Some like it hot and none more so than The Fireplace’s owner and chef Jim Solomon. After 14 years of learning every facet of the restaurant industry, Solomon opened his dream restaurant, The Fireplace, in September of 2001.

Located at 1634 Beacon Street in Brookline, The Fireplace is a New England grill and barbeque, with an emphasis on wood-smoked and rotisserie dishes utilizing the freshest offerings of the New England region.

Solomon, a native of Brookline, has worked and studied across the country to bring extensive culinary and business skills and talent to his first restaurant. Although he began his career in financial services working for Citibank NA and Goldman Sachs, he soon changed course when he acknowledged his passion for food.

Early exposure to the culinary world enchanted Jim as a teenager, working for The Wayside Inn in Sudbury, and at Pacos Tacos in Harvard Square and Fanueil Hall. Years later, Solomon returned to restaurants on the management side of the business opening and managing Pizzeria Uno restaurants in New York City. After opening the company’s new flagship restaurant on the Upper West Side, he exercised his marketing savvy and doubled sales of Uno’s East Village location. Solomon left Uno’s to earn an MBA from the University of Michigan followed by a degree from the Culinary Institute of America of St. Helena, CA.

Before and after culinary school, he worked with some of the country’s finest chefs including Paul Prudhomme (K-Paul’s), Thomas Keller (Bouchon) and Todd English (Fig’s). In addition to his contributions to Pizzeria Uno, Solomon built a solid background in management, marketing and development for restaurants including Levy Restaurants of Chicago, Baja Tortilla Grill of Minneapolis and Spencer’s Steak and Shrimp, based in Connecticut.

Jim also contributes his culinary talents and time to the non-profit organization, Seeds of Peace. Seeds of Peace works to secure peace in the Middle East and other regions of conflict by equipping teens with the tools to make peace. The program brings together young people from 20 nations in the Middle East to the neutral supportive environment of a summer camp in Maine.

Years of hard work and a passion for food have brought Solomon within blocks of his childhood home to open a restaurant that exemplifies his philosophy as a chef: hearty, clean food with integrity – food that embraces the abundant offerings of the region prepared simply yet thoughtfully.