Category: Uncategorized

The Chicago chapter welcomed nine new Dames on Monday, June 10, where they were inducted at the Annual Meeting and Dinner at The Glunz Tavern.

Katie Ayoub Katie has been in foodservice publishing industry for almost 20 years. She is President of  Katie Ayoub & Associates, specializing as a media consultant for foodservice manufacturers on engaging content strategy. Katie is a public speaker, moderating roundtables and panels, as well as leading presentations on flavor trends. She works as a volunteer with Youth360 which is an organization that serves LGBTQ youth experiencing homelessness. A graduate of Northwestern University, she lives in Chicagoland with her husband and two kids. Primary Sponsor: Sharon Olson;                  Secondary Sponsor: Pat Cobe

Lisa Bonjour  Lisa currently is the pastry chef at Eataly Chicago. As a former restaurant chef, she loves the change in pace and hours, but sometimes misses the rush of service. Outside of work, she spends her time eating and drinking with her friends around the city and around the world (when possible). While she doesn’t have a favorite food, she is still dreaming about all the smoked sardines she ate in Spain. Primary Sponsor: Stacy Ballis; Secondary Sponsor: Shannon Kinsella

Jessica Ellington Jessica Ellington is owner and executive pastry chef of Sweet Bee, which provides pastry consulting services to food service establishments, food brands and manufacturers. Jessica works with companies to create new recipes, improve production processes and lower operating costs. She moved to Chicago for school nearly 20 years ago from a rural town and now couldn’t imagine living anywhere else. Her first love was a chocolate chip cookie and she has been using the same recipe for over 30 years. Her favorite food, however, is dip. Any kind, really, but she particularly lacks self-control when it comes to Ruffles potato chips and French onion dip. Primary Sponsor: Anne Kauffmann. Secondary Sponsor: Laura Herman

 Laura Frankel Laura is a prominent player in Kosher cuisine. As a restaurant owner, chef, teacher, caterer, cookbook author and public speaker, Laura has been called the “Alice Waters of Kosher cuisine,” and takes that extraordinary compliment to heart.  Her groundbreaking work in the world of Kosher cooking in Chicago has brought a fresh, modern and over-the-top deliciousness to traditional fare. Laura lives in Skokie with her husband. Primary Sponsor: Karen Rose; Secondary Sponsor: Julie Ratowitz

Chandre Geis Chandre is a Central Texas native who has more than 25 years’ experience in the hospitality industry. During her 17 years in Austin, TX, she held successful upper management positions in acclaimed restaurants and institutions. In 2014, she moved to San Francisco to join Brett Cooper and the Aster team, earning a 1-Star Michelin rating within the first six months of service. In 2016, she left restaurant operations to lend her expertise to the table management software company Reserve, where she led account management for ~150 restaurant partners on the West Coast. She was tapped to move to Chicago in May 2018 to lead account management for Reserve’s strongest market and the impending merger with Resy. Chandre lives in Chicago. Primary Sponsor: Carla Williams; Secondary Sponsor: Amelia Levin

Rebekah Graham Rebekah has extensive background  in the beverage industry in Chicago. Most recently, she was owner and operator of the acclaimed restaurant, Twain.  Prior to that, she worked for close to a decade with One Off Hospitality Group. She has completed the Court of Master Sommeliers Certified Sommelier Exam, World Brewing Academy Concise course and passed the Certified Beer Server Exam. Primary Sponsor: Veronica Hastings; Secondary Sponsor: Suzanne Florek

Stephanie Lock Stephanie is the Founder and Creator of Ready-to-Roll Dough. She focuses on top-quality ingredients to create her dough, with European–style butter taking center stage. She puts her masterful skill and Midwestern senses into each handcrafted disk to ensure great pies happen. She also owns and operates Rustic Tart.   Stephanie lives in Chicago. Primary Sponsor: Meme Hopmeyer; Secondary Sponsor: Rebecca Wheeler

Emily Paster Emily Paster is the author of two cookbooks, 2016’s Food Swap: Specialty Recipes for Bartering, Sharing & Giving and The Joys of Jewish Preserving published in 2017. She is the writer and photographer behind the website West of the Loop, which has been called “a family food blog to savor.” As the founder of the Chicago Food Swap, a community event where handmade foods are bartered and exchanged, Emily is a leader in the national food swap movement. Primary Sponsor: Julie Chernoff;  Secondary Sponsor: Chandra Ram

Shannon Sherwood Shannon came to Chicago in 2001, after selling the downstate punk rock club she bought at age 24. Now her interests have shifted a bit from punk rock toward Americana, but she always has a soundtrack in her head.  Shannon loves music, fiction, food and wine and as such, she collects cookware, books, wine, and wine.
Shannon works as a senior sales consultant for Catering by Michaels, specializing in corporate and academic events, and she loves what she does. She never bakes, but cooks like mad. And almost always with wine. Primary Sponsor: Julie Ratowitz  Secondary Sponsor: Queenie Burns