Optimizing Your Food and

Beverage Menu

Cornell Course

Cheryl Stanley is a Senior Lecturer in food and beverage management at the Nolan School of Hotel Administration, Cornell University. She has been involved with food since the age of ten, when she started her own chocolate business, Cheryl’s Chocolates. Following her interest in food, Ms Stanley attended the School of Hotel Administration and graduated in 2000.

While at Cornell, Ms. Stanley discovered her passion for beverages through the courses “Introduction to Wines,” “Food and Wine Pairing,” and “Beverage Management.” Upon graduation, she continued this enthusiasm for beverages and food service in both hotel and restaurant operations on the West Coast, where she worked for the Four Seasons Hotel in Newport Beach and the Wine Cask in Santa Barbara.

Continuing her entrepreneurial journey, Ms. Stanley started her own restaurant consulting company specializing in beverages and service in 2008. During this time, she was also presented an opportunity to become an adjunct instructor at the Culinary Institute of America (CIA), where she taught courses that included gastronomy, food, wine, and (agri)culture. Falling in love with teaching, Ms. Stanley decided to pursue her Master’s degree in hospitality and retail management from Texas Tech University. Heading back north, she returned to CIA prior to joining the food and beverage operations area back at her alma mater.

Ms. Stanley teaches courses on specific elements within the field of food and beverage operations, including “Introduction to Wines,” “Catering and Special Events,” and “Beverage Management.” She combines theoretical education with practical operational applications.

Certified through multiple wine organizations, Ms. Stanley has conducted research on beverage costing in hotels, bars, and restaurants, as well as hospitality education, and she has presented at beverage-related conferences. In 2015, she was awarded the Ted Teng ’79 Dean’s Teaching Excellence Award. Ms. Stanley is a member of the Society of Wine Educators and the United States Bartenders’ Guild. She is the faculty advisor for Cornell Cuvée, the blind wine tasting competition team, which has won first place at multiple international wine competitions. In 2017, Ms. Stanley was selected as one of Wine Enthusiast Magazine’s 40 Under 40 Tastemakers.

Alex Susskind is a Professor of Food and Beverage Management and is currently serving as the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. Professor Susskind earned his Ph.D. in Communication from Michigan State University with a specialization in organizational communication and his MBA with a concentration in personnel and human relations. He earned his undergraduate degree at Purdue University in Restaurant, Hotel, and Institutional Management and is also a trained chef with a degree in Culinary Arts from The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. Prior to starting his career in academia, Professor Susskind was a chef and restaurant operator for both independent and multi-unit restaurant companies in the Northeastern and Southeastern United States.