My Story
My name is Matthew Grimes and I’m a 33-year-old African American chef born and raised in Springfield, MA. My journey with food goes back to my early childhood. I was raised in a very close-knit family, where food served as the backbone and focal point of almost any and every family event. Birthdays, Holidays, Weddings, Sunday dinners, weekend brunches—you name it. For as long as I could remember Food, and more specifically the passion behind cooking, preparing, and serving food has been a staple in my upbringing. I started cooking at the age of 15 working at Friendly’s as a fountain employee because I was too young to be a cook. No matter how slammed we were for ice cream, I always found a way to get my work done early and find my way into the kitchen somehow. Whether just watching or trying to help in some way, seeing how the dishes actually came together really resonated with me. I was hooked!
Night Time Cook
After a few year stint there, I then went on to work for Brickford’s family Restaurant. I was the nighttime cook, and eventually lead cook before moving on. I then took a job for Aramark at Springfield College as a Pasta/Pizza/Prep cook. This experience was invaluable to my growth and development as an up-and-coming chef. I got the chance to actually work side by side and hands-on with real chefs who had graduated from some of the top culinary schools around, Johnson and Whales and CCI to name a couple.
From there, I worked myself up to lead Entrée Chef then to Head Catering Chef! I worked there for over 14 years. That’s the time where I really understood this would be my career. It has always been my dream to have my own restaurant. I’ve had that conviction since about 10 years old. I just needed to hone my craft, put the work in, and learn as much as I could in order to be successful.
Catering/Chef Manager
Currently, I am the Catering Chef/Manager for Springfield public schools. Where I directly oversee all catering operations for the school district, Mayor’s office, Superintendent’s office, and all city officials and entities.
Northern Soul Café
Northern Soul Café will be a family-oriented run business. My entire family is on board, as they have been since day one. From a host of uncles, aunts, cousins who have volunteered to help cook , clean, and prep to a few ex co-workers who are chefs that have expressed tremendous interest in being of part of NoSo café.
Vibrant Upbeat Experience
Our Restaurant is 1200 sq. ft. and will seat 16-24 patrons for a vibrant, upbeat comfortable, and casual dining experience. From the combination of art and music on display to the deliciously intoxicating smells that will be sure to draw attention. Our values at Northern Soul are simple. Hospitality and customer services. Where everyone feels like family!! It is our intention to also provide healthy and flavorful food options to a target audience looking for but not limited to soul food. Our goal is to create a demand and following comparable to Chef Wayne big Mamous. They also specialized in southern cuisine with unique flavors and have been very successful in the city.
We at Northern Soul are extremely grateful for the partnerships with Common Capital, The SBDC, and The Western Mass Black Chamber of Commerce, as well as close friends and colleagues whom I’ve met throughout my career. All will serve as trusted advisors in this process and we will continue that partnership not only as we launch but as we prepare for the future.