Lisabet Summa

Chef Lisabet Summa has been the culinary catalyst for Big Time Restaurant’s extraordinary growth. She is one of only a few women in the US restaurant industry who is both a senior culinary operations executive and owner. “LB” is responsible for: new concept culinary development, design/build of high performance kitchens for each brand, menu development, kitchen profitability, food safety, and the hiring, personnel development, and motivation of more than 700 (and growing) kitchen professionals.

Summa largely views herself as a cook, an armchair traveler, and an artisan. She is continually inspired by learning about all of what is around her, as it relates to her field. Summa spends a lot of time simplifying what she intends for a menu, and getting back to the elements that truly make a dish a success. Summa’s motto is flavor, seasoning, product quality and technique.

For the first 10 years of her career, Summa worked largely in the Chicago area. During this phase she worked at Maxims Restaurant, Charlie Trotters and Gordon Sinclair’s all located in Chicago. Summa then moved onto phase two of her career, which took her to Florida. She began working at a 5 star mobile-rated restaurant called St. Honore and also studied pastry and chocolate making in Montreal at the renowned Patisserie De Gascoigne. Later Summa become the Chef at Café L’Europe, one of the most highly acclaimed restaurants in Palm Beach, and Pastry Chef at La Vielle Maison in Boca Raton.

LB and Louie Bossi have collaborated for years— in fact, she hired Louie into Big Time Restaurant Group more than 15 years ago. In developing the culinary themes for Louie Bossi's, Lisabet and Louie combined the best of traditional New York Italian restaurants with Big Time’s commitment to daily, made from scratch, in-house cooking. The menu boasts traditional Italian dishes refreshed for a contemporary dining experience. Guests love the new-old world approach to America’s favorite food.