Nouveau Bar & Grill’s CEO, Ebony Austin, is hosting her 4th Annual Holiday Toy Drive in Atlanta on Dec. 18. The event, taking place at Cascade Skating Rink, will feature performances by Fly Guy DC, Kendra Robinson, Hurricane Chris, Dr. Contessa Metcalfe, Mz Shyneka, Gib the Realtor, DJ Zay Weezy, and more.
Austin spoke to rolling out about her aim to gift over 2,000 families this holiday season while supporting breast cancer survivor children and educators.
When did you know you wanted to have a restaurant bar?
Right after coming out of my corporate position with Godiva, after 12 years, I started my own real estate investment company. It took me about four or five years to grow that business, but, for me, it wasn’t fulfilling enough. I decided to do three things that I love, and that was serving the community, cooking, and doing something that relates to the community that I can pour into. That ended up being a restaurant in the hospitality field. Of course, I’ve been cooking for a long time on a professional level, maybe about 10 years. For me, it was finding my purpose and not only finding my purpose but helping inspire others. Nouveau was that for me. It is something that I not only call mine but most importantly something that I can share with the world. To show the world the favor that God has bestowed upon my life has helped me in so many different ways.
What was your experience with cooking before the restaurant?
Of course, I had a love for cooking. I grew up in a family where my brother would make the best macaroni and cheese in the world for us, but I wanted to do it on a professional level. Then I decided to go to school, make it professional, and make a career out of it. I didn’t know then that I wanted a restaurant; I just wanted to eat good food. I wanted to know how to prepare beautiful food. I don’t care how much training you have; school is different when you’re doing it. I had two amazing chefs who trained me on just the measurements, the parts, and how to correctly plate the food that we’re serving. I had amazing trainers.
What inspired your annual toy drive?
This year, it was different for us. This year, we’re celebrating three different things. Of course, the community is always a huge priority for us, but this year, we’re doing the first part of our giveaway to breast cancer survivor children. A lot of times, we don’t realize what they’ve been through while they’re watching their parents go through all of these treatments. Secondly, with everything going on this year and how everything has increased tremendously, we want to ensure that our children have a great Christmas. The third thing is we’re reaching out to the educators. We want to support the teachers who have had a trying year, just like the rest of the world.
On top of that, we’re going to pay some of the teachers’ rent, car notes, and utility bills. We’re also going to give special gifts and prizes to certain schools. Every year, I try to do something different.
