Vivilore

Vivilore is an independently owned American restaurant, art gallery, and three-floor antiques-and-home-decor shop housed in a historic brick building in the Englewood Arts District of Independence, Missouri. Founded in 2012 by Independence-native siblings Whit Ross and Cindy Foster, it built a regional reputation for elegant scratch-made lunches, courtyard dining, and its restaurant-meets-marketplace concept. It passed to new owner Jollene Hastings in January 2024.

Description

Vivilore is a hybrid American restaurant, art gallery, and retail destination occupying a historic brick building in the Englewood Arts District of Independence, Missouri. The name derives from Latin — viva (“life”) and lore (“story”) — for “life story.” The concept pairs sit-down elegant dining with three floors of retail space above the restaurant, stocked with locally sourced art, antiques, home decor, garden statuary, and vintage estate-sale pieces alongside contemporary goods.

The kitchen serves modern American fare across lunch and dinner — described in coverage and on the menu as scratch-made, with signature items including the chicken salad sandwich, crab cakes, ribeye, and Wild Pacific salmon. The restaurant is particularly known for its seasonal courtyard garden (open Mother’s Day weekend through Halloween, first-come/first-served) and a loyal women’s-luncheon clientele. Current hours are Wednesday–Saturday, 11 a.m.–3 p.m. (lunch) and 5–9 p.m. (dinner), closed Sunday–Tuesday.

An adjacent event space, The Mandarin at Vivilore (renamed in 2024 from “Swan Dive”), hosts weddings, anniversaries, and cultural programming for up to roughly 80 guests.

Ownership and history

Vivilore was founded by Whit Ross and Cindy Foster, a brother-and-sister team who grew up in Independence. Neither came from a restaurant background — Ross had worked in catering, and Foster had been a pilot for 23 years. They purchased the historic brick building in 2010, expecting roughly six months of renovation; because of the building’s historic status the work took two full years, and Vivilore opened in August 2012.¹²

The building has its own local heritage: it formerly housed the Sermon-Anderson interior-design/antique business, which is reported to have provided window treatments for Harry Truman’s Independence home before it closed.²

In January 2024, after nearly twelve years of sibling ownership, the restaurant was sold to Jollene Hastings, who relocated from California/New Jersey and lives in Lee’s Summit with her husband Mark and two children. Hastings first encountered Vivilore at a 2019 birthday celebration and pursued the purchase after reading about the sale listing in a Kansas City Star article. Under her ownership the restaurant name, hours, and retail components were retained and signature dishes kept; she renamed the event space to The Mandarin, expanded its cultural and wedding focus, retained chef Chadd Williams (who added weekly specials), and rehired gardeners for the courtyard.³

Links

• Website: https://www.vivilore.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vivilore/
• Phone: (816) 836-2222

See also

• independence-mo
• Registry

Sources

Footnotes

1. Vivilore — official site — https://www.vivilore.com/ — accessed 2026-05-30 (concept, “viva/lore” name origin, modern American menu, three floors of retail, hours, courtyard, The Mandarin event space, August 2012 founding, address 10815 E Winner Rd, phone (816) 836-2222). ↩

2. rotisseriechickenqueen — “Vivilore in Independence, Missouri has it all” — https://rotisseriechickenqueen.com/2015/07/10/vivilore-in-independence-missouri-has-it-all-its-a-must-eat-and-see/ — accessed 2026-05-30 (founders Whit Ross & Cindy Foster as Independence-native siblings; catering / 23-year pilot backgrounds; 2010 building purchase; two-year historic renovation; former Sermon-Anderson antique business; Truman-home window-treatment detail). ↩ ↩²

3. Kansas City Star (via Yahoo News) — “Kansas City area hidden gem restaurant has a new owner. Here’s how it’s changing” — https://ca.news.yahoo.com/kansas-city-area-hidden-gem-210111590.html — accessed 2026-05-30 (Jollene Hastings purchase January 2024; Lee’s Summit, husband Mark, two children; discovered 2019; chef Chadd Williams; Swan Dive → The Mandarin; signature chicken salad sandwich & crab cakes; Wed–Sun lunch/dinner hours). ↩