Episode 4 | Fred Castellucci

The Atlanta Story

The Atlanta Story podcast features meaningful stories of Atlanta’s builders, creators, and entrepreneurs. In this episode Jon Birdsong sits down with Fred Castellucci, President and CEO of Castellucci Hospitality Group.

Fred grew up in Atlanta before heading off to Cornell University. After interning in the consulting world, he quickly realized his heart was in the business of food. Upon returning to Atlanta, he re-ignited his family’s 1 restaurant group and grew it to 7 (and counting) restaurants over the next 11 years. These restaurants include Iberian Pig, Cooks & Soldiers, Double Zero, and the newest one: Recess. In today’s episode, they discussed restaurant branding, trends in the industry, how his company survived through Covid, and much more.

The Atlanta Story is put together by the folks at Atlanta Ventures -- and we can’t wait to share some of the personalities behind the brand. Atlanta Ventures invests in entrepreneurs through community, content, and capital -- most notably through our Studio with companies like Greenzie and Intown Golf Club. We believe the best entrepreneurs learn from other great artists in different fields.

In this episode, we discuss…

1. We dive into the pandemic and its effect on business.
2. Fred shares about his upbringing and the early days.
3. We talk about family life with Viv and Liv.
4. Fred tells us about the Castellucci group. What was it? What is it today?
5. We dive into the restaurants: Iberian Pig, Double Zero, Cooks & Soldiers, and more.
6. What’s the next neighborhood you’ll put a restaurant in?
7. What is the secret to a restaurant with integrity?
8. We talk about technology. Fred tells us about his love of technology and early investment in Gather.
9. What is a ghost kitchen? What’s their future?
10. Why Atlanta and what has Atlanta done for him?

Resources discussed in this episode:

Castellucci Hospitality Group

Bar Mercado & Recess

Cooks & Soldiers

Double Zero

Sugo

The Iberian Pig

Intown Golf Club

How you can get involved:

Visit atlantaventures.com/studio if you’re interested in learning more about Atlanta Ventures and the Studio.

Where you can find us:

Website: www.atlstory.com

Twitter: @theatlantastory

Instagram: @theatlantastory

YouTube: Here

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