FOOD By Michael Donahue
WWW.MOSHMEMPHIS.COM
TAKE A CROSS-COUNTRY ADVENTURE
Cooking Something Up Monique Williams keeps her plate full with several restaurants.
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onique Williams can She closed the bakery in 2016 create a restaurant faster because she needed a break and her than she can whip up a daughter was about to go college. But, batch of biscuits. she thought, “It’s not the end. It’s just Or it seems that way. moving to the next level.” Williams is co-owner of Biscuits & Jams Two years later, she opened Laura’s in Bartlett and co-owner of Trap Fusion in Kitchen in Bartlett, where she did “all Whitehaven and Cordova. Many people kinds of Southern stuff.” Tired of leasing remember when Williams owned Pat-Aspace, Williams closed the restaurant after Cake’s Bake Shop in Cordova. a year and, with a business partner, opened You can thank her grandmother, the Laura’s Kitchen food truck, mostly used for late Laura Stepter. “She was a pastry chef,” catering jobs. “Macaroni and cheese, fried Williams says. “She worked for Memphis chicken, all that good stuff you’d get on City Schools for almost 30 years. She did Sundays if you go to a Southern grandma’s their pastries, made homemade breads, house. At least the grandma I grew up with. pies, turnovers, cakes, cookies, biscuits.” The young grandmas, I’m not sure of.” Growing up in Midtown, Williams was With more partners, she opened Trap in the kitchen with Stepter “helping her Fusion, where the emphasis is on healthy stir or licking the whisk food. “Seafood. We do after she made a cake. some vegan, Caribbean, … She let me help, but Cajun.” she let me go in like I “Trap” stands was in a lab and just for “Take Risks and experiment. I would Prosper,” she says. make things and bring Williams opened them out and she’d Biscuits & Jams in 2021 taste it.” because she wanted a An alumna of place in Bartlett that Central High School, specializes in brunch. Williams graduated “There are so many from Christian Brothers in Downtown and University and then Midtown. We don’t Central Michigan have a lot of these University, where she boutique-style spaces PHOTO: COURTESY MONIQUE WILLIAMS got a master’s in health that give you the cutesy Monique Williams services administration. feel with good food.” She worked 24 years Her February in clinical research but always baked for menu includes gumbo, crawfish étouffée, friends. She taught herself how to cook and shrimp po’ boys. Popular regular different cuisines. “I always wanted to have items include shrimp and crawfish Creole my own business. I knew it would involve Benedict and bananas Foster French toast. food, entertainment, people.” The “jams” in the title refer to the jams, She remembers her grandmother and jellies, and preserves Williams makes and mother cooking for visiting relatives. serves. But it has another meaning. “I love “That feeling of eating together, getting good music. We’re in Memphis, kind of together with food, just seemed to make playing on that. We have live music and people happy.” play music in-house.” Her first side business was making Of course, new restaurants are on party decorations. “I’d do the gift bags, Williams’ horizon. One will be a small decorate the ‘jump the brooms’ for African- baker’s commercial kitchen/dinner spot. American weddings, make a wishing well Another will be “a small-plate venue,” she for the gifts.” says. “And great drinks.” Biscuits & Jams is at 5806 Stage in Bartlett, In 2012, Williams opened Pat-A-Cake’s (901) 672-7905. Bake Shop, serving cupcakes, pies, and Trap Fusion is at 4637 Boeingshire in cinnamon rolls. Like all her restaurants, Whitehaven, (901) 207-5565; and 670 N. Williams had “more of a neighborhood Germantown Pkwy. in Cordova, feel, where people sit and enjoy. The goal is (901) 672-7061. to have regulars.”
