Ladies of Restaurants

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Ladies of Restaurants

L.O.R. (Ladies of Restaurants) leads positive action that addresses the gender gap in the hospitality industry.

We are a UK-based collective for women working in restaurants, hotels, bars and all areas of the food & drink sector.

30/01/2024

One week to go until our next event!

I don’t know about you guys, but I always feel like February is when the year really starts. But the career tools we’ll be talking about next week aren’t just for the start of a new year/chapter/job - they’re helping you get what you want out of your life and career no matter what stage you’re at.

Addressing more of the business side of things is Michelle Moreno

Michelle is a previous F&B Director and Consultant with 25 years of global expertise. She champions human-centric leadership, positive psychology, and modern tools for our hospitality industry to go from surviving to thriving.

Michelle founded QAB Leadership, which is dedicated to empowering leaders and teams to positively influence the business. Her goal is this, “The most meaningful way to lead, is to help others lead.”

There are only a handful of spots left for our event next week - ticket link in bio.

Come meet some new faces, level up in new ways and get a start on a stronger mindset.

29/01/2024

Our next event is so special and geared towards helping you get focused on what it is that’s holding you back, and gifting you a few tools to use everyday both in and out of work.

CAREER TOOLS TO HELP YOU GROW is on Tuesday 6th February 6-9pm with &

So who is behind The Good Life Coaching? It’s Madeleine Geach! Madeleine is a CPCC certified coach who spent a large part of her career working as a senior leader in the bustling, entrepreneurial hospitality industry, most recently as Head of Culture at the 10 years in a row Best Company to work for

At the centre of her work was developing managers and leaders - giving them the tools to lead fulfilled, successful teams. Madeleine now runs The Good Life: coaching and courses for leadership development. She has twice been named one of the most influential women in hospitality by and when not thinking about leadership or food, she swims outdoors in freezing waters and warms up in very hot saunas as often as she can.

I ( ) have personally worked with Madeleine and the tools she has equipped me with and work on my mental health have helped me in my career as an entrepreneur so much. This is an incredible session not to be missed - ticket link in bio.

See you there.

23/01/2024

CAREER TOOLS TO HELP YOU GROW

It’s our first event of 2024 🥳 and the perfect one for the start of the year…

Tuesday 6th February / 6-9pm /

This event aims to provide valuable tools and insights to help women elevate their careers working within restaurants and hotels. Led by Michelle Moreno () and Madeleine Geach (), two incredible leadership coaches within the hospitality industry, we will engage in an interactive session focusing on navigating challenges specific to women in hospitality. Attendees will gain practical knowledge and strategies for personal and professional growth, connect with like-minded professionals who are dedicated to fostering a supportive community. Whether you’re a seasoned professional or just starting out, this event is designed to equip women in hospitality with the tools they need to thrive and excel in their careers. Don’t miss this opportunity to network, learn, and celebrate the strength and diversity of women in the hospitality sector.

Tickets via the link in bio (£18) include a welcome drink and snacks, alongside the insightful and insanely helpful knowledge of these to leaders.

We are over the moon to be hosted at EVE a new restaurant and bar in Kensington. Check it out here - it’s absolutely stunning.

See you on the 6th!

22/11/2023

AND WE ARE BACK!

Last night saw the return of our event programming here at L.O.R and it was such an amazing evening filled with so many familiar faces, and the next generation of hospitality superstars.

It’s safe to say we all felt lucky to have a space filled with likeminded people, looking for community and support as we navigate our careers in hospitality.

The topic was WHAT WOMEN WANT and the key takeaways were;

• Better awareness about what it’s ACTUALLY like to work in hospitality

• career tools to help you grow

• learning to negotiate contracts

• being a parent beyond maternity leave

• employment law and what you’re entitled to

• overshare more

• honesty is key - be more open and transparent about how you’re really doing

Also lots of ideas for events including women in wine, marketing, photography and hospitality tech.

HUGE thank you to our speakers .copes

Our amazing venue and generous beverage sponsors

And of course to ALL OF YOU for showing up and bringing LOR back to life.

2024 here we come…

18/11/2023

Meet Amber Francis, our third member of the panel for our event on Tuesday 21st November.

Amber Francis is a seasoned Head Chef and Senior Food Educator currently working at a school in North London. Why the jump from restaurants to a school? “I wanted to work in a school to make a difference to communities and use my skills to educate the next generation” says Amber.

Amber has worked in some incredible kitchens including , .zebra.riding.club and Clapham’s now closed The Dairy to name a few.

Accolades adorn Amber's career—representing England in prestigious competitions and earning distinctions like Rising Star 2016-2017. Rooted in a foundation of culinary education, she holds a Specialised Chef Scholarship and a Royal Academy of Culinary Arts Diploma.

Amber also appeared on and was awarded Young Chef of the Year 2022 by the

We’re so looking forward to hearing more from Amber!

We have about 10 spots left for this event, so please grab your seats quickly!

Link in bio 🫶

14/11/2023

One week until our first event back, hosted by And next up on the panel is an absolute force of nature and a true inspiration to both women and our industry.
copes is a multi-award-winning social entrepreneur, board member, consultant, writer and coach. Having spent two decades as an executive director for brands including Gordon Ramsay Restaurants and Corbin & King, Lorraine felt compelled to form in 2020 due to the consistent lack of representation of people of colour in positions of influence and the supply chain.

This social enterprise now holds the prime position of igniting much-needed conversations and delivering initiatives to advance change within the hospitality, food, and drink sectors.

Her work has been featured in the Evening Standard, Metro, The Guardian, The Caterer and Restaurant Magazine.

Lorraine is a board member of the WSTA and Slinger. She is the Food & Drink Editor for and is a judge for a number of industry award ceremonies, including Guild of Fine Foods Great Taste Awards, Bold Woman Awards UK by V***e Clicquot, Uber Eats Restaurant Awards, and the British Guild of Beer Writers Awards.

In 2022 Lorraine was named the GQ Food & Drink Innovator of the Year winner; she received a special award in the Code Hospitality 100 Most Influential Women in Hospitality list and won Entrepreneur of the Year at the Precious Awards. In 2023 Lorraine was named NatWest and Pioneers Post WISE100: Top Women in social enterprise.

Be Inclusive Hospitality was recognised by NatWest’s SE100 for two years consecutively, as one of the UK’s most impressive social enterprises.

We can’t wait to hear what Lorraine has to say on the topic of WHAT WOMEN WANT. Limited tickets are left, click the link in our bio to book your spot.

10/11/2023

We are so excited for our event coming up on 21st November in Piccadilly. We have an incredible panel of speakers who will be discussing the topic of WHAT WOMEN WANT and first up we have the wonderfully talented 🍷

Born in Northumberland, Alex spent her early life in pursuit of the Art world, attending Manchester University to complete a degree in History of Art. She moved to London with the intention of working at one of London's Auction houses but a growing side passion for wine led her to the historic Annabel's cellar, where she joined the buying team for the Birley clubs and Caprice Holdings. Following Annabel's, she moved to Burgundy specialist Domaine Direct to do a combined role of events and private client sales.
In 2019 she started a new role at Beaverbrook Members Club where she made the move to full time FOH, serving as Sommelier and Assistant Manager of the Garden House, alongside hosting the occasional wine tasting event at the AllBright members club.

Starting later than most in hospitality, she realised her passions and strengths fully lay in restaurants, and post lockdown she helped open Bar Crispin as Restaurant Manager and Head Somm writing the extensive list of around 150 natural wines. She now oversees the wine lists for the whole of the Crispin Group as its Head of Wine, including the group's recent Shoreditch opening, Bistro Freddie.

We’ve also had the pleasure of working with Alex over the summer when did a takeover .margate 😊

Tickets are going quickly so please do grab yours now. £10 includes a welcome drink provided by and plus the opportunity to listen to our outstanding panel of women. Link in bio to book 👆

31/10/2023

If you're new to L.O.R, we were founded back In 2016 as a community set to support women working in hospitality. Over the years we hosted events across the country, even a trip to Helsinki and a stall at Taste of London. After a 2 year pause, we are back to encourage, educate and support the women of this amazing industry.

On our return, we want to get to the root of what women really want and need so L.O.R can serve you!

This event is all about what YOU want from the industry, L.O.R and even from yourselves. Allowing us to outline our events for the next year based on what you really need.

Join our Incredible panel of women;
copes - founder,

- head chef & senior food educator - former head chef

- Head of Wine Crispin Group

hosted by L.O.R founder and owner of .margate - as we discuss what has changed for women in the indsutry, what still needs work, where we can support and of course hear from you!

We are delighted to be hosted by in their Green Room in Piccadilly, with support from and

Tickets are £10 and Include a welcome drink + the talk.

6.30pm arrival
7pm talk will commence
7.45 questions
8.15pm mingle and make friends

LINK IN BIO 🫶

See you there x

big thanks to for the poster ❤️

03/08/2023

When I started my hospitality career back in 2003, I was very aware I was one of two women working in the entire restaurant. As I navigated the industry I started to see a trend; women were hostesses and waitresses and the men were in the kitchen or managers. At one restaurant there was a section at the front of the restaurant called “the pretty girl section” so the first person you saw when you walked in was a “pretty girl”. I didn’t see a woman in the kitchen until I was 25, and I constantly felt isolated and dismissed by the boys club I was surrounded by. I never pursued a role in the kitchen, mainly because I was intimidated by the lad culture it represented and it didn’t appear to be a place I would feel comfortable learning in or was even allowed to enter. I’m not going to hold my previous work places responsible for this in its entirety, but I will say the lack of female representation in the kitchen heavily impacted where I saw my career going.

This has changed dramatically over the last 20 years, we have incredible women who set the bar for excellence, fun, hard work and fabulous restaurants on a global scale.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again; you can’t be what you can’t see. So I just wanted to say - I SEE YOU!

All the women who have been a part of this community over the last 6/7 years. You are inspiring women to know that it’s possible to work in any operation, within any department.

Keep showing up.

You are an inspiration to so many women more than you know.

Let’s go girls.

Natalia x

04/07/2023

WE ARE BACK BABY!

Next Monday we are getting back in action at our friend and fellow LOR ‘s Dalston hotspot for a night of food, fun, drinks and chats!

This event is TOTALLY FREE! All we ask is your register via the link in our bio.

We so are grateful to have the support of some of our favourite suppliers provide us with the sustenance we need to have a great time!

Here is to you 🍻

Pop in anytime between 6-8pm next Monday 10th July!

PLEASE RSVP via the link in our bio and tag all the women you’d like to see there!

We’ll go first…

Se you on the 10th!

Natalia x

14/07/2022

Building relationships with your suppliers is just as important as the ones we build with our guests. The team work with their clients to pull together a selection of wine for a variety of restaurants, shops and more. Their extensive portfolio allows them to offer a beautiful array of wines from small to big producers.

Sometimes hitting that GP can be hard! The price of everything is going up and you want to deliver quality to your consumer, but everyone is looking for value. Our experience with Jascots has given us the opportunity to have great wine at an accessible price point. AND! The ability to splurge on some of the more sought after wines at the same time.

BIG THANKS to for being a part of our London launch. There are more events to come and ways for you to make a GOOD SHIFT where you work or own.

Have a good shift x

08/06/2022

Staffing has been a real issue for our industry since before the pandemic. So what can we do to keep the team members we have feeling happy and supported?

As a manager ask yourself; what can I do this week to spark passion with my team? This might be a team tasting, sharing good reviews or planning an upcoming team day out.

As managers and leaders we often put our own needs to the side to support others, so make sure you check in with yourself and ask for what you need to feel engaged in your work too. That might be a five minute meditation, a one to one with your superior or business coach/mentor, a night out at a new restaurant or even a massage for your tired body.

As the employee, you also contribute to positive shifts in the workplace. If you’re feeling disengaged from your job or notice something that needs improving - don’t whine about it! Try writing it down and present it to your boss with some proposed solutions.

An engaged team means happy guests, and that is something we all strive for.

Teamwork makes the dream work 😉

Have a GOOD SHIFT!
xx

Address

202-220 Cromwell Road
London
SW5 0SW

Website

https://www.ladiesofrestaurants.com/

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Our story so far...

L.O.R. (Ladies of Restaurants) is a UK-based initiative supporting women who work in the hospitality industry.

We’re a club, a union, a forum - part saloon, part salon. Individually, we make the F&B business run; collectively, we make sure women get a fair shake. We host panel talks, training sessions, dinner parties and sometimes just a good old-fashioned knees up. We work to make the female culture in the industry better.

We believe working in hospitality is fu**ing great, and something to be proud of.

- L.O.R.