Annie Bekarian

I am a seasoned hospitality manager with over 10 years of experience, including events management, reservations management, sales, customer service, and administration.

Owner-Operator, Visitor Records / March 2022 - March 2023

My husband and I operated a small store in Austin, Texas, specializing in vintage clothes, records, and housewares. In our year of business, we cultivated a loyal following of happy customers! We had to close our brick-and-mortar store in March of 2023 when our landlord sold the building.

Events Manager, Hai Hospitality / November 2020 - December 2022

I served as the Events Manager for Hai Hospitality, an award-winning restaurant group based in Austin, Texas. I owned all onsite and offsite private events for Uchi and Uchiko (two of Austin’s most renowned fine-dining restaurants), and Loro (a high-volume fast-casual restaurant). I also managed restaurant participation in public events like charity galas and food festivals. Responsibilities included sales, client relations, event marketing, vendor relations, and staff management.

Events Sales Coordinator, Hai Hospitality / February 2020 - November 2020

In anticipation of taking over the Events Manager role, I briefly served as the Events Sales Coordinator for Uchi and Uchiko restaurants. My responsibilities were largely the same as the Events Manager position, with a greater focus on client relations and communication, and onsite event execution.

Hospitality Supervisor, Hai Hospitality / March 2017 - February 2020

As Hospitality Supervisor, I managed the front-of-house host team and reservations/customer service team at Uchiko. I also developed a training program and SOP for the reservations/customer service team - this team served all restaurants within the Hai Hospitality group (10 restaurants across 5 cities), and handled all incoming reservation requests and guest issues. These came in primarily through our phone lines, but also via email, social media, and restaurant review sites.

In this role, I was responsible for the majority of guest recovery and managing guest expectations. I performed this role while also working full time as a lead host and reservationist at Uchiko.

Lead Host and Reservationist, Uchiko / January 2013 - March 2017

I was the principal host in charge of planning and seating reservations at Uchiko, a high volume fine dining restaurant. This role required an immense knowledge of the food and wine menus, as well as a keen eye for hospitality and an ability to work in a fast-paced restaurant atmosphere while maintaining poise.

Bachelor of Arts - Plan II, University of Texas at Austin / Class of 2015

Plan II is a small Liberal Arts Honors degree program at UT Austin. My curriculum focus was Creative Writing and Literature.