Veteran chef wants to bring Springfield's dining into the modern era with cafe, catering
Chef William Meeks is determined to drag Springfield's culinary scene into 2024, even if there's kicking and screaming.
Running Infused Catering by William and operating the Executive Cafe in the Frisco Building is just the start.
"We want to put a better culinary foundation in Springfield. There’s a foundation here, for the most part, but it’s lagging, it’s behind. Springfield is buffering," Meeks said, giving the example of tacos. "No one cares about tacos anywhere else. We all love tacos, but it’s not on every single group, every single Facebook page."
While Meeks got his start in the restaurant industry in Branson, he's also worked in Kansas City and in Springfield. In 2018, he was executive chef at The Order. Meeks' company Hungry 1 Catering bought Infused Catering — now Infused Catering by William — in 2023. The Executive Cafe, 3253 E. Chestnut Expressway, is open 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday.
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He knows that the catering businesses in town can be better than they are now.
"We are going for the number one spot. It’s my goal to push the rest of the caterers in town to be better. It’s my goal to make sure that all of us can compete with the same kind of food and same quality and everything," Meeks said. "As politely as I can tell the other caterers: We’re coming for you. Our service level is going to be out of control, what we offer, affordable pricing and our food is going to blow everyone away, plain and simple."
Next year, he wants to start a supper club that offers two to three pop-up dinners where they can do "some of our favorites and some really outside-the-box molecular stuff," like encouraging guests to toss around edible helium balloons. He feels like the community has been lacking that creative aspect.
"It’s exciting," Meeks said. "Springfield needs to see more of that."
At the Executive Cafe, recipes 'transport you straight back'
As for Executive Cafe, Meeks calls it a "fast casual cafe that is its own little beast" and says he's trying hard to make it "as unique as possible."
That starts with the recipes. At 3 years old, Meeks began cooking with his grandmother and the food he serves is cooked with her recipes.
"We make the same gravy, we make the same mashed potatoes, we make the same roast beef, we make the same fried chicken. All the same recipes," Meeks said. "I can make those things and go straight back (to my grandma). Food is very nostalgic to me. Smells and just tastes and textures just transport you straight back, which is the cool thing about food.”
When he came into the Executive Cafe, Meeks decided he wanted to do something different: Offer good portions of quality food for anywhere from $5 to $10. He's able to do that because of smart planning with his catering company.
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"We use everything through our catering — there’s cases of stuff that we buy and only need this or that out of it, so we take that case and now we can do a discounted rate through here because that case is already paid for," Meeks said.
The menu changes day by day at the moment, but Meeks hopes to have it set by the end of spring. The items will include railroad-themed names as a nod to the Frisco Building's history.
While Meeks encourages the public to stop by for lunch, they have to realize that Frisco Building employees come first. Despite that, he wants the Executive Cafe to be known as a quick place to get wholesome, delicious meals.
“I promise I will get you back to work faster than McDonald’s and I’ll make you feel better than McDonald’s," Meeks said.
Susan Szuch reports on health and food for the Springfield News-Leader. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @szuchsm. Story idea? Email her at sszuch@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: 'Springfield is buffering' and this chef wants to bring it into 2024
