Lisa Mattiello, Director of Catering at Pranzi Catering & Events; Tracy Rabar, Guest Service Specialist, Instructor, Entrepreneur and Owner of Avenue N American Kitchen; Lisa Speidel, Owner of Persimmon Restaurant; Gail Ciampa, Food Editor, The Providence Journal; and Dale Venturini, President & CEO, RI Hospitality Association.

The RI Hospitality Association (RIHA) hosted an afternoon of tea and an evening of martinis, during a moderated conversation in their first annual Tea & ‘Tinis event on March 17, 2015. Gail Ciampa, Food Editor of The Providence Journal, hosted the event, along with a panel of successful women in the hospitality industry. More than 100 women attended the afternoon tea, which also featured finger sandwiches followed by specialty martinis, to hear from panelists including: Lisa Mattiello, Director of Catering at Pranzi Catering & Events; Lisa Speidel, Owner of Persimmon Restaurant; and Tracy Rabar, Guest Service Specialist, Instructor, Entrepreneur and Owner of Avenue N American Kitchen. The women discussed their own challenges, as well as opportunities and success factors they see for women in the hospitality, travel and tourism industry.