Behind The Name “Tavernier”

How do you say “Tavernier?”

Well, that question just happens to rhyme! Dar Tavernier’s father’s family is of French & Québécois descent, so it is pronounced “ta.vɛʁ.nje“, or, according to one of her non-French speaking college chums, like a viking cry, “I’m going to the tavern, YAY!”

What is the Tavernier name origin?

ancestoral photo of tavernier familyConfections, foraging, and fresh ingredients run in Dar’s blood.

Tavernier means “tavern keeper”, and indeed some of Dar’s ancestors rented out rooms and fed people in the St. Lawrence valley of Quebec and Northern New York state. Other Taverniers were confectioners in Paris, Calais, and Bourges, France. It seemed fitting to name our chocolate venture after Dar’s surname, inspired by her ancestors, and a woman who enjoyed food and travel as much as her grandmother Ella Tavernier did.

Love of the outdoors and the sciences also run in the family. Dar’s grandmother Ella is pictured at the top collecting bird specimens for Cornell University in the 1930s.

Rosalie Charland & Louis Tavernier, Dar’s great-grandparents, are pictured here on their dairy farm in the St. Lawrence Valley. Below are ephemera from historical Taverniers’ confectionery ventures.

Tavernier Chocolates is inspired by the hard work, passion and dedication of Dar’s ancestors.

old document from the tavernier family with writing in french

archival document from the tavernier family

maison de la forestine