TAVERNA - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Wine Director / Proprietor
Kiley Wynne Efron's passion for Italian food and wine helps define Taverna. As the restaurant's Wine Director, Kiley is always on the hunt for great wines to add to her Wine Spectator award-winning list. Kiley's professional background includes time spent at some of California's finest restaurants, including A16 and Rivoli. Kiley is a graduate of the California College of the Arts.
Job Titles:
- Executive Chef
- Best Chef
- Executive Chef / Proprietor
Jacksonville native Sam Efron developed his culinary style through formal and experiential training. He discovered European cuisine while living abroad as an exchange student from Florida State University. Upon graduating, he enrolled in the Culinary Institute of America. Sam refined his skills at landmark restaurants such as Four Seasons Hotel in New York, Gramercy Tavern, Aqua, and Silks at The Mandarin Oriental Hotel in San Francisco. Once he returned to Jacksonville, Sam assisted in the opening of Restaurant Orsay. In 2009 he opened Taverna with his wife, Kiley.