Clover woman’s recipes use love and passion as the main ingredients

CLOVER, S.C. (QUEEN CITY HOMETOWN) —When she’s not back in the kitchen, Pat Bigham is out front making her loop around Clover Station in Clover, South Carolina.

“Everybody who comes here calls it Ms. Pat’s,” smiled Ms. Pat.

Though it’s clearly a restaurant, the recipes and conversations make it feel like it’s Ms. Pat’s home.

“It’s just made the old-fashioned way!” said Ms. Pat. “From day one, it’s been okay!

Day one started just over 15 years ago when she noticed an empty storefront while passing through Clover.

“One day, I’m driving through Clover and the light right here stopped me,” remembered Ms. Pat. “I looked over and I thought that’s a little hometown place.”

“About two to three weeks later, I came back through Clover and the light stopped me. I was right even with the door,” said Ms. Pat. “About three weeks later, it was mine.”

Ms. Pat had never run a restaurant before. She had never been trained professionally as a chef. She just loved to cook.

“This fulfills,” said Ms. Pat, choking up. “When you get older, you need to be content. You need to have something to do that fulfills your life.”

For most of her life, she ran a charter bus company with her husband, until he was killed in a tragic accident.

“I went through the front windshield and landed on the pavement,” remembered Ms. Pat.

She kept going on for a few years but knew she needed a change. So, at a time when most would slow down, she started over. Now, her restaurant has become so much more than she could have hoped for.

“I’m 76, and I praying God gives me a lot more years, as long as I can I’ll be here. Because this is just my passion,” said Ms. Pat.

When passion and love are her two main ingredients, no wonder it tastes just like how mom made it.

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