Kara Selberis

20+ years of restaurant/bar/venue, FOH/BOH, events, and management experience. Enthusiastic, dedicated, hardworking, and kind professional with excellent public-facing people skills committed to providing excellent guest experiences. Strong knowledge of food and beverage items, techniques, allergens and dietary restrictions.

Detail-oriented and creative, skilled in hand lettering and graphic design. Likes ambitious teams, forward and flexible thinking, fast-paced and dynamic environments, opportunities for growth and education, and having fun while doing hard work.

Restaurant Manager, Beverage Direction, Special Events at 40 North at Alphabet City (2021-01 – 2024-12)

65-seat restaurant with full-service bar, performance space, and private dining areas; music and literary events programmed by non-profit partner City of Asylum. Chef Bethany Zozula earned her second James Beard nomination in 2022; daily menus centered on halal lamb butchered in-house, Eastern European and Eurasian influences, and sustainable local produce at peak freshness.

• Interviewed, hired, trained, scheduled FOH staff; oversaw all restaurant services
• Handled accounting and cash management, payroll
• Developed scratch cocktails and N/A beverages, curated wine list, beer and cider selections while emphasizing seasonality, complimenting cuisine, and reflecting restaurant identity
• Created wine pairings and bespoke cocktails for special dinners and events in-house and off-site
• Assisted with social media, including conceptualizing and executing two major engagement campaigns
• Worked closely with City of Asylum to coordinate and manage live in-house events

Restaurant Manager, Beverage Direction, Special Events at 40 North at Alphabet City (2021-01 – 2024-12)

• Maintained 4.9 Open Table rating (Yelp 4.7, Google 4.8, Trip Advisor 5.0)
• Consistently ranked as one of Pittsburgh's top restaurants (Pittsburgh Magazine, Pittsburgh Post Gazette, Table Magazine), including beverage program accolades
• Established Private Dining department, generated additional $100k in sales and gratuity in first six months of operation
• Hosted several galas, full restaurant buy-outs, rehearsal dinners, holiday parties, etc

Assistant to the Senior Events Manager (seasonal) at Mattress Factory Contemporary Art Museum (2021-01 – Present)

In 1977, a disused mattress warehouse on Pittsburgh's northside was re-imagined as an "artists for artists" community. Today, the installation art museum boasts permanent exhibits by James Turrell and Yayoi Kusama, among others. The annual fundraising gala, Garden Party, is widely considered to be Pittsburgh's party of the year.

• Worked closely with Senior Events Manager and/or independently to manage hosted events, interfacing with clients and vendors while monitoring open arts spaces
• Assisted with annual fundraising gala planning, recruitment, set up, coordination and management

Events Team at Ace Hotel Pittsburgh (2018-01 – 2020-12)

The local Ace outpost operated 2015-2020 in an historic YMCA facility. Its cavernous gymnasium and elegant ballroom made it a hugely popular wedding site (40-45 per year), as well as for corporate events and parties.

• Rotated through professional skills according to specific needs of each event: Production, serving, bartending, soft skills, inventory management, time management, organization
• Applied concert production experience to weddings and events while honing flexibility and polish

Artist Management, Box Office Manager at Pitchfork Music Festival (2015-01 – 2022-12)

Pitchfork Music Festival, organized by the online magazine Pitchfork, operated from 2005 to 2024. Every July, the 3-day festival hosted 20,000 guests and 40+ bands on three separate stages at a downtown Chicago park.

• Personally recruited by festival founder to greet, check-in and begin hospitality and production processes for festival artists and their crews
• Managed inaugural PLUS+ box office, a purchasable VIP experience
• Emergency Team Lead; cooperated in two festival evacuations due to extreme weather

Bartender, Manager at Empty Bottle (1998-01 – 2016-12)

Currently celebrating its 34th year, Empty Bottle is a 400-capacity music venue-slash-dive bar with attached restaurant. Operating seven nights a week, EB music programming runs the gamut, from its acclaimed free jazz and improv series to indie rock, metal, honky tonk performances… and everything in between.

• Cash-only bar; responsible for settling total sales (up to four cash drawers/ $10k+) nightly
• Managed full staff (bar, floor, production teams); monitored and managed event and crowd, emphasizing safety and staying on schedule
• Production - Checked in talent and crew, liaised with sound, lighting, production, and booking staff, continued hospitality and communication throughout event; settled shows and paid performers, coordinated load-outs
• Spearheaded several special projects and initiatives: Holiday decor, hand-lettered signage and promotional materials, first-aid instruction and ongoing skill refreshment, employee appreciation events

FOH Service and Beverage Direction at With Chef Bethany Zozula (2024-08 – Present)

Several pop-ups and collaborative dinners (incl. Churchview Farm, Stunt Pig, Black Radish Kitchen, Pittsburgh County Fair)

• FOH Service plans and management, beverage direction, hand-lettered and drawn menus and signage, other visual materials, staging/tablescape, cash handling and accounting, customer service

Server and Bartender at Special Events/Catering (2024-08 – Present)

Event Planning, Coordination, and Site Management at Freelance (2019-01 – 2021-12)