Who We Are

Melissa Lavrinc Smith is a Bay Area native who has trained at the Culinary Institute of America, worked in the kitchens of The French Laundry, Picasso, Terra, The Inn at Little Washington, Triple Creek Ranch, and the Four Seasons Hotels. In 2002 Smith shifted her focus to learning the ins and outs of the front of the house, eventually training under the Court of Master Sommeliers and focusing on new world, cult, and small production wines. Melissa has also earned the title "Certified Sake Professional" from the Sake Education Council.

It is because of her commitment to locality and sustainability that inspired the beginnings of WineChef Consulting. A dire need for great restaurants in small neighborhoods, combined with the failed efforts of those brave enough to open a restaurant, and building a community supported farm to table connection, presented the opportunity and the need for restaurant consulting on a smaller scale than the larger firms were providing.

The WineChef Consulting team is presenting restaurants with a greater opportunity to succeed, to utilize the decades of experience and high standards, the connections and the knowledge, at a reasonable cost, as a way to give back to the industry that has fed and supported them. 

At present Melissa Lavrinc Smith is the director of WineChef consulting an author, and the host of the SF WineChef podcast, which focuses on the Bay Area's food and wine scene.