JF Restaurants

Sarah began her career in restaurant operations with Hillstone Restaurant Group, becoming one of the youngest general managers at a $10m+ location before transitioning to a corporate HR role. After several years as an HR director, however, her position was eliminated, prompting her to pursue a similar HR leadership role in NYC's bustling hospitality industry. To her dismay, many of the small hospitality businesses she was drawn to simply did not need full-time HR support, despite their struggle with HR. In many of these initial conversations, Sarah instinctively pivoted her interview into a strategy session, focusing not on her career goals but on the HR needs of each business - often offering to complete small HR projects as a freelancer. A few months of working in this capacity was all Sarah needed to embrace her calling to build a sustainable, scalable consulting business. Empowered Hospitality was born.

Sarah earned her bachelor’s in political science with honors from Yale University, and holds her SHRM-SCP, WSET Advanced Certification (Wine & Spirits Educational Trust), and CSW (Certified Specialist of Wine). Sarah was selected as a 2021 Tory Burch Foundation Fellow for her passion for building an equitable, collaborative, and socially-conscious small business, is a perennial speaker at the annual FAB Conference in Charleston, SC, and is a guest lecturer at the School of Hospitality Administration at Boston University.

Ideal Restaurant Experience

Visiting home in Massachusetts always involves a highly-anticipated trip to the local clam shack, where we would go in the summertime as kids. There's no happiness quite like catching up with friends and family over fried clams and 'lobstah' rolls in a place with so many memories!

What does "creating workplaces where people thrive" mean to you?

Creating workplaces where people thrive means fostering growth, transparency, and well-being. It means defining the larger purpose that drives you, and building a team that believes equally in that purpose.

Allysun's passion for hospitality began with her first foray into New York's diverse restaurant culture at Chanterelle, an institution in the downtown Manhattan fine dining scene. It was here that she saw firsthand the positive impact a people-first culture can have on a business. When she later joined the service team at a cheese and wine bar as a manager, her now 10+ year journey to become an effective operations and human resources leader began in earnest. And now having been a general manager of several iconic brands and esteemed New York restaurants, Allysun knows what it takes to lead a successful team. Beyond leading teams, Allysun strongly advocates a people-first approach for all hospitality businesses. Allysun holds a B.A. in English literature from the University of Tennessee, an M.A. in experimental humanities from New York University, and a PMP certification from the Project Management Institute.

Ideal Restaurant Experience

I love a low-key spot that’s brimming with creativity, where bartenders and line cooks have freedom to present new ideas. You can always tell when the staff is free to express themselves because the food, drinks and atmosphere are unpredictable and different each time you visit.

What does "creating workplaces where people thrive" mean to you?

Creating a workplace where employees feel genuinely seen and heard, where their personal goals are prioritized, and where they can be regularly challenged to expand their skills.