Mama Z’s Cafe Stays True to its Roots

We visited with Jessie Bishop from Mama Z’s Café in Tontitown to learn about her family and their connection to the origins of Ozarks Electric Cooperative. 

Q. Tell us about your family. How are you related to Ozarks Electric’s first members?

My family is part of the original settlers of Tontitown. My Nonna (grandmother), Edna Morsani Zulpo, is the daughter of Adriano and Virginia Morsani. Nonna’s first cousin was Memo Morsani.

My Nonna started Mama Z’s Café in 1988 with the help of my mom, Lisa. In 2001, my mom took over until 2007, when my Aunt Julie bought the restaurant from her. I took over in January of 2022. 

Q. What role does the kitchen play for your family?
The kitchen is a huge part of our family. I learned how to cook at a very young age, from both my mom and my Nonna. I recall years of Thanksgivings and Christmases gathered in her home kitchen, all of us girls. There’s always enough food to feed an army.

Q. Mama Z’s cousin, Memo Morsani, translated information into Italian to get Tontitown farmers to sign up to form Ozarks Electric Cooperative in 1938. Did you know that your family played such an important role in bringing progress to Washington County?

I did not know this! I am not surprised though. All our ancestors were hard-working and resilient because that is all they knew. Most of them came to America with nothing and had to build their community from the ground up. That’s why community is such a special part of my life and has been one of my No. 1 goals with Mama Z’s.

Q. How do you see Mama Z’s representing the past while staying relevant to new generations?

It’s important to me, especially since losing my Nonna in 2019, to stay true to her roots and to carry out her passion as best I can. But I also understand that we must evolve. We use her original recipes, but I have tried to add things that suit today’s market, such as take-and-bake meals and gift sections at Mama Z’s and Brick City in Fayetteville. 

Q. What recipe are you sharing with us?
My Nonna’s sausage and rice casserole. It was a staple at all our family gatherings. 

Mama Z's great-grandchildren Kennedy, left, and Ryder Bishop help out at Mama Z's, which their mom, Jessie, took over in 2022. (Photos courtesy of the Bishop family.)