The Team
The Mason Jar Group is a collection of the city’s most authentic and unique hospitality experiences. No one is alike in our family, and we celebrate the differences we have. We encouraged our team to be themselves as they provide the best customer experience in all our venues. Just as our team is unique, so are the establishments they work in. Our culinary team believes in the freshest local and highest quality products available. They believe each and every plate served needs to be perfection.
OUR TEAM
Anthony Kearey
Anthony Kearey is operating partner for Mason Jar Group. As the personality of the group, the first thing people notice and remember is his boisterous laugh. Kearey and his team created the organization in 2007 with the opening of Tilt on Trade. Tilt’s longevity has made it Uptown Charlotte’s second longest open bar which celebrated 10 years in 2017. He identified a gap in the market for casual fine dining in Uptown and conceptualized 204 North Kitchen and Cocktails. A farm to table style twist on modern American cuisine with a rustic feel in the heart of the Queen City. 204 North’s booming beginning stand as a testament to Kearey’s passion and vision for the Queen City. In 2016, 204 North officially opened its doors as the first three-story restaurant in Uptown. Within its first year 204 garnered such positive media attention and patron support that it was named Charlotte Magazine’s 2017 ’Best New Restaurant’. An accolade given to an elite few. With two successes, Kearey felt it was time to add to the group and diversify out out Uptown. Historic South End is Charlotte’s quickest growing vibrant neighborhood where in 2018, he opened The Union. After a fantastic inaugural year, Kearey and MJG continued their vision and in 2019 Kearey opened two new concepts, an Irish pub in the quaint city of Matthews just outside of Uptown called Grace O’Malleys and a party bar in Charlotte’s Art District, NoDa named Bargarita.
Kearey attributes Mason Jar Group’s growing success with the team of individuals behind the brand, powering it forward to new heights. With over 150 employees in the MJG network, he finds it crucial to focus on giving each customer the best experience possible through service.
Kearey oversees day-to-day and fiscal planning, organizational goal setting and overall operations of the five properties. Additionally, he manages the initial construction and development phases of new contracts through his family-owned company, Kearey Builders, which specializes in the development of commercial properties. He also focuses on city permitting and planning while assisting in concept development.
A native of South Africa, when he’s not spending his time conceptualizing new projects, Kearey enjoys spending time on the water, most specifically Lake Norman.
Kearey currently lives in Uptown Charlotte, N.C.
Brendan Flory
Brendan is Director of Operations for the Mason Jar Group. Both his personal and profession background made it clear to Anthony and Rachel that he was the only person for the job, especially to help as they get their newest projects located at Congdon Yards in High Point, NC up and running.
Growing up in hospitality, Brendan’s family was always working catering jobs on weekends and summers. He started working quickly throughout a catering business on Hilton Head Island, SC. That led to him working in various positions in many restaurants in Hilton Head until he moved to Charlotte, NC in 2010. He began working at the Omni Charlotte and quickly moved up into leadership becoming the Outlet Manager for the hotel. During this time, he would often pop into the famous Tilt on Trade, where he, Rachel and Anthony met. He and Anthnoy became good friends and some will say great drinking buddies.
Brendan continued to grow with the Omni brand moving to Asheville, NC to oversee the Sunset Terrace Restaurant and their bar operations. After two years, he moved to Dallas, and then Houston working in resorts and continuing his development. Three years later, in 2019 after working at the Westin Galleria, as General Manager over Restaurants and Director of Outlets for The Woodlands Resort, Brendan moved back closer to home to Asheville, NC where he was the Director of Food and Beverage for The Omni Grove Park Inn. Brendan has great knowledge of operations while running multiple outlets, group and leisure banquets and catering events. He has a strong passion for developing people into their new roles and continued evolution of this exciting industry.
Lyndsay Ward
Lyndsay Ward is the Project Manager for Mason Jar Group. As project manager, Lyndsay takes the team's ideas and organizes multiple details to form a cohesive guest experience. Her priorities include supporting Anthony, Rachel, and the management team with day to day priorities and big picture details.
With a B.S. in Health Education, 1000+ hours of yoga studies, and over a decade of experience supporting executive management teams, Lyndsay approaches the team experience through a holistic lens. She intuitively understands what it takes to organize and complete a project and also believes that how the project is completed is just as important as the finish line. Lyndsay is passionate about creating ease and effectiveness within each project.
Lyndsay has lived in many places between the mountains and sea of North Carolina and has made Charlotte home. She enjoys any activity outdoors, hiking, live music, and finding joy in small things.
Rachel Lindsay
Rachel Lindsay is managing partner for Mason Jar Group. She brings a lifetime of experience to the table having her start in her family’s restaurant in Pittsburgh. She has a laser focus on the ins and outs of hospitality. She joined the organization in August 2007 and wears many hats beginning with previously held titles of director of operations and bar manager. In her ever growing role, Kamen oversees the overall operations and employee relations divisions, as well as back of house inventory control and crisis management. Additionally, she is responsible for human resources, payroll and accounting while also serving as lead creative design and build out manger for all five MJG properties. Rachel’s calm and commanding presence allows those around her to flourish. With her steady hand she has overseen the growth of the organization, moving from 15 employees in 2007 to nearly 200 by the end of 2020 across five properties.
Lindsay has managed and aided in projects related to the Democratic National Convention, the CIAA Basketball Tournament, NBA All-Star Weekend, Coca-Cola,Yelp, and, NASCAR while managing a diverse portfolio of clients. She was also the operations and creative design lead for the opening of 204 North Kitchen and Cocktails, Charlotte Magazine’s ‘Best New Restaurant of 2017’ and Elevate Lifestyle ‘Best Farm-to-Table Restaurant’ of 2017. As of 2021, Lindsay has conceptualized and designed six of MJG’s properties. Her attention to detail and a natural eye for interior design allows her to create unique dining and social settings where guests become immersed in the experience.
Prior to joining MJG, Lindsay spent multiple years at Bar Management Group, working in the organization’s Charlotte office. While at BMG, Lindsay was a bartender and was promoted to the role of marketing and events manager in which she planned and executed large-scale projects, lead promotional efforts and developed partner relationships.
Lindsay currently lives in Fort Mill, SC with her husband and son.
Chris Cooper
Chris “Coop” Cooper is Regional Manager for the Charlotte area of Mason Jar Group. With over 20 years of experience in the restaurant and hospitality industry, Coop brings a balanced approach to refining the day to day operations of Mason Jar Group, while maintaining focus on developing and teaching the employees that support the business growth.
In previous roles, Coop was a licensed stockbroker (Series 4, 7, 65) and has managed teams of over 50 people and led manager training programs that have successfully promoted 25 individuals to management positions.
The team motto is “Keep Coop in the Loop”. His priority with the management team is to encourage over communication and give the guest the best experience each and every time. He firmly believes that if you support people, and create the structure needed to thrive, the business will be successful. His passion is giving employees the foundation they need to get there.
Coop grew up in Gastonia, NC and graduated from UNC Charlotte, is a self-professed “momma’s boy”, huge baseball fan, and balances hectic hours by starting each day in the gym.
Bart Whitney
Bart Whitney is the Account Manager for Mason Jar Group and his responsibilities include analyzing strengths and weaknesses, proposing corrective action plans, and preparing accurate forecasts to management so informed decisions can be made to successfully drive business goals. Bart works closely with the management team to oversee supplier and partner agreements and make recommendations that help the business run more efficiently.
Bart started with Mason Jar Group in 2022, and was previously involved in day to day operations at The Union. While his role is now spent with numbers and spreadsheets, versus the day to day operations at The Union, he enjoys actively contributing to the customer experience through the operations team.
In previous roles, Bart has worked in the banking system and companies of all sizes including Coca Cola Consolidated. He also owned and operated a brand consulting firm and assisted Fortune 500 companies strategically integrate their business and brand strategies as well as led brand identity projects.
Bart is extremely passionate about the service industry and making each business within Mason Jar Group be the best it can be. Play Hard but Work Harder!