Kitchen + Kocktails by Kevin Kelley, the elevated Southern comfort food concept known for its crafted kocktails and signature “Welcome Home” hospitality, is headed to Times Square this fall. In just six short years, Kelley, a litigation attorney, has had a meteoric rise in the restaurant industry, launching his first upscale eatery in Dallas in 2020 during the pandemic. It did so well he has since opened locations in Chicago, Atlanta, Washington D.C., Charlotte, Philadelphia, and Miami—with New York and Boston on the way.
What first interested you in your area of the hospitality industry?
My first interest came from my love of food. I love to eat, and I enjoy sharing great food and drinks with friends.With Kitchen + Kocktails by Kevin Kelley, I was able to create a restaurant that I would personally enjoy, with the hope that others would enjoy it just as much. Years later, with restaurants across the country, it’s rewarding to see that our hopes and vision have become a reality.
Who are a few of the people who have encouraged your career?
I’ve been fortunate to have several fantastic mentors who have encouraged and supported my career in both business and hospitality. James Payne, an attorney based in Houston, Texas; Warren Thompson, who has built a career in hospitality on the East Coast; Thomas Moorhead, a highly respected automotive dealership owner; and Roland Parrish, who has owned several McDonald’s franchise locations in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, have all played important roles in my journey.
These gentlemen have generously given me their time, guidance, and mentorship. They’ve not only encouraged my success today but have continuously challenged me to achieve even greater success in the future.
What challenges do you think people face in your industry?
I believe one of the greatest challenges in hospitality is guest satisfaction. When you’re serving people, you have to recognize that every guest walks through your doors with a different experience. Someone may be having a wonderful day, while another person may be having a difficult one. You have to be able to recognize those differences, adjust your approach, and ensure you’re meeting their expectations.
Hospitality is an industry that’s constantly evolving. Customer sentiment, weather conditions, changing dining habits, and outside influences can all affect your business. That’s why resilience is so important. You have to maintain the mindset to keep moving forward, even when faced with complicated circumstances. Challenges are inevitable, but you cannot allow them to hold you back.
Can you cite a few accomplishments that have given you great pride and elevated your work?
Opening our restaurants in Philadelphia and New York has been especially meaningful to me. Those accomplishments stand out because I expanded into markets on the East Coast, far from where I’m originally from.
But there’s also a very personal reason those locations mean so much to me. I have two sons who attend Princeton University, and I often wonder whether I would have opened restaurants in Philadelphia and New York if they had chosen to attend school in Texas instead.
Family comes first for me, and I want to be the best father I can be. Having restaurant locations near my sons is something I take tremendous pride in. Being able to celebrate a restaurant opening one day and attend one of their games on the East Coast the next has been incredibly rewarding.
I want to continue accomplishing things that make me proud and that the public can appreciate, while always keeping my children and my family at the center of my decisions.
Another accomplishment I’m extremely proud of is that our company employs 1,200 people. I think people sometimes misunderstand what it means to be a boss. In my position, it means being responsible for the financial well-being of 1,200 employees and the families who depend on them. Those individuals rely on our company to provide a paycheck every two weeks, and I take that responsibility seriously.
I’m proud that we have a company that genuinely cares about its employees, provides opportunities for growth and advancement, and works to ensure that our team members are taken care of.
What piece of advice can you lend to others who are considering your career?
My advice is simple: You can do it. Far too often, we have goals and professional aspirations, but we convince ourselves that they’re beyond our reach. Sometimes we believe that God has reserved certain blessings or opportunities for someone else.
But I believe God blesses all of us with abilities and opportunities. So much of our success comes down to what we’re willing to do, what we’re willing to sacrifice, and how strongly we believe in ourselves. If there’s something you truly desire to accomplish, you can do it. You have to maintain a strong belief in yourself, be willing to put in the work, and remain committed to the goals you’ve set.
Everyone who works in hospitality has a story to tell about something incredible that happened on the job. What’s one that you often tell?
For me, some of the most incredible experiences come from meeting fantastic people, especially our everyday guests. They bring me so much joy. Just the other day, I was speaking with a table of guests, and one woman shared that she was celebrating being cancer-free. She chose my restaurant because it was a special place to her. To know that she selected a restaurant bearing my name to celebrate such a meaningful milestone, surrounded by someone she cared about, meant a great deal to me.
It also gave me the opportunity to give something back. I wanted to take care of her meal as a way of saying thank you for choosing us and allowing us to be part of such an important celebration.
Those are the moments that remind me why I love hospitality.
Of course, another incredible part of this industry is having the opportunity to meet people you’ve admired for years. Across our restaurants, we’ve welcomed celebrities, political figures, athletes, actors, and other notable individuals. It’s always exciting to meet people you’ve watched and admired throughout your life and get to know them on a personal level.
I’ve always been a fan of The Cosby Show, so getting to know Phylicia Rashad has been phenomenal. She initially visited as a guest and has since become a friend. We’ve also had the opportunity to work together to provide meals for graduating students in the arts and drama programs at Howard University.
Another tremendous honor was meeting Jesse Jackson through our restaurants before his passing. He was a fantastic man, and his family has been wonderful as well. These are relationships and experiences I might never have had if I weren’t in hospitality.
To grow up admiring individuals who have made such an impact on my life and the lives of so many others and then have the opportunity to meet them and build genuine friendships, has been an incredible blessing.
What do you hope people understand about those who work in your area of hospitality?
I want people to understand just how hard those in hospitality work to serve their guests. There’s a tremendous amount of effort and dedication that goes into taking care of people.
Is there anything else you want Woman Around Town readers to know?
First, it’s a tremendous honor to have the opportunity to connect with Woman Around Town and share more about Kitchen + Kocktails by Kevin Kelley. One thing many people may not realize is that approximately 70% of our guests are women. That’s a major reason our restaurants are designed the way they are.
We understand who our guests are, and we want women to feel fantastic when they visit us and enjoy their favorite comfort foods. The floral elements, the mirrors, the kindness, and the softness of the restaurant are all intentional. We want every woman who walks through our doors to feel happy, comfortable, and welcomed. We want our restaurants to be places where women feel safe and can truly enjoy themselves.
That’s what our hospitality is all about.
Welcome Home.
