Award-winning Executive Chef with a proven track record wowing guests with exceptional cuisine.

  Co-owned and operated two award-winning restaurants, generating up to $2.5 million in annual sales.

  Outstanding business management skills, including saving money on food costs and overseeing inventory.

  Professional Chef Level I, Culinary Institute of America.

  Proficient with Point of Sale (POS) systems such as Micros and Aloha.

  Fluent in English, Spanish and Italian.

> New Business Development > Customer Service > Purchasing/Vendor Negotiations

> Kitchen Management > Inventory Control > Recruiting & Hiring

> Menu Planning > Team Leadership > Profit & Loss

> Operations Management > Strategic Planning > Staff Training

Co-Owner and COO, Soffrito s Italian Grille Mar. 2005-July 2016

  Negotiated a $1.2 million purchase price in July 2004 and secured financing to open a new restaurant.

  Renovated the interior and exterior of the building to create an upscale Tuscany-theme.

  Owned and operated a restaurant beginning in Mar. 2005.

  Emphasized a menu of fresh ingredients, as well as a mixture of celery, carrots, onions and olive oil that is used as a base for Italian cooking.

  Led a team of 50 full or part-time employees to maximize their potential and excel.

Accomplishments:

  Generated up to $2.5 million in annual sales.

  Reduced food cost by 5% as a result of negotiating favorable prices to purchase meat for the restaurant.

  Restructured and refinanced a loan to a negotiated non-variable rate of 4.5%.

Awards and Recognition:

  Named Best New Restaurant in Delaware by the News Journal.

  Garnered rave reviews from Spark and Delaware Today Magazine.

  Awarded Woman of the Year by the Delaware Small Business Administration (SBA) in 2014.

  Honored in June 2013 as Best Chef in the World in Italy.

  Earned the Restaurant Neighbor Award for the State of Delaware from the National Restaurant Association.

  Honored in 2010 as semifinalist for the Ernst and Young Best of Philadelphia National Entrepreneur Award.

Co-Owner and COO, Soffrito s Italian Grille Mar. 2005-July 2016

Awards and Recognition (continued):

  Honored as Entrepreneurial Woman of the Year by the Delaware Business Ledger and the New Castle County Chamber of Commerce in Nov. 2009.

  Recognized in 2009 as Woman Entrepreneur of the Italian Association in USA.

  Mentored, groomed and trained team members for promotions to positions of greater responsibility.

Co-Owner, Lamberti Cucina 1996-2004

  Planned menus, devised workflows and estimated year-end projections for this family restaurant.

  Led front-of the house managers, inventory control managers, kitchen managers and chefs.

  Managed a team of up to 70 full-time or part-time employees.

Achievements:

  Grew revenues from $1.5 to $2.3 million annually.

  Increased the retention rate of employees by creating a positive and sustaining environment.

Awards and Recognition:

  Won eight Best of Delaware awards for providing exceptional service.

Professional Chef Level I, Culinary Institute of America

Business Certified Master Coach

Level Linguistics Practitioner License; expected May 2017