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Tavern at Mission Farms is issuing a challenge. “We’ve got the Goldilocks of private dining spaces,” says Blair Harvey, the restaurant’s sales and marketing manager. “It’s not too big and not too small, it’s just right. We want people to know that whatever event they’re game to throw, we’ll accommodate.”
She’s not even kidding.
Since 2018, their private dining room—which seats up to 40 comfortably—has been used for everything from corporate happy hours to the occasional birthday soirée, but Harvey says she’s determined to get the word out that the space is the perfect venue for a creative culinary experience. “Think casually upscale,” she says. “It’s comfortable, cozy, and can be utilized in nearly any way you see fit.”
Several weeks ago, a group requested a leisurely, family-style dinner with multiple courses spread out over an evening. “Done and done,” says Harvey. “It may not necessarily be in our wheelhouse, but it gives our chef a chance to flex his culinary muscles. It was perfectly executed.”
If you’ve ever glanced at Executive Chef Bobby Morris’s distinctive Tavern menu, you know he’s big on flavor and simplicity. It’s memorable comfort food—but kicked up about 22 notches. “The private dining space is intimate and can easily showcase our regular and private dining menu,” he says. “But I’ll gladly customize any specific dishes. We’ll ensure things are tailor-made to the guests’ needs.”
From sublime appetizers to “high-end finger food,” guests often rave about Morris’s willingness to whip up whatever their heart desires. “No one does a better happy-hour reception,” says Harvey. “Our hummus is a crowd-pleaser. Chef’s Maryland-style jumbo lump-crab cakes are to-die-for with their zingy remoulade sauce. And—I’m not even kidding—people go crazy for his chicken quesadillas. Sounds simple, but people dive in and then they’re gone.”
With a convenient built-in bar, the room is perfectly suited to make sure guests can mingle with nominal muss or fuss. Harvey will always be the first to politely point out when clients have over-ordered on nosh and nibbles. “We always work around client’s budgets, and I’m always the first one to suggest scaling back on food,” she says, laughing. “Plus, that can be put towards other things—like alcohol.”
During a recent taste-testing, potential guests raved about just about everything put in front of them, including the tarragon chicken, which is also Chef Morris’s favorite dish. “It’s most representative of the type of food I make—simple, with clean flavors. I don’t like food to be too complicated. You want people to enjoy it, not be put off by it.”
When we asked about some of the more eclectic events guests have thrown, he chuckles. “We had a shower where the theme was gold glitter,” Morris says. “Let’s just say keeping gold glitter sugar from melting on white and dark chocolate-covered strawberries can be a challenge. We persevered.”
Regardless of whether you’re bringing your own ideas to the table or you want Tavern’s team to do all the heavy lifting, they’ll be there every step of the way to ensure a pitch-perfect party. “I don’t think we have yet reached our potential for all the possibilities that exist for that room,” says Morris. “It’s such a multipurpose venue. If you have the occasion, we can tailor your event. It’s such a blank slate of a room we can make it what you want it to be.”
Harvey agrees wholeheartedly. “Every event is so different and we’re really accommodating,” she says. “We’re here to create an experience. Just when you think people have asked for everything, they come up with something new and exciting. And to that I say, ‘Bring it on.’”