One of the staples of fantasy RPGs is that adventurers congregate in taverns, sharing stories of adventure and organizing forays into dangerous lands for adventure, loot and conquest.
But not in Istaria.
Hardly anybody pokes their noses into a tavern for more than a minute at a time. Taverns, as currently implemented are merely a place for a vending machine that sells only food.
Now, if Taverns had a function other than being a container for food for sale, maybe things might change. If taverns had a beneficial effect like other tiered shops, maybe people might linger. Let's say a T2 tavern added 20% to the effect of food consumed (so soup, which might reduce the DP penalty by 3 minutes, would reduce by 3 minutes, 36 seconds each serving) if it was consumed on site. Takeouts would not be affected.
This might actually make eating at Taverns happen, which might make them good places to hang out and chat...(and stuff their faces)