Pamela Strobel facts for kids

Pamela Strobel (born around 1928), also known as Princess Pamela, was a talented chef and cookbook author. She became famous for her amazing Southern cooking. She served these delicious meals at her New York City restaurant called The Little Kitchen.

Pamela Strobel also wrote a cookbook in 1969. It was called Princess Pamela's Soul Food Cookbook. This book was even featured in a special exhibit. The exhibit was at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History. It was about how food changed in America from 1950 to 2000.

Early Life and Journey

Pamela Strobel was born in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Her grandmother, Addie, mostly raised her until Pamela was 10 years old. Her birth name might have been Addie Mae Strobel. Pamela's mother, Rosella, was a head pastry chef. She worked at the Elite Restaurant in Spartanburg.

Rosella moved to Boston for more work shortly after Pamela was born. She left Pamela with her grandmother. Sadly, Rosella became sick and passed away at age 28. This happened when Pamela was 10. Her grandmother, Addie, died about a year or two later.

After her mother and grandmother passed away, Pamela traveled North. She found different jobs in restaurants to support herself. Before she arrived in New York City in 1950, she worked in a tobacco plant. This was in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. She also worked in other places in Virginia Beach and Newport News, Virginia.

Once in New York City, Pamela worked hard. She had a job in a chemical factory during the day. At night, she worked in a restaurant. Her friend Visee Dubois danced there.

The Little Kitchen Restaurant

In 1965, Pamela Strobel opened her own restaurant. It was called The Little Kitchen. You could find it at 242 E 10th Street in Lower Manhattan's East Village. This soul food restaurant was quite small. It was about 120 square feet. It could only seat about 12 to 15 people.

The most popular dish was fried chicken. It came with collard greens and black-eyed peas. This meal cost only $1.35. Pamela was very particular about her customers. Everyone had to knock before she would let them in. If she didn't like a customer, she would ask them to leave!

The Little Kitchen was also a jazz club. Sometimes, Pamela Strobel would even sing there herself. Many famous people visited The Little Kitchen. Some of them included Lee Radziwill, Diana Ross, Gloria Steinem, and Andy Warhol.

In 1989, Pamela moved her restaurant. It went to East Houston Street. It was across from Katz’s Delicatessen. She also changed its name to "Southern Touch." Pamela closed Southern Touch in 1998 for reasons that are not known. What happened to her after 1998 is a mystery.

Princess Pamela's Soul Food Cookbook

Pamela Strobel's cookbook, Princess Pamela's Soul Food Cookbook, was first published in 1969. The book has almost 150 recipes. It mainly focuses on delicious Black Southern cooking. Pamela also wrote poems to go along with her recipes throughout the book.

In 2004, two brothers named Matt and Ted Lee found an old copy of the cookbook. They loved it so much that they decided to republish it. In 2017, the cookbook was re-released by Rizzoli.