A candid conversation with CEO Peter Newlin

By Kristian DePue

The owners of Birdcall launched their fast-casual Denver restaurants with accessible, affordable natural food, featuring superior salads that compete with their staple chicken sandwiches. The plan is to improve on that format with a new location in Colorado Springs.

This care for quality and always improving is represented in the endeavor to match the standards of their partner, Whole Foods Market.

Sporting a Masters Tournament golf shirt with an espresso in hand, Birdcall CEO Peter Newlin sat down with Thirst to discuss the new location and its roots. “My family moved around the East Coast … including Hilton Head and Augusta.” Eventually, he moved to Denver for graduate school. “An MBA was an excuse to ski, but I got a job in hospitality and fell in love.” That job was at Philippe Failyau’s Park Burger.

Failyau went to The French Culinary Institute and was Executive Chef at Frank Bonnano’s Mizuna. Failyau eventually opened Denver’s Osteria Marco with Bonnano before opening Park Burger. “I was biking by the original Park Burger,” Newlin recalls. “I didn’t have much but could afford a burger. I remember the energy, the line out the door, the music. I could’ve been at the best restaurant in the world!” He applied and was hired after a five-minute interview.

Newlin quickly worked his way up. “I was the most OCD of any server … convinced I’d be fired if a guest had a bad experience,” he admits. “There are stories of me chasing customers down with gift cards.” From there, Newlin and Failyau eventually launched a powerhouse partnership: Gastamo Group – responsible for Park Burger, Homegrown Tap & Dough, Perdida, and more. Failyau was industriously interested in inspired menus, while Newlin explored various aspects of hospitality. “We’re focused on every restaurant being better,” says Newlin. “The Birdcall we’re opening in the Springs is the best yet. It’s incredible, from functionality to service.”

On March 22, Birdcall opened near the intersection of Powers and Dublin boulevards, across the road from a Chick-fil-A. “I love author Simon Sinek, and the way he talks about building rivals,” says Newlin. “Chick-fil-A is a world-class operator and everyday they’re going to push us to be our best.”

When Newlin decided on the Springs, he called an architect friend, asking: “If you were to partner with one hospitality designer, who would it be?” The answer: Michael Hsu. The eponymous Michael Hsu Office of Architecture works throughout Texas, as well as New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Atlanta. Hsu agreed to design the space for the new Birdcall. “We’ve blown the budget … but our investors will be very happy,” Newlin says confidently. He talks passionately about the innovative, central concierge counter – and the effort put into the location’s playlist and sound.

“With Birdcall, the idea was and is, how do you add value for less?” Newlin says. “We built the first Birdcall against the challenge of real estate and everything getting more expensive. The hypothesis was, can we use tech and simplified operations to go in reverse? Let’s increase quality and decrease price.” With that in mind, Newlin spearheaded the development of Birdcall’s own proprietary point of sale.

Beyond quality and customized customer service, there’s a clear interest in community with Newlin. Birdcall is currently engaged in a massive endeavor to serve 200,000 family-size meals to frontline healthcare workers across the Centennial State. This mission is operating under the name Fuel Hope Kitchen and they’ve already provided 100,000 meals.

“We’ve met so many amazing, kind people,” Newlin says. “Through Fuel Hope, Birdcall has become friends with executives at Penrose-St. Francis Health Services in the Springs. Beyond the basics for choosing a new site, demographics, growth and competition, what we cherish most is getting involved with neighborhood organizations and seeing what’s important to our community.”

Inspired by Patagonia’s “1% for the Planet,” Birdcall invests locally through their One Percent Back initiative, which donates 1 percent of sales back into Birdcall’s neighborhoods. “When all is said and done, it’s around 2 percent we invest,” Newlin says. “When you look at the best business owners, they’re nearly always community-driven.”

With his rise from server to CEO, Newlin provides an overview of his philosophy for successful eateries: “I coach our teams about the opportunity to add value, and value does not go unnoticed.”

If you go:

Birdcall, Colorado Springs
6510 Tutt Blvd.
Colorado Springs CO 80923

Born and raised in rural Indiana, Kristian DePue works as a contributing writer in Colorado Springs. In addition to writing, he enjoys travel, watching films and a good cocktail.