get to know our team!
The team at Aurora Café and Bakery bring years of unique and tasty experiences to the kitchen!
javier nuñez, executive pastry chef and co-owner
Javier Nuñez grew up in Orange County, California, and originally planned on pursuing a career in chemical engineering. While attending Irvine Valley College, Javier was accepted into Cal Poly San Luis Obispo to study chemical engineering but made the decision to channel his interest in science and chemistry into his passion for baking. Javier was accepted into The Culinary Institute of America, home of alumni Anthony Bourdain, Cat Cora and Geoffrey Zacharian.
While at the culinary program, Javier interned at Tom Colicchio’s restaurant, Craft Los Angeles. At Craft Los Angeles, Javier trained with renowned Los Angeles Pastry Chef, Shannon Swindle. In 2014, Javier graduated from The Culinary Institute of America with a degree in Baking and Pastry, then moved to Los Angeles.
Javier worked his way up to become Pastry Sous Chef at Republique, working under James Beard Award-winning Pastry Chef Margarita Manzke. Known for their outstanding pastries and bread, Republique was the perfect environment for Javier to hone his skills in crafting seasonal French pastries and hearth baguettes. Javier then moved on to become head baker of the acclaimed Los Angeles bakery, Bub and Grandma’s. During this time, Javier developed his love for artisanal sourdough bread and expanded his leadership abilities. Bub and Grandma’s grew to supply bread for the top Los Angeles restaurants, and recently, opened a wildly successful restaurant of their own.
Javier moved to Kansas City in 2018 with his wife, Kerianne. He most recently was head bread baker at Ibis Bakery and also teaches in the Pastry program at Johnson County Community College.
When Javier is not baking or teaching, he enjoys trying new restaurants around Kansas City, reading books in Spanish to his son and listening to podcasts while helping out around the house. He also loves sneaking in an afternoon nap.
kerianne nuñez, executive chef and co-owner
Kerianne (Strickland) Nuñez grew up in Wichita, Kansas, and began her culinary journey at the age of 17, working as a pastry apprentice at The Eaton Steakhouse in the historic Eaton Hotel of downtown Wichita. After moving on to work as a chocolatier at Cocoa Dolce Artisan Chocolates, Kerianne was accepted to attend The Culinary Institute of America, where she graduated with a degree in Culinary Arts.
Kerianne discovered her passion for hand crafting fresh pasta during her time working at Tom Colicchio’s restaurant, Craft Los Angeles. Kerianne spent her 5 month externship at Craft LA, and was offered a job after graduation.
Kerianne moved on to work as a sales associate for Domenico’s, a fresh pasta company located in Beverly Hills, as well as a cheesemonger at The Cheese Store of Beverly Hills. Through The Cheese Store of Beverly Hills, Kerianne worked with high end imported cheese, charcuterie and wines from all over Europe. She was commissioned to craft specialty cheese and charcuterie boards, and her work became a favorite among celebrities who frequented the store.
After moving to Kansas City in the summer of 2018, Kerianne began working at North Italia in Leawood, producing all of the fresh pasta, pizza dough and pastries for the restaurant. Kerianne became a trainer within the company, and traveled to Virginia to open two new North Italia restaurants, training the employees on fresh pasta and pizza dough production.
Kerianne adores spending time with her little boy, Enrique, going on walks, singing, and of course, cooking and baking for friends and family. Kerianne is excited to get back into the food industry, and work alongside her husband to create a legacy of their own.