Kirsten was born in Kentucky, and grew up in Columbia, SC where she graduated from AC Flora High School. She attended two years of college at the University of South Carolina and two at the University of Georgia where she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in History. She attended the New England Culinary Institute in Vermont where she earned an associate’s degree in Culinary Arts.
Kirsten worked as a professional chef in Washington, DC for three years before starting a career at Whole Foods as a Regional Director of Specialty Foods, where she worked with beer, wine, cheese and coffee. During her seven years with Whole Foods, Kirsten got to live all over the country, including New York City, San Francisco and Atlanta, before settling in Athens in 2010.
Today, Kirsten is the owner of Birdies, a new specialty market with a deli counter and coffee bar on Prince Avenue. The shop is set to open on November 2nd. Kirsten lives in Boulevard with her dogs, Minnie and Hazel.
What do you love most about the work you do?
I have been involved in the specialty foods industry, and a funny story is that my very first job in high school was at a place called The Gourmet Shop in Columbia, South Carolina. They are still in business today! I worked there in the mid-80s and learned about specialty cheeses cut to order, prosciutto, fine coffee, all these things that ended up many years later becoming my passion and my lifelong career.
What are some of your favorite things to do in and around Athens?
I love the Botanical Garden. I try to visit every month if I can so I can see what’s blooming and all of the seasonal changes. I like to take walks along their trails along the river, it’s very peaceful. You can always find me at the Athens Farmers Market on Saturday morning. I get such joy visiting with the farmers and always try to buy at least one thing from everyone! I love to cook for myself and thrive on the seasonal changes in the vegetable world. I also love sitting at the end of the bar at The Lark drinking a glass of wine after a long day. I feel that a little community has developed around that spot and I’m really excited to be next door neighbors when we open at Birdies. My favorite casual spot in town is Hi-Lo Lounge. The best Sunday ever is sitting at Hi-Lo and having a bloody mary with a pony of Miller High Life and a reuben.
If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?
This is a hard one because I have a couple different destinations in mind. But I would love to go to Southeast Asia– Vietnamese food is probably my favorite, and Thai food comes not too far behind. So I would love to basically go eat my way through Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Vietnam. Of course I want to see the sights but definitely can’t get away from food as one of the primary things that I plan all of my travel itineraries around.
If you could see any musician from any time, who would you see and where?
I would go see David Bowie in London during the Ziggy Stardust and Spiders from Mars tour.
What advice would you give your younger self?
This is a great question. At the end of the day, there’s a lot of things I could say about life, but the main thing I think is not “Don’t get that tattoo!” or “Don’t do (XYZ).” The one thing I would say is do save money. I do believe that young kids don’t always understand that they need to start a Roth IRA as soon as they are legally allowed to. Even if you just put a little bit in every month, it just builds up over time. I feel like I got a really late start on saving in a serious way. That’s my main advice. And always have a budget!
Do you have a favorite book, or one you find yourself referencing or gifting often?
I’m not a big re-reader of books, but I actually love this trilogy from a Canadian author named Robertson Davies called The Deptford Trilogy. It’s about life in the seedy world of carnivals and grifting and it’s very well written and completely draws you in. I love that it’s a trilogy because often once a book ends, you’re really sad that your relationship with the characters has to end.
Do you have a favorite movie? Or, do you remember the first movie you saw in a theater?
One of my favorite movies of all time is Amélie. Which is so trite, but I really love that movie for a lot of reasons– it’s beautiful, it’s fun and funny and whimsical and I really identified with her in some ways.
If you could put any message on a billboard, what would it be?
“People are more important than profit.”
If you could have lunch with anyone, dead or alive, who would it be and where?
Well, I’m sure many people say this: I would love to have lunch somewhere in an exotic location with Anthony Bourdain. Because he would be funny and cool, and you could smoke a cigarette with him. Not that I smoke, but I would with Tony!
What three words or phrases come to mind when you think of the word home?
Nesting; entertaining; cooking and relaxing. I love my home and I love to be in it.
