Chef Tamra Patterson born and raised in Fort Worth, Texas. Known by most as Chef Tam, she is the owner of Chef Tam’s Underground Cafe. The Cafe has been opened since March 2017, and though a transplant to city of Memphis, she’s made it her own. The Cafe’ is located in the highly sought after Cooper Young Area of Memphis, Tennessee, right in the heart of Midtown. She comes from a long line of cooks, bakers, and restaurant owners. Tam's maternal grandfather owned a BBQ restaurant; her father owned a homestyle restaurant all of her youth, and her paternal grandmother--who she affectionally calls Nanna--was a professional baker.
April 22, 2018 Chef Tam made her Food Network debut, appearing in Guys Grocery Games, where she beat out three classically trained chefs with her soulful Bayou Lovers rendition of Mac and Cheese, filled with crab and shrimp, peach cobbler French Toast candied cayenne bacon, and soul pizza good enough to knock your socks off. It was--get this--a collard green pizza. She was also featured in Essence Magazine that same month. That summer she dashed across the TV screen again in a A Burger Battle for Champions on Guys Grocery Games, and then later in the summer was a featured competitor on Ultimate Summer Cook Off, also on Food Network. Within a few months of being open, Chef Tam’s Underground Cafe was nominated Best New Restaurant in Memphis and Best Overall Food in the city. Her family and its legacy and its love of amazing food is what has driven her no matter the obstacles she’s faced.
While Chef Tam has fed many notable celebs, from Grammy Award Winners actors, producers and even comedians, she doesn’t dub herself as a Celebrity Chef, she loves being a chef of The People. The smiles that the customers give after they have eaten a meal at the cafe is all the notoriety she needs.
While expansion plans are a must because her cafe only seats 36, she plans to stay put as long as possible. She loves the feeling of “being in your Grandma’s house.” Chef Tam’s Underground Cafe sits on the corner of Bruce (Bruce was Chef Tam’s father's name) and Young at 2299 Young Ave and you’ll find her there Tuesday - Saturday 11-8, putting her spin on what she loves to call Cajun Soul Food Fusion. The Cafe is filled with her family history from her great grandfathers draft card, to a custom built table that houses all of her grandmothers hand written recipes. She smiles knowing that every detail of the cafe oozes her love for her family, every picture hanging is a picture of my family members, that for me is love, that for me is life.