“In our initial attempt to find investors for Gunshow, we contacted 50 people and got 50 nos for an answer,” says award-winning Atlanta chef, restaurateur, speaker, and cookbook author Kevin Gillespie. He continues, “It’s amazing that Gunshow is now celebrating its 10th anniversary with the signing of a second 10-year lease.”
It’s not just a lease that Gillespie is renewing; he’s also refreshing his commitment to making positive change in the hospitality industry in the city he calls home. “We’re living out an experiment. From the beginning, I wanted Gunshow to be a disruptor, to show the world a different approach.”
Gillespie and co-owner Marco Shaw, who joined Red Beard Restaurants and Gunshow as a co-owner in 2015, have defied the odds with their bold, collaborative take on the traditional dining experience. Even under the worst of circumstances, most notably the disastrous effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the food and beverage industry, Gunshow is a survivor. The pioneering restaurant was designed to have minimal separation between guests and the kitchen. Gillespie felt this would increase the quality of the experience and give people a real taste of what is going on. Freshly prepared dishes are presented to guests at their tables by the chefs that prepared them. Cocktails are prepared tableside on a rolling cart. The menu varies from day to day with a single dish staying on the menu for about three weeks before changing. It was an outlier mentality from the start.
With his unusual approach to food and service, the critics and naysayers were dubious, but Gillespie was not discouraged. “We are a singular staff, there is no front-of-the-house, back-of-the-house mentality. The person prepping the fruit for the bar is likely to be cooking and serving tonight,” he continues. “The goal is a better experience for everyone, both cooks and guests.”
From the beginning, Gillespie wasn’t looking for a particular kind of cook with a…
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