JF Restaurants

Emily has over 15 years of experience as a hospitality operations and HR leader. Her passion developed at a young age in her family’s restaurants, and, after an early career managing museums, she returned to her roots in hospitality and relocated to NYC. There, she joined the James Beard Award-winning restaurant group, Officina 1397 (Via Carota, Bar Pisellino & I Sodi). A student at heart, Emily now lives her passion as a human resources leader supporting those she knows best: restaurants and their people. Combining hands-on hospitality experience with leadership, organization, and problem-solving skills, Emily is a high-impact partner to her clients. Emily's bachelor's is in art history from the University of Minnesota. She is also a level 1 sommelier and a SHRM certified professional (SHRM-CP).

Ideal Restaurant Experience

My ideal restaurant experience is one where I learn something new. I am most impressed by those who are knowledgeable and excited about the food and beverage they are serving. We often choose restaurants based on the unique cultural offering they provide, one that is outside of what we may cook for ourselves at home. Coming away from a dining experience with a new perspective on seasonality, or a new understanding of history, is so special and part of what makes restaurant staff so important.

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

A workplace atmosphere that supports creativity, encourages growth, and challenges stereotypes is one where people thrive. I believe in developing workplaces that provide a supportive training and education program while still allowing employees to develop a sense of ownership over their products and presentation.

Joe’s passion for HR began in 2011 as an executive development trainee at Macy’s. As an assistant store manager, Joe's keen sense for identifying and developing talent helped make his department among the most successful in the company. In his last year at Macy’s, Joe oversaw the day-to-day operations for seven departments and over 120 employees. Joe's passion called him to pursue a master’s degree in industrial and organizational psychology, and to join as E|H's first talent lead, where he brings his skill for identifying and developing talent to E|H clients and partners. Joe has his bachelor’s in marketing with honors from CUNY William E. Macaulay Honors College, and a master’s in industrial and organizational psychology from CUNY Baruch College.

Ideal Restaurant Experience

Part of what makes an experience so special is the element of the unexpected and the unforeseeable. I was in Berlin with a group of friends and we decided to experience a cuisine that none of us had tried before. We ended up at a Georgian restaurant with wooden decor that gave off a very homemade and authentic vibe. 5 out of 5 -- would try this again!

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

An environment where people feel comfortable to be themselves, which allows them to grow and blossom freely.