Meet Amanda Tommey Terbush of Southern France Patisserie

Today we’d like to introduce you to Amanda Tommey Terbush.

Amanda Tommey, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Southern France has been the dream of Chef Amanda Tommey Terbush for quite some time. Amanda is originally from Columbus, Georgia and comes from a long line of bakers and food enthusiasts. Her grandmother, Vela, was one of the best bakers in her family. Aunt Bevelyn, who has written and published several Southern-style cookbooks, with which Amanda takes much inspiration.

And her mother, Cheryl, who is an amazing bread maker, most noted for her sweet rolls. Amanda attended the University of Georgia and studied Therapeutic Recreation. This took her to New York City to work as a Recreation Therapist, working with such diverse populations as persons with AIDS, spinal cord and traumatic brain injuries, children with psychiatric and psychological disorders, and persons with mild to moderate dementia.

When Amanda and her husband, Alan, moved to Chicago, she took a job in a chocolate shop, to get out of the house and meet new people. This changed everything. Amanda fell in love with everything chocolate and was the catalyst for applying to pastry school. In 2008, Amanda was accepted to the prestigious French Pastry School in Chicago.

Eager to learn, Amanda staged at the newly opened Chocolate Academy at Barry Callebaut and they offered her a job after graduation. Her time at the Chocolate Academy was a master class in pastry, working with world-renowned chefs and being exposed to new ideas and techniques. This knowledge would be the foundation for pushing Amanda and in 2010, she became the Pastry Chef for Cook Au Vin/La Boulangerie in Chicago.

With chocolate being such a passion, she left in 2012 and took an R&D position with Vosges Haut-Chocolat. Amanda’s restless creative nature struggled between making chocolate and making pastries. During her time as Pastry Chef, Amanda was longing to work with chocolate. Now that she had the chance to work with chocolate and confections at the Vosges, Amanda dreamed of creating pastries again.

Thus, the idea of Southern France was born. Southern France was started in 2014 in a shared kitchen and moved to their current location, 1405 W Irving Park Road at Southport, in July 2015.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
I started this business by myself, so I would work every day, but open to the public three days a week. People used to ask (and still do!) what was my “real” job because clearly, this was a hobby. People have no idea what it takes to make pastries, especially good ones. When I explain how much time it takes to make out croissants, people look at me in disbelief.

They can’t imagine that it really does take three days to make our croissants! Staffing has been tough, with trying to find the right people for such a small kitchen. I have an amazing team now, but it has taken three years to find the right people.

Southern France Patisserie – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Southern France is a marriage between my Southern background, being from Georgia, and also being a classically-trained pastry chef. We offer croissants and pains au chocolat right next to buttermilk biscuits with homemade jam. Very French things and very Southern things, both made with love and the good butter!

We put the love into our food and you can really tell the difference! The feeling in the shop is one of inclusion, which is a very different feel from a traditional French-style pastry shop. We want our customers to ask questions and feel comfortable learning about different pastries with names like entremet and financier. The customers are also treated like family here.

We know most all of our regular customers by name and their children’s names. There is a very purposeful cultivation of relationships with our customers, to let them know that we care about them and that we appreciate them letting us be a part of their lives. In these three years, we have been welcomed into people’s lives and their family celebrations. What an honor!

What is “success” or “successful” for you?
Repeat customers. People who believe in you and your products. Customers who purposefully go out into their world to be our word-of-mouth marketers, because they care about us. Yearly growth that supports hiring more staff and being able to pay people a decent wage. Other businesses that actively search you out to do business with you. Sticking to your values when in growth.

Contact Info:

• Address: 1405 W Irving Park Road (at Southport)
• Website: www.southernfrancechicago.com
• Phone: 773-857-1478
• Email: southernfrancechi@gmail.com
• Instagram: southernfrancechi
• Facebook: southernfrancechi
• Twitter: sofrancechi

Image Credit:
Julia Helton, Paul Strabbing

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