This profile is in active compilation — some details are awaiting a cited source.

a Westside KC maker of stone-ground heirloom-corn and Sonoran-style flour tortillas, founded in 2017 by husband-and-wife team Marissa and Mark Gencarelli. In 2023 Yoli won the James Beard Foundation Award for Outstanding Bakery — the inaugural recognition in that category and, per local coverage, the first James Beard honor ever given to a tortilla bakery. The operation pairs a heritage-nixtamal mission with a wholesale arm, a Westside retail shop, and the Yoli Lonchería lunch counter.

Description

Yoli Tortillería is a Westside Kansas City maker of artisan tortillas built on traditional nixtamalization — corn cooked with food-grade lime, rinsed, then stone-ground on hand-carved volcanic stone into a fine masa.12 The result is stone-ground heirloom-corn tortillas alongside Sonoran-style flour tortillas, totopos, salsas, tamales, and aguas frescas.2 The name “Yoli” (pronounced yo-lee) derives from a Nahuatl/Aztec word meaning “to live,” reflecting the founders’ focus on quality, hand-crafted food.3

Founder Marissa Gencarelli grew up in Sonora, México, in a region of rich agricultural tradition; after relocating to Kansas City with her husband Mark, the couple founded the business in 2017 to fill what they saw as a void of authentic, scratch-made tortillas in the local market.14 The company first operated as a business-to-business wholesaler under the name KCMEX, then rebranded to Yoli as direct-to-consumer demand grew.3

Yoli supplies tortillas wholesale to roughly 100 Kansas City-area restaurants,4 ships nationwide via its website,1 and operates a Westside retail shop at 1668 Jefferson St. selling tortillas, salsas, prepared foods, and dry goods.5 Its corn-focused, sustainability-minded sourcing has included research collaboration with the University of Missouri’s agricultural program on heirloom and hybrid maize, and a non-GMO/organic Midwest corn supply.2 In 2023, Yoli was named to Zero Foodprint as part of its climate-conscious sourcing commitments.6

The Yoli Lonchería, a lunch counter co-located with the Westside retail shop, opened after the 2023 James Beard win drove demand and expansion. Its menu centers on masa-forward plates — tlacoyos and tetelas (filled, griddled masa pockets), burritos (chorizo, barbacoa), tortas, and soups — served alongside the retail offerings.7

Ownership and history

YearEvent
2017Marissa and Mark Gencarelli found the business in Kansas City to make scratch, nixtamal-based tortillas; initially operates as a B2B wholesaler under the name KCMEX
2018–2019Rebrand from KCMEX to Yoli Tortillería (with Carpenter Collective) as direct-to-consumer demand grows
2020Yoli’s Westside retail shop opens at 1668 Jefferson St
2022Named a James Beard Award semifinalist in the Outstanding Baker category — reported as the first tortilla bakery nominated in any James Beard category
2023Named a James Beard finalist, then wins the inaugural James Beard Award for Outstanding Bakery
2023+Yoli Lonchería lunch counter opens at the Westside location; products featured at the KC Current’s CPKC Stadium

Founders and roots

Marissa Gencarelli is the public face and creative lead of the business; her Sonoran upbringing is the explicit source of the brand’s recipes and mission.14 Mark Gencarelli is her husband and co-founder. The couple are Kansas City transplants rather than KC-born — Marissa is from Sonora, México — but they founded, built, and base the entire operation in Kansas City, embracing what Yoli’s own materials call “their Kansas City home.”1 “ Mark Gencarelli’s specific background/origin is not confirmed in reviewed sources.

Last verified: 2026-06-02 Source: Official site (eatyoli.com shop/retail focus) + Instagram + pop-up/stadium vendor presence Source URL(s): https://www.eatyoli.com/, https://www.eatyoli.com/shop, Instagram @yolitortilleria Confidence: High

Retail tortilleria and bakery specializing in stone-ground heirloom corn tortillas (nixtamal), Sonoran-style flour tortillas, totopos, salsas, tamales, aguas frescas, and prepared items (burritos, etc.) at pop-ups/markets/lonchería.

Highlights

  • Stone-ground heirloom corn tortillas (nixtamal)
  • Sonoran-style flour tortillas
  • Totopos, salsas, tamales
  • Aguas frescas and prepared items at events/pop-ups

Earned secondary tags added: heirloom-corn-tortillas, sonoran-flour-tortillas.

Full product and event details in 99_Archive/2026-06-02_yoli-tortilleria-menu/capture.md. Note: more retail/producer model than full restaurant.

Tier classification

Tier 1 — owner-operated KC maker with a national-acclaim craft and heritage case.

Per feedback_tier_flexibility, Tier 1 measures “pride + dedication to a business owner’s roots.” Yoli is not a KC-born-and-raised ownership story — Marissa Gencarelli is from Sonora, México, and the founders are KC transplants — so the strict born-and-raised criterion does not apply. Tier 1 is assigned here on the strong editorial/craft case:

  • Owner-operated and independently, locally owned — no corporate parent; the founders run the business hands-on from the Westside.1
  • National acclaim rooted in heritage craft — the 2023 James Beard Award for Outstanding Bakery (the category’s first-ever winner, and per local coverage the first James Beard honor to a tortilla bakery) is among the highest distinctions a KC food maker has earned.89
  • Deep craft/heritage mission — traditional nixtamalization, stone-ground heirloom corn, and a recipe lineage drawn directly from Marissa’s Sonoran roots.12
  • Civic embeddedness — wholesale to ~100 KC restaurants, a neighborhood Westside retail shop and Lonchería, and a presence at the KC Current’s CPKC Stadium.410

This combination — independent ownership, a heritage craft mission, and best-in-nation recognition anchored in the Westside — clears the Tier 1 editorial bar even though the born-and-raised path does not apply.

Operating status

Open / active. The Westside retail shop and Yoli Lonchería operate at 1668 Jefferson St; wholesale and nationwide shipping are ongoing.57 (Manufacturing has been reported at a separate, non-public KC address — historically the East Bottoms / Bell St area; “ on the current production location.)

See also

Sources

Footnotes

  1. Yoli Tortillería — “Our Story.” https://www.eatyoli.com/ourstory. Source for: Marissa Gencarelli’s Sonora, México upbringing; Mark Gencarelli co-founder; founding to fill an authentic-tortilla void; stone-ground heirloom-corn mission; Westside retail address 1668 Jefferson St; “their Kansas City home.” ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7

  2. Bake Magazine — “Yoli Tortilleria receives stellar recognition for its traditions, ingenuity.” https://www.bakemag.com/articles/17607-yoli-tortilleria-receives-stellar-recognition-for-its-traditions-ingenuity. Source for: nixtamalization process; hand-carved volcanic-stone grinding; University of Missouri agricultural research collaboration; non-GMO/organic Midwest corn supply; product range. ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  3. Carpenter Collective — “Yoli Tortilleria” (brand/rebrand case study). https://carpentercollective.com/project/yoli-tortilleria/. Source for: prior name KCMEX; B2B-to-DTC rebrand; “Yoli” = Aztec word for “to live.” ↩ ↩2

  4. Feast Magazine — “Yoli Tortilleria Produces Fresh Tortillas From Scratch in Kansas City.” https://www.feastmagazine.com/travel/kansas-city/yoli-tortilleria-produces-fresh-tortillas-from-scratch-in-kansas-city/article_b96331c4-1741-11e8-bee7-07107d11f8e4.html. Source for: 2017 founding; wholesale to ~100 KC-area restaurants; founders’ KC relocation. ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  5. Feast Magazine — “Yoli Tortilleria’s Retail Shop is Now Open in Kansas City’s Westside Neighborhood.” https://www.feastmagazine.com/travel/kansas-city/yoli-tortillerias-retail-shop-is-now-open-in-kansas-city-s-westside-neighborhood/article_16c16fcc-c774-11ea-9c9d-17ffe4a4e753.html. Source for: Westside retail shop opening (2020); 1668 Jefferson St; retail offerings. ↩ ↩2

  6. Zero Foodprint — “Yoli Tortilleria Joins Zero Foodprint.” https://www.zerofoodprint.org/blog/yoli-tortilleria-joins-zero-foodprint. Source for: climate-conscious sourcing commitment. ↩

  7. Yoli Tortillería — “Yoli Westside.” https://www.eatyoli.com/westside. Source for: Yoli Lonchería lunch counter; tlacoyos, tetelas, burritos, tortas, soups; retail + Lonchería co-location and hours. ↩ ↩2

  8. KCUR — “Yoli Tortilleria wins prestigious James Beard Award for ‘Outstanding Bakery.’” Published 2023-06-05. https://www.kcur.org/arts-life/2023-06-05/yoli-tortilleria-wins-prestigious-james-beard-award-for-outstanding-bakery. Source for: 2023 Outstanding Bakery win; 2022 semifinalist; 2023 finalist; owners Marissa and Mark Gencarelli; Westside/Jefferson St + Bell St locations. ↩

  9. KSHB 41 — “Yoli Tortilleria wins James Beard Foundation Award for Outstanding Bakery.” https://www.kshb.com/news/local-news/yoli-tortilleria-wins-james-beard-foundation-award-for-outstanding-bakery. Corroborating source for: 2023 Outstanding Bakery win. ↩

  10. KSHB 41 — “KC James Beard Award-winning tortilleria to be featured in Current’s CPKC Stadium.” https://www.kshb.com/sports/local-sports/kc-current/kc-james-beard-award-winning-tortilleria-to-be-featured-in-currents-cpkc-stadium. Source for: CPKC Stadium presence. ↩

See also

  • Registry
  • westside
Categories
  • Locally owned
  • Mexican
  • Westside