Elizabeth Blau

Founder & CEO, Blau & Associates - Las Vegas, NV

Elizabeth Blau is a highly respected leader in the modern hospitality industry, known for her innovative work as the founder and CEO of Blau & Associates, a global restaurant planning and development firm. With a Master’s in Hotel Management from Cornell University, she has received numerous prestigious awards, including Culinary Institute of America’s 2025 Augie Award, the Cornell Hospitality Innovator Award, 2025 Entrepreneur of the Year from the UNLV Lee Business School, and an Outstanding Restaurateur James Beard Award nomination. Elizabeth Blau has been honored on Cherry Bombe’s inaugural 2025 Power List that celebrates trailblazing women in food & beverage, has been named in The Restaurant Times Global Powerlist “Leading Women in Food & Hospitality 2025,” and was recently featured on Modern Luxury’s 2025 Las Vegas Power List as one of the top local leaders shaping Southern Nevada’s landscape. Prior to founding Blau & Associates, Blau held executive roles with Mirage Resorts, MGM and Wynn Las Vegas, and is widely credited for transforming Las Vegas into the premier culinary destination it is today.

In addition, Blau is the Global Ambassador of Food & Beverage for Forbes Travel Guide and serves on multiple boards, including the International Advisory Board for the École Hôtelière in Lausanne, the Dean’s Advisory Board at Cornell’s School of Hotel Administration, the Advisory Board at University of Nevada Las Vegas, the Culinary Council of Southern Nevada’s Three Square Food Bank and the State Board for Communities in Schools.

Together with her husband, Blau operates acclaimed restaurants such as Honey Salt in Las Vegas and Vancouver, Buddy V’s Ristorante, multiple venues at Parq Vancouver Resort & Casino, and Michelin Recommended Crown Block at Reunion Tower in Dallas, Texas. Blau has appeared on CNBC’s Restaurant Startup and Food Network’s Iron Chef America, and co-authored Honey Salt: A Culinary Scrapbook, named Best Cookbook of 2018 by Food & Beverage Magazine. Committed to giving back, Blau helped cofound Women’s Hospitality Initiative in 2020, a nonprofit that is dedicated to developing and empowering women leaders in the hospitality industry, as well as Delivering with Dignity, a program that provided meals to families in need during the COVID-19 pandemic.