The founder of TomKats Hospitality. A pioneer in the revitalization of downtown Nashville. A product of Nashville Catholic schools. And one of the loudest advocates for saving the authenticity of an ever-changing Nashville: restaurateur Tom Morales.

Tom’s love for the city and dedication to its continued growth has led to several nationally acclaimed restaurants — including The Southern Steak & Oyster and Acme Feed & Seed — and we are excited to welcome him to our Breakfast Meeting on Thursday, March 12 to discuss Nashville’s food scene and his family’s experiences growing up in the Nashville Catholic community.

Growing up in Saint Joseph parish in Madison, TN with nine brothers and sisters, Tom went on to Father Ryan High School, where he played football — setting the TSSAA’s single-season interceptions record (13) — and was part of the 1971 State Champion Wrestling Team, and he is a member of the school’s Athletics Hall of Fame.

After attending Auburn University, he opened a small barbecue joint in Prosperity, South Carolina, where he gained invaluable lessons about entrepreneurship. He later moved to Destin, Florida, to help a friend open the seafood restaurant Harbor Docks, learning the ins and outs of the complex seafood industry.

In 1986, Morales founded TomKats Catering, providing on-location catering for touring musicians and crews that provided healthy food made from scratch. As an early pioneer of the “farm-to-table” movement, Tom sourced local ingredients and tailored menus for on-location catering long before the concepts were culinary buzzwords. He has catered to the special dietary needs of everyone from Tom Hanks to Miley Cyrus, and his dedication to hospitality led A-list celebrities, directors, and producers to consistently request TomKats catering on-set.

After opening the award-winning Saffire Restaurant, in 2003, Tom and a group of partners saved the Loveless Café, leading the charge in the revamp and rebranding of the restaurant. He opened The Southern Steak & Oyster in 2012 to much critical acclaim and then opened Acme Feed & Seed, a modern iteration of the classic Nashville honkytonk.