Why Do So Many Adventures Begin in a Tavern & Nepotism in the Walls - Why I Disclose My Connections , Sometimes Annoyingly So ;)

You know the trope: you all meet at a tavern. But why is that? What makes a Tavern, the local watering hole, such an integral part of kicking off so many RPG adventures? There is a certain brush you paint with when members of your development group and playtesters leave glowing reviews for your product and fail to mention their connections to it. I try to mention the connections I have to individuals and companies whenever I review a product, because the potential customer has a right to know of potential biases in said review.