Today we’d like to introduce you to Kawaun Covile.
Kawaun, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
It honestly started for me when I was in 4th grade. My parents opened a restaurant in Detroit named Big Mouths Fresh Fish that was known for their Southern fish sandwiches and the family’s fried shrimp. I fell in love with people which ultimately led me to having a passion for cooking. I briefly took a different route after a health inspection gone wrong. They made me leave the kitchen! I dove into basketball and that didn’t last long thanks to a knee injury. But that brought me back to my first love – cooking.
Things changed for the better in 2012. I was living in Auburn, AL and working with a friend just to keep the money flowing. I got a call back to work at a fine dining restaurant in Atlanta and was excited for the challenge and the opportunity to learn.
In the beginning I was so lost. Listening to kitchen lingo and understanding systems was new to me. I used to look at people on the line and say to myself, I’m taking their spot by next week. And in three weeks, I was promoted. A few days after that I was asked to work at The Big House in downtown Atlanta. This is the place that made me who I am today. I knew then if I could make it there, I could anywhere. I started coming in two hours early just to learn more about the prep and line specs. I took on every challenge and won. I soon became the Executive Chef for a hotel chain and from there, my career flourished. Currently, I consult with about five restaurants and have a business that creates chef-driven school lunches for private schools. In the future I plan to expand this initiative after getting an overwhelming response.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I’ve had a few struggles. While my career took off so rapidly, I also married and had children immediately. I didn’t know much about balance, which I believe is a reason we ended up getting divorced.
Another challenge is that even though I’m self-taught, it was difficult to actually know if I was doing something correctly. But I take pride in this because as an Executive Chef, I do everything with excellence. I’ve learned that I can’t not know something, and having the right answers is what earns the respect of my peers and colleagues.
Please tell us about Chef Kawaun Culinary.
My company started as a restaurant consulting company that specializes in menu development and back of house (BOH) systems and operations. I got the idea to create school lunches out of nowhere. It just dawned on me one day. Now, I create chef-driven lunches that most students in the suburban school districts eat daily. I wanted to create a pillar for our community and have the same fortune at an affordable luxury.
Since becoming a chef, I have turned about 12 restaurants and am currently the Executive Chef for 6 restaurants. I was awarded Best New Southern Restaurant in 2017, awarded Black Chef of the year with Brown- Forman, one of the largest wine companies in the country, and also competed on a national stage on the Food Network. I hope there is more to come as I continue to work very hard on my craft. My team and I work diligently to please the children we cook for daily. We’re creating a trend that matters. We’re creating a solution for our community.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
My favorite memory from childhood has to be working with my siblings every day in the family business. We had a bond that was unbreakable. Two of my brothers are chefs. Lewis and Eric. We just competed on Food Network for a grand prize of 10,000.
Contact Info:
- Website: Chefkawaun.com
- Phone: 6787045474
- Email: info@chefkawaun.com
Getting in touch: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
