I’m Jenn Knowles and after almost 30 years in the high-end restaurant and luxury hotel industry, I decided to create my consulting company, OuiSomm, to offer my experience to a broader audience. After opening many restaurants as as a General Manager, Wine/ Beverage Director and sommelier, as well as working in concert with concierges and leading private event teams, I have honed a broad set of skills in almost all aspects of the hospitality industry.
My focus for the ‘Personal’ services is providing in-person and virtual wine and hospitality education to those who have just started the adventure as well as aficionados and professionals. From having a wine pairing party and learning to blind taste wine to organizing/filling out your wine cellar, I can customize and create a unique and memorable experience for you!
For ‘Professional’ services, I offer a multitude of options including in-person and virtual industry trainings for both restaurant management and staff as well as creating full beverage programs from the ground including creating guidelines to increase profitability and reduce waste/dead stock. Having interviewed, hired, trained and maintained staff rosters of many different calibers and sizes, I can help lead you through this sometimes daunting process as well as all beverage menu training, operating costs/COGS guidelines, and continuing education to keep your staff confident and engaged. Please see the ‘Professional Services’ tab for more info.
Throughout my career I have recognized that many people have been conditioned to believe that if there is an ‘expert’ around to speak about a subject then we must defer to that expert empirically. However, there are no experts when it comes to being truly hospitable, tasting wine, and finding foods you love. Sure, there are people who know more than you might about wine regions and production, but they can’t smell or taste what YOU do or know what hospitality mean to you. Only YOU can be an expert on that.
