Kelly Manning started Tavern in the Village in 2011 after a long restaurant career with Morton's steakhouse and Houstons restaurants. His past experience taught him the value of excellent service and a high quality product. It was always his dream to own his own restaurant before he turned 40 and that dream came true for him when he opened Tavern in the Village in 2011, 1 day before his 40th birthday. He credits his amazing family and friends for their continued support and his strong roots in Kansas City for much of his success. Kelly grew up 5 minutes away from the current location and attended Pembroke Hill and then the University of Kansas.

His dream of owning a family friendly, upscale casual restaurant with exceptional service and high quality food came true with Tavern in the Village. A year and a half later he opened his second location, Tavern at Mission Farms in Leawood. Stay tuned for his next restaurant venture, coming soon.

Jennifer has been with The Tavern since 2014. She trained professionally in Southern California before moving to Kansas City to finish her culinary degree at the Art Institute. Chef Jennifer strives to create menus that have a favorite for everyone in the family, a place to go for a casual lunch or celebratory meal, and that feature seasonal plates supporting local merchants and farmers.

“Each changing season speaks to my soul differently as a chef. My goal is to translate what I hear from the food into a dish that sparks a connection with the guest.”

Shelby grew up in the Kansas City area and attended Shawnee Mission North and Johnson County Community College before starting a family. She raised three kids that all attended Shawnee Mission East and now attend KU and Ole Miss. She has run several businesses in the Kansas City area and is the newest addition to our management team.

“I’ve always loved the Tavern and felt that it was a warm and inviting place to be and now I feel so fortunate to officially be a part of this amazing team and community.”

Mari is a native Kansas Citian and started working at Tavern at Mission Farms at the age of 19. She has since moved to Tavern in the Village and we feel very lucky to have had her with us for the past 7 years.

“I’ve grown up and learned so much with my years at the Taverns and I love being a part of this amazing Tavern family and community.”