When you walk into Firebirds Wood Fired Grill for the first time, you are almost immediately reminded of a cozy ski lodge. And just for an instant, you may forget that you’re not in the mountains, but instead in the shadow of the LifePoint headquarters and the soon-to-be AIG building in Brentwood. Located at 700 Old Hickory Boulevard, Firebirds has been serving craft cocktails and wood-fired food to eager Brentwood crowds since 2014.
“People always tell us that Brentwood needed something like this,” says managing partner Willie Bryan. “We’ve got a nice little niche here.”
For Bryan, customer service is something that almost borders on obsession. You can find him most nights scanning the bar area and endlessly walking around the dining room, making sure that all of his guests are happy and satisfied.
“Our customer service is relentless,” he says. “We want to touch every single table and make sure everything is right. Whatever it takes.”
Now in his eighth year with the Charlotte-based Firebirds chain, Bryan has been at the helm at the Firebirds in Brentwood since it opened almost two years ago. As one of four Firebirds in the state, the Brentwood location features a more intimate atmosphere, which has proven to be very popular locally.
“We’ve been received extremely well in Brentwood,” says Bryan. “Everyone here has been nothing but amazing to us. It’s a great area full of great people.”
The restaurant’s culinary focus is on upscale American cuisine with a menu featuring hand-cut steaks, fresh seafood, entrée salads, homemade soups, burgers and appetizers like Lobster Spinach Queso and Ranch Rings.
“We want to bring out the natural flavors of the food,” says Bryan. “We don’t over season and almost everything here is made from scratch.”
The centerpiece of the kitchen is the restaurant’s signature wood fire grill. Exclusively using only locally-sourced oak and hickory, the grill helps enhance the flavors of popular dishes like the Wood Grilled Salmon, the restaurant’s top seller.
For those in the mood for dessert, they have a Creme Brûlée Cheesecake, a flourless chocolate cake and their popular five-layer Big Daddy Chocolate Cake with raspberry sauce and chocolate ganache.
With a slew of Happy Hour specials and exclusive “Bar Bites,” Firebirds is a popular after-work destination for Brentwood professionals. They always try to keep some local brews on tap and they also maintain an impressive array of seasonal handcrafted cocktails. The most popular cocktail in the house is the Double-Black Diamond Martini, made with fresh pineapple infused for 21 days with Svedka All Natural Citron Vodka.
“It’s one of those drinks that gets people talking,” says Bryan.
The extensive wine list at Firebirds is yet another reason why the bar area is often standing room only. The carefully curated wine list offers 62 different wines, including Firebirds own Private Label Red.
Like most places in the Nashville area, there are aspiring musical artists on the Firebirds staff. Although they probably won’t sing for you, the outgoing and friendly staff is extremely knowledgeable about the restaurant’s food and wine list.
“Some of our staff members have come out of the downtown scene and are settling down nicely in Brentwood,” says Bryan. “It’s so much more calm around here.
“We work hard to create the right environment. We want to be that special place where people can bring their friends and family to celebrate good times and enjoy great food.”
With its signature blend of customer service, wood-fired food, craft cocktails and intimate atmosphere, Firebirds is making its own distinct mark on the Brentwood dining scene.
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