Welcome back to Table Talk, The Daily Memphian’s weekly food and dining newsletter. Today, we meet our new restaurant writer, Ellen Chamberlain. 

Food has always been a deliciously essential ingredient in my life. As a child in Michigan, I cherished the daddy/daughter cooking classes my Florida-born father would host in our kitchen. He taught me all about cheese grits, fried chicken and other Southern staples he’d grown up with.

Though not too keen on cooking, my mother taught me how to set a formal dining table, design intricate tablescapes and made sure I knew how to make black pepper gravy from scratch. Mom encouraged my middle school baking obsession, insatiable appetite for Food Network programming, and she also ensured that I appreciated fine dining. You’d never know she grew up on a dirt road in Florida herself.

I always knew I wanted to work in food and media one day, but I never knew how I’d get there. I tucked the desire in my back pocket and embarked on a journey through radio, print and digital journalism, voiceovers and ghostwriting instead.

Much of my career has come to fruition because of a series of seemingly unrelated events and life experiences, but there is one thing that has been quite deliberate: Memphis.

I first fell in love with the real Music City (sorry, not sorry, Nashville) on a visit to see my big sister back in the early 2000s. I remember being blown away by the rich history chronicled in the Stax Museum of American Soul Music, the electricity of Beale Street and the amazing food everywhere in between.

I visited Felicia Suzanne’s and The Four Way and The Cheesecake Corner, marveling at the different kinds of cuisine available in this melting pot of a city. I’d already tried my hand at New York and figured that if I could make it in Memphis, I could make it anywhere. I knew I had to come back.

My return to the city took longer than I anticipated. During my time away, I worked as a ghostwriter in Mexico, the United Arab Emirates and Belize, soaking up their cultures through their unique food, drinks and service. Those opportunities led me to ghostwrite cookbooks that opened the door to all kinds of culinary discovery. Then, Memphis called.

You may have seen some of my food commentary and contributions at another local paper or on TV. If you’re into hip-hop, maybe you’ve even caught my TEDx Talk on misogyny within the genre. And if you’re a foodie, you might’ve heard my boisterous laughter riding the wind at one of your favorite restaurants.

If we haven’t met yet, I’m Ellen Chamberlain. I’m a storyteller who loves food, culture, community and the South. I’m equal parts extrovert and homebody and am infinitely grateful to pull up a chair to this table and call The Daily Memphian home. 

I’ll be here to tell the stories of the best bites around town, the selfless and creative people who create them for us and our communities that are nourished by their efforts. I hope that you’ll join me. 

What else is happening

Barksdale, the Midtown diner that reopened in April 2025, now serves all-day breakfast. (The Daily Memphian file) 

If your summertime budget is anything like mine, your precious dollars are destined to be spent on beaches both near and far. Fortunately, Erica Horton has you covered with this week’s $15 deal. She explored the menu at Cristina McCarter’s Feast & Graze and found the perfect almost-summertime meal that’s light on your wallet and filling for your belly: salmon BLT tacos. 

A local Instagram user single-handedly got the Barksdale to bring back all-day breakfast. Christin Yates digs into the protest that brought back the best meal of the day well into the afternoons at the recently reopened restaurant.

Jerrod Smith, owner of Shotwell Candy Co., makes caramels in his home kitchen.“I love to cook; it’s a passion of mine,” he said. (Patrick Lantrip/The Daily Memphian­)

Sophia Surrett tells the heartwarming story of a candymaker, his inspiration and his drive to keep his business afloat during tough times. It’s the kind of sweet inspiration that makes Memphis taste so satisfying — where grit, heart and boiling sugar can keep dreams alive.

The Pharmacy Coffeehouse is the latest eatery to take social media and Memphians by storm. Michael Waddell takes us behind the scenes of the latest concept from the group that saved Bartlett’s Side Porch Steakhouse.

I remember working at the now-closed Bahama Breeze near Wolfchase Mall one summer when I escaped my life in Florida to visit my sister in Memphis. Sophia Surrett reported the company has now filed layoff notices some two weeks after closing the local restaurant’s doors.

In Sound Bites, Holly Whitfield talks to the owners of Good Fortune Co. about food, business and being competition food TV veterans.

Finally, in Food Files, Surrett reports that Bar Limina is now open and that Grind City Brewing is making a change. 

Thanks for checking out this week’s Table Talk. Be sure to look for this column weekly for all the latest food news in Memphis.

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