouver’s Romer’s restaurants, and the Steamship Grill and Taphouse in Victoria. Ben Thornhill and stepson, Stefan Holm approached Erin in 2011 to help them develop the menu and recipes for their Hubbub Sandwich and Salad concept. Erin is now a proud co-founder of their thriving business. Erin has a second nutritional lifestyle cookbook launching at the end of 2015.

Erin currently lives in West Vancouver with her husband Wayne Holm, her two youngest sons Nathan and James and their beloved labradoodle Roxy.