A voice echoes throughout a small building calling residents to mealtime. One by one, men step into the kitchen to claim a paper plate of homemade food served daily for breakfast, lunch and dinner. And each meal is made with the “heart of soul food,” according to the chef. 

But the meals aren’t prepared in traditional ways.

“Guess what?” Eli Townsend asked. “I don’t use salt at all in that kitchen.”

Despite being loved by foodies the world over, soul food also has a reputation for being salt-laden, artery-clogging, butter-soaked cuisine. But Townsend wants to prove that’s not all soul food has to be.

Townsend is a Memphis-born chef who has lent his talents to kitchens in Arkansas, California and New York. After returning to Memphis in 2013, he helped launch Sage in 2018, a Downtown soul-fusion restaurant, and later opened Dos Hermanos Kitchen at the Cossitt Library.

But for the past six years, the chef — who may be equally known for his elaborate fashion as he is for his cuisine — has fed Memphians living at Harbor House.

“They’re not just men who need to eat,” Townsend said. “They’re men who made a brave decision to change their lives.”

Harbor House is a residential treatment center for men battling addiction or co-occurring disorders — conditions that involve both mental illness and substance addiction. Some residents are referred to the program instead of serving jail time for drug-related offenses. Others choose to seek help for themselves.

In addition to meeting their dietary requirements and restrictions, Townsend said he aims to serve all men with dignity and respect.

“I don’t treat them like addicts; I treat them like men,” he told me as he plated the residents’ evening meal.

Max Butler understands the difference.

He works in the food industry as a prep chef, server and bartender, often contracting with catering companies across the city — including with Townsend’s.

But before launching his own food service career, Butler was a resident of Harbor House.

“I don’t want to go into much detail, but I needed help and I decided to get it,” Butler said. “I had a traumatic experience, and I wanted something different in my life.”

Beyond therapy, physical and group activities, Townsend said he believes that the normalcy of a meal can help residents maintain a sense of self and better transition back into society once they complete the recovery program.

“I address them with manners. I call every man ‘sir,’” he said. “It costs nothing to treat a man like a man.”

The Harbor House kitchen doesn’t have deep fryers, so Townsend mimics the texture with breaded and baked items such as his chicken Parmesan sandwich served on Texas toast. Food is packed with flavor by way of sauces, seasonings and herbs, but fats are limited and salt is eliminated altogether. 

But Townsend said he never sacrifices quality, flavor or volume. The men’s paper plates are piled high with proteins, veggies, carbs and starches designed to nourish a body as it recovers.

For some men, it’s the first time in a long time that a meal has felt less like survival and more like care.

“It wasn’t what I expected at all,” Butler said of his time as a resident. “(Townsend’s meals were) always a good way to start your day or end your day.”

This week on the Memphis food scene

“I thought it was really cool to get the fruits from the farmers,” said Mempops owner Chris Taylor, “and then turn around and turn them into pops and have them out for sale the next week.” (Mark Weber/The Daily Memphian)

Sophia Surrett spoke with sibling restaurateurs about their decision to sell their beloved Chinese restaurant and embrace retirement.

The owners of Blue Honey Bistro are opening a new restaurant in Clark Tower early next year.

Tripolis Sweets, a new Middle Eastern bakery, is also opening in Cordova this summer, selling Arabic-style ice cream, pies and other treats. Surrett also talked to the Tripoli native who co-owns the bakery about what’s to come.

Jennifer Chandler’s pimento cheese biscuit stuffed with ham and honey mustard. (Courtesy Justin Fox Burks)

Speaking of sweets, Mempops season is in full swing. I spoke with owner Chris Taylor about the work that goes into making and distributing the handmade ice pops.

And Whitehaven-based Kaye’s Pints & Scoops announced the May opening of a scoop shop inside Crosstown Concourse.

In our latest Recipe Exchange, Jennifer Chandler shared her very own pimento cheese biscuits that make the famed cheddar bay variety seem bland.

This week’s $15 Deal from Erica Horton was the falafel platter at La Roche Lebanese Cuisine.

In Food Files, Surrett highlighted menu options beyond the name of the new Waffle & Pancake House and two different Dunkin’ projects in progress.

And to keep readers and listeners informed about recent restaurant openings and closings, Surrett joined with Daily Memphian editorial director Mary Cashiola on the AM/DM podcast.

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