(Forsyth County, GA) On June 14, new restaurant SliceAbility held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate its official grand opening. Visitors to the Cumming City Center may have already stopped in for a slice of pizza, quiche, or other tasty treat.
But while they were enjoying their meals, guests may have noticed something else special about SliceAbility. Part of the restaurant’s mission is to provide employment opportunities to individuals in the Forsyth County area who have special needs.
“Our motto is ‘a slice of something special,” says owner Jeni Smith.
Smith and her husband Matt are not new to the restaurant business. As the owners of the popular Rosati’s Pizza, they already had years of experience to help them in planning their new pizza place. But Smith came up with the restaurant’s unique focus thanks to her other job experience as a former special education teacher.
“I recognize that everyone has gifts and talents and many people in the special needs community have found it difficult to secure employment despite their many gifts and talents,” shared Smith.
Smith and her team came up with a thoughtful staffing strategy to help ensure that things run smoothly at SliceAbility.
“We have a staff with a variety of abilities,” explained Smith. “We broke our team up into three levels.”
Guests at SliceAbility can easily identify different team levels based on their uniform color. For example, employees with red shirts and hats are part of the training team. This means that they are learning the menu and ingredients and developing good work habits.
“The training team employees require support to ensure job success,” said Smith.
Employees with yellow shirts and hats are employees that can complete their job independently and require little to no support to ensure success at their job. Finally, employees with green shirts and hats are team leaders that are available to mentor our training team and slice squad.
Besides pizza, guests at SliceAbility can order a variety of menu items including salads, avocado toast, and slices of cake.
Bonnie Dixon, owner of Footprints Dance Alliance in Cumming, had positive comments about her family's recent visit to the restaurant.
"Not only is the food and atmosphere of SliceAbility the best in the county, but the inclusivity for ALL staff members makes SliceAbility a true gem for the community," shared Dixon.
"We will be returning often to support this small business and their beautiful mission," she added.
SliceAbility won’t be the Smiths’ only City Center restaurant. Later this summer, they will also be opening Homestead, a three-level restaurant featuring “flavors of America” and food by executive chef David Smith.
SliceAbiltiy is located at 420 Vision Drive, Suite A102, in the Cumming City Center. It is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Sunday. It is closed on Monday.
What's your favorite pizza place in Forsyth County? Comment below or email kbondwriter@gmail.com to let us know.
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