Today we’d like to introduce you to Leslie Cohen.
Hi Leslie, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My epic entrepreneur journey starts in high school. I joined a 2 year culinary program called ProStart. This was where the large world of culinary arts and being a chef sparked my interest. I chose the path and went to Johnson & Wales University. On my first summer back in Atlanta, I applied to work at One Midtown Kitchen. Little did I know, I would be working under Richard Blais. I quickly became his grade manger chef, which handles all the cold food preparations. He taught me the art of making the most flavorful steak tartar, tuna carpaccio, and shrimp ceviche. As part of the Johnson & Wales curriculum, you have to do an internship with any operation you choose. In 2005, I spent the next few months working on my craft with Blais. This is where I fell in love with not only the food side of the restaurant industry but the people, the creativity, and the atmosphere. I watched upper management and owners make decisions about everything from wine selection, flowers, lighting, and service. After this experience, I knew my journey did not end as a chef. I was ready to embark on the path of owning it all. As soon as I graduated, I asked my Uncle Steve, who owns Roasters in Atlanta, if I could learn everything there is to know about running a restaurant. At the age of 20, I began my long journey as a Roasters manager. I put everything I had into it. By 22 I was a general manager and ran his most profitable store. I ended up staying for 11 years to learn. In 2014, I got the biggest opportunity of my career. I was asked by the Food Network to compete on Cutthroat Kitchen with Alton Brown. The network flew me out to LA and I competed at the James Cameron Studio. I made a biscuit breakfast, chicken nuggets, and shortbread cookie. I won the competition and ended up being in the top 5 winners that saved almost all of their money. With the money I won and years of savings, I knew it was time to show the world what I can do. I took the next 3 years creating my brand, building my business plan and opening a restaurant. In 2018, the community was able to experience Firepit Pizza Tavern. My goal was to build community relationships while offering the best food, service and atmosphere. We sell pizza, salads, sandwiches, and our famous unicorn wings, created by executive chef Shaun Whitmer. In the past 6 years, we have won many awards for our unicorn wings. With all our success, Shaun and I decided to partner up and keep our passion going. We created our newest location called Birdcage. It started as an ode to my roots of rotisserie chicken but since both Shaun and I have worked with so many creative people in the Latin community, we gave it a twist to represent all Latin cultures. The name came from the movie which is based in south beach area. The flamboyant decor and beautiful colors reflect our vision for great atmosphere paired with delicious food. Both restaurants have had great success. Shaun and I are in the works to keep going in our journey. We have already started working on our next venture. I am happy to say hard work along with passion does pay off and I have made my dream come true to be a restaurateur.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
No journey this long is every smooth. Some of the biggest struggles were finding the right resources to fund the project, learning the construction side, which was not in my scope of work but is now, and maintaining sanity during the first year of a new business. The amount of fear and excitement was a rollercoaster. Once it kicks off and you finally make it all work it makes it all worth it.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Firepit Pizza Tavern and Birdcage?
I own 2 restaurants, Firepit Pizza Tavern and Birdcage. They are both very successful and well known in Atlanta. I own and oversee operations at both locations. Our food, service, and atmosphere are some of the best in the industry. The restaurant industry has become a disappointment unless you want to pay top dollar, What we have done is created a reasonable price point but maintained the highest standard of quality in both food and service while making the atmosphere fun and the facility beautiful. Once you experience our business, you will fall in love.
Can you share something surprising about yourself?
I was an incredible fast pitch softball player in high school.
Contact Info:
- Website: firepitatl.com birdcageatl.com
- Instagram: firepitatl birdcageatl
Image Credits
I would like to add more photos but I need to get them to you tomorrow
