Bel Air Is Home To Best Bartender, Server In State: Restaurant Association Of MD

BEL AIR, MD — Two employees of restaurants in Bel Air were honored by the Restaurant Association of Maryland at its 2022 gala. Each year, the trade organization recognizes leaders in the restaurant industry, designating winners in categories from best chef to best bartender.

Shelby Stange of Independent Brewing Company was honored as Bartender of the Year, and Kristen Oktavec of One Eleven Main was named the Manager of the Year.

Stange and Oktavec won bragging rights in part based on public opinion. People were asked to vote online in February for their favorite restaurant staffers.

Related: 3 Bel Air Restaurants In Running For Best Of 2022

Stange "has an incredible work ethic" and was described as "sweet," helpful and "knowledgeable about brewing beer," according to the Restaurant Association of Maryland.

Oktavec was described as a "dream employee" who "encompasses everything about a restaurant manager you could ever hope for," according to the Restaurant Association of Maryland. "She is selfless ... cares for her staff [and] fills in at a moment’s notice."

Nearby, Amanda Wiley of Fallston Barrel House was named Server of the Year.

Other winners were Chef of the Year Gregory James of Stars Restaurant/Inn at Perry Cabin; 2022 Restaurateurs of the Year Joe and Mary Barbera of AIDA Bistro & Wine Bar in Columbia; and 2022 Heart of the Industry Award recipient Roxanne Upole, general manager of the Roy Rogers in Cumberland.