When he’s in his kitchen, chef Terence Locke is often preparing more than a dish for a catering job or his new food truck.
The owner/operator of Chef Express is also preparing his son, 7-year-old Terence Jr., for potentially trying times ahead – adolescence, followed by the teen years.
“My mom was a single mom, but I had strong Black men in my life,” Locke says. “In showing [my son] my craft, I’m trying to teach him to be able to stand on his own and be a gentleman.
“I don’t want to force anything,” Locke says, “but I’d love for him to follow in my footsteps.”
A Memphis native, Locke was raised in Chattanooga and graduated in 2010 from Brainerd High School. He says his initial plan was to become a classroom teacher, but his plan changed when he took a culinary arts class at Brainerd.