Chris Lara

About Chris Lara

Experienced Wine Director/sommelier with a 34-year history of working in the hospitality industry. Job skills: buying, inventory management, excel, negotiation, beverage trends, customer/guest satisfaction, wine, beer, spirits, beverage sales, sommelier, and hospitality management. Strong operations professional, and detail-orientated. Advanced Sommelier with the Court of Master Sommeliers.

Experience

1. Wine Director

   Metropolitan Grill

   Jul 2022 — Present · Seattle, WA, US

   Managing a rotating inventory of 1.3 million.Responsible for sales of 1.2 million.Five direct reports.Creating materials and educating the Sommelier team, FOH and BOH employees.Streamlined inventory audits from a multi-day process to one six hour session. Consistently achieved monthly goals (sales, budgets, inventory levels) set forth by ownership.Planned and executed social media marketing for the wine department, working cross-functionally with General Manager, Executive office, and Marketing to align with the Company\'s values.Managed a quarterly wine club with added revenue of annually.Continuously negotiated with local distributors, ensuring that the company as a whole (multiple locations), was getting the best pricing.Created SOP for Sommelier team.Continued the love of guest satisfaction, helping to create lasting memories.Created a beverage P&L ensuring profitability.Wine menu restructured for easier guest usability.Provided mentorship to the Sommelier community in Seattle.Planned and executed quarterly dinners with local and international wineries, collaborating with the Executive Chef on the menu.

Skills

• Wineries
• Sommelier
• Hospitality Management
• Hospitality
• Catering
• Sales
• Beer
• Food Pairing
• Wine Tasting
• Wine
• Fine Dining
• Beverage Industry
• Restaurant Management
• Restaurants
• Alcoholic Beverages
• Food
• Food & Beverage
• Menu Development