Kara Patterson

Cheese enthusiast with a passion for sharing food with others. With over a decade of experience working in the food service industry in customer service centric positions, Kara has shown herself to be an invaluable employee, dedicated to providing excellent service while building a strong rapport with customers, co-workers & managers alike.

Shift Lead & Ice Cream Maker - Sweet Cow Ice Cream

• Provided top-notch customer service in stressful & high-volume environment, setting a higher customer service standard for all staff
• Accurately & efficiently completed scheduled ice cream production & fulfilled daily special orders 
• Oversaw opening & closing shifts as a keyholder, taking on a diverse variety of responsibilities including: food prep, inventory, ordering, organizational & cleaning projects, receiving deliveries, planning production schedules, retail management & resolving customer complaints
• Became an integral part of a team of 40+ employees by helping to foster a positive, friendly & supportive environment 

Team Trainer & Cheesemonger - Whole Foods Market 

• Successfully completed daily production and prep lists
• Executed special orders & catering orders for store including all cheese, charcuterie, meat, crudite’ & fruit platters
• Created visually pleasing displays in the department featuring recommended pairings to encourage sales
• Provided customers with education about different cheeses, pairing suggestions & tips on serving or cooking with cheese

Customer Service Administrator - Natural Wine Company

• Demonstrated effective daily communication while working closely with team of 10+ sales representatives to process orders while meeting strict ordering deadlines
• Managed warehouse inventory & allocations
• Implemented new ordering and inventory software for company and oversaw the training of all staff on utilizing new systems

Lead Cheesemonger - Marczyk Fine Foods 

• Fulfilled all catering orders for both Denver locations with creative & visually pleasing boards of all different varieties
• Achieved daily cheese production required for both storefronts including the cutting & wrapping of cheeses, processing of parm & making fresh mozzarella 
• Designed always changing cheese displays throughout both storefronts to feature special seasonal pairings

CERTIFICATIONS

Certified Food Handler (City & County of Denver):: November 2020

Off-Premise TIPS Certification (Colorado): March 2021

EDUCATION

Johnson & Wales University (Baking & Pastry Arts): SEP 2010-DEC 2011