ATLANTA — It’s wine o'clock somewhere, might as well raise a glass and sip to scholarships.
On Wednesday, Les Dames d’Escoffier - Atlanta chapter will host its third annual Sips of the Summer event. The event will take place at 433 Bishop in Midtown and is a wine-tasting event focused on raising scholarship and grant money to help women fund their culinary school tuition, hospitality, and farming projects.
Event organizer Adeola Sokunbi, who is also a hospitality law professor at Georgia State University, said the goal of the event is to help women become leaders in a traditionally male-dominated industry. Sokunbi says women holding these leadership roles has led to a shift in the industry.
“In the last 10 years, I’ve seen a shift in the hospitality industry quite frankly because I feel like there have been a lot more women who have been mindful of how they’ve been treated and said ‘You know what, I’m not going to be that type of manager,’” said Sokunbi.
In addition to supporting women in leadership roles, Sokunbi said financial freedom plays a big role in how some kitchens and businesses are run.
“When you have financial freedom, you don’t compromise in your decisions as much and so when we do have these types of events that raise money for women then they have the freedom to manage how they want to, work where they want to, and build the businesses that they want to,” said Sokunbi.
In addition to wine, guests attending the event will be treated to light bites by Chef Simone Byron and the chance to participate in a silent auction to bid on dining experiences by The Third Space ATL and La Panarda, among others.