All Woman Team Cooks and Manages

At Premier Theater District Restaurant

By Madelyn Miller

In an industry where less than 35 percent of all managers are women, the all-female managerial team at Restaurant Charlotte is breaking new ground. 

And it actually makes sense. Most of us learn to cook at our mother’s knee.

But on a recent visit to New York, two people took me to eat there. It was the only restaurant I went to twice in one week. I had dinner with male friend and joined two women for breakfast later in the week. Everyone insisted I eat New York style (smoked salmon and bagels for breakfast, steak for dinner) but actually the restaurant offers a wide variety of contemporary cuisine,

Dana Williams, sous chef, Alexandra Parada, restaurant chef, and Colene Treverton, restaurant manager, run the fine dining restaurant, located with the Millennium Hotel New York, Broadway, which features innovative American cuisine.  The trio bring a combined 30-plus years of experience in restaurant operation to their roles.

Just 34 percent of all food preparation supervisors are female, writes author Ann Cooper in her book “A Woman’s Place is in the Kitchen.”  Cooper also notes that in 1997, only 4.3 percent of all executive chefs certified by the American Culinary Federation were women.  “Professional kitchens were once very much a man’s domain,” notes Treverton.  “In the past 10 years, we’ve seen a change in the industry.  Women chefs – like Sarah Moulton – are beginning to share in the culinary world’s celebrity cache.”

Williams joined the Restaurant Charlotte team in 1994.  She was quickly promoted to garde manger in 1995, and became sous chef in 1999.  A graduate of Northeastern University’s New York Restaurant School, she has cooked for many of the celebrities that have visited Millennium Hotel New York, Broadway. 

A native of Poland, Parada owned and cooked for her family’s restaurant in Warsaw for 13 years before coming to the United States in 1993.  Parada joined the Restaurant  Charlotte team in 1993 and was promoted to garde manger in 1994.  In 1999, she became sous chef for the restaurant.  She is a graduate of the University of Warsaw and the New York Restaurant School.

Restaurant manager Colene Treverton has held a range of managerial positions in restaurants throughout New York state since 1996.  Her credentials include work at the Inn at Stone Ridge in Stone Ridge, NY; Rivendell Winery in New Paltz, NY; Mariners on the Hudson in Highland, NY and Compass Group/Eurest Foodservice in East Fishkill, NY. While adept at driving the high level of service at Restaurant Charlotte, Colene is also an accomplished culinarian having graduated from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY.

“Alexandra, Dana and Colene have grown into their roles at the helm of Restaurant Charlotte,” says General Manager Mr. Per Hellman.  “They’ve bought a truly unique consistency and fresh perspective to their jobs and it shows in the exceptional cuisine and service their team produces.”

They don’t cook just like my mother did. They cook better.

Restaurant Charlotte serves breakfast, lunch and dinner in an intimate setting within the heart of Manhattan’s Theater District.  Located at 145 West 44th Street, Millennium Hotel New York, Broadway is at the hub of Midtown Manhattan’s cultural, entertainment and business centers.

The 52-story Millennium Hotel New York, Broadway is a member of Millennium Hotels & Resorts, which provides four-star accommodations  for business or leisure travelers throughout the world. Millennium Hotels Worldwide operates properties in London (five hotels), Paris, Sydney, Manila, Christchurch, Queenstown, Rotorua, and Jakarta.

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