Enjoy a fun evening dining, sipping, and learning from Chef Stuart Rogers of Your 3rd Spot in the Edible Garden Outdoor Kitchen.
As director of culinary development for Your 3rd Spot, Stuart Rogers oversees a menu of globally inspired small plates designed to help fulfill the dining and gaming concept’s mission of bringing people together and building community.
Rogers was interested in food at an early age. As a child in St. Petersburg, Florida, he would spend weekends in the beachfront restaurant his mother and godmother ran, where he was exposed to flavors and cuisines from around the world and learned the ins and outs of a restaurant kitchen. “I was fascinated by the whole culture of the kitchen,” he says. “The food, the excitement—I couldn’t get enough of it.” At 17, Rogers moved back to his home state of Georgia to attend college at Valdosta State University and began working in a small Greek restaurant. “That clinched it,” he says. “I loved everything about it, but most especially the sense of camaraderie, of family, that exists in a well-run kitchen. I knew this was what I wanted to do. It seeped into my blood.”
After graduating, Rogers began working for Atlanta’s prestigious Buckhead Life Restaurant Group, leading daily setup for line and prep stations for three of the city’s most famous restaurants, Chops Lobster Bar, Pricci and Nava. Before long, he had moved to Aria, another staple of the Atlanta dining scene, where he began to hone his leadership skills, leading daily meetings with team members on the grill and sauté stations.
Stuart Rogers, Director of Culinary Innovation & Executive Chef
Rogers quickly made his way up the ladder, becoming the lead line cook for two of celebrity chef Ford Fry’s Atlanta restaurants: JCT Kitchen and The Optimist, which was named one of the Best New Restaurants in the Country by Bon Appetit soon after he joined the team. Rogers was ready to take on more of a leadership role, and he got the chance when he became executive chef for The Indigo Restaurant Group, overseeing Oak Steakhouse in Alpharetta, Georgia, and The McIntosh in Charleston, South Carolina “I really got a great sense of how to work with people and develop their talents,” he says. “If you’re doing it right, you bring out the best in each other.”
In 2019, Rogers stepped into the role of chef de cuisine at Midtown Atlanta’s Lyla Lila. During his tenure, the restaurant was a two-time James Beard Award nominee and was named to The New York Times’ prestigious list of the country’s top 50 restaurants.
In some ways, he says, his latest role at Your 3rd Spot may be his most challenging yet. “I just love the idea of being a part of a group that has this goal of helping people make connections through food, drink and fun,” he says. “In many ways, it’s a continuation of what I’ve been doing up until now, coming up with and executing dishes that draw on cuisines from all over. But to me, success will depend on whether we’re giving our guests a culinary experience they can really bond over. If they’re talking and having a fantastic time, then I’ve done my job.”
Schedule: Wednesday, May 1, 6:30 – 8:30 p.m.
Fee: $85 ($80 Members)
Deadline: One week before session