Stepping into a new role is always scary, but when it’s at a restaurant with a history that dates back more than 50 years, that can be extra intimidating for anyone. This is why when Patricia “Patti” Delgado became the executive chef of the Original Ninfa’s Uptown in November 2023, she knew she had to go in with a can-do attitude and an eagerness to learn.

The Original Ninfa’s on Navigation opened its doors in 1973 thanks to Ninfa Laurenzo, affectionately known to the community as Mama Ninfa. Since then, Ninfa’s has become a household name in the Houston area, and everyone who goes knows they’ll get some of the best Tex-Mex this city has to offer. Back in March, Ninfa’s executive chef Alex Padilla left after nearly 20 years at the original Navigation restaurant, leaving room for the next generation to make its mark. With big shoes to fill, Delgado is ready to continue the legacy at the Uptown location, which opened in 2019.

“I’m hoping to preserve Mama Ninfa’s legend and the culture, and continue to highlight it moving forward in a way where we can embrace Mexico while also embracing South Texas cuisine,” Delgado says.

Delgado’s love for cooking began at a very young age. Her grandmother was the pillar of the family, and food was always at the center of every gathering. On anniversaries, birthdays, or just a Saturday afternoon spent with family, Delgado cooked alongside her. She began to get positive feedback from her family members, which not only gave her confidence, but also made her realize that the culinary world was her true calling.

Delgado graduated from the Culinary Institute Lenotre in 2009. Unfortunately, her grandmother did not live to see this, but she was her number one supporter.

 “On my first day of culinary school, I had the biggest smile on my face, I was ready,” Delgado says. “I’m still smiling today, that hasn’t changed. I still love [cooking].”

Learning the ropes

During Delgado’s time at culinary school, she learned a lot about discipline, structure, and the fundamentals of cooking. But of course, the real learning happens when you’re put to the test. The institute gave students various opportunities to get their foot in the door around town. Event organizers often needed extra hands, so the school posted flyers asking for students to help out. Delgado says she worked every event she could, knowing she had to do everything in her power to get into the culinary world.

Eventually, Delgado’s efforts began to pay off. She gained mentors along the way who helped her on her journey—one of them being Ronnie Killen of Killen’s Barbecue. It was under his mentorship that she had the opportunity to visit and cook alongside him and his team at the James Beard House in New York in 2011 and 2012.

“It was just like a ‘wow moment’ for me,” Delgado says. “I was barely starting my career, and I got a chance to do that.”

After this, Delgado worked with Mark Holley back in Houston at his now-closed Holley Seafood Restaurant and Oyster Bar. During this time, she ultimately became his right-hand person, which helped her understand more about the type of chef she wanted to be, while further perfecting her craft.

After the restaurant’s closure in 2017 and a brief hiatus, Delgado returned to the game in 2018 at Vibrant. Because of the restaurant’s refined sugar–free, gluten-free, dairy-free, non-GMO menu, she learned more about cooking in a different way.

“I had never seen anything like this, and here, I got even more of an opportunity to develop the type of chef I wanted to be,” Delgado says. “That’s where I started to think about the culture in the kitchen and what impact I want to have in the sense of creating an environment that is safe and nurturing to the employees and cooks. That’s where I was also be able to fine-tune more of who I want to become and how to lead my staff.”

Goals for Ninfa’s  

When Delgado took over the team at Ninfa’s Uptown, she didn’t want to go into the role changing everything up or making the workers’ lives harder. Instead, she wanted to step into it understanding that she was joining an extremely established place with a rich history. 

“This has been an inspiring opportunity because I was able to read about the great things Mama Ninfa did in her time. How she challenged herself with starting a business as a Latina in the era that she did and how she was met with success. And she was great to the community,” Delgado says. “That just feels full circle for me as a chef, and for who I want to be as a leader and part of that is giving back to the community and thinking of others and sticking to the culture of the kitchen.”

Mama Ninfa opened the restaurant in 1973 after losing her husband. She was cooking to take care of her children and began to extend this to the community. Then, along the way, she began to cook tacos al carbon, which became known as fajitas—a beloved dish in today’s Tex-Mex cuisine.

To ensure Delgado is honoring the legacy, she is learning from those around her and having conversations with people in the kitchen who have been with the company for over 20 years—some of whom started working for Ninfa’s when they were teenagers. She says it’s easier to lead a team once you first learn from them, because you can then adapt and begin your own creative experience from there.

“My advice to is to walk in gracefully and humbly,” Delgado says. “You adapt yourself, you learn, you build a relationship with the cooks, servers, and managers, and once you establish that trust, you’re able to work as a team and lead a team.”

Fun opportunities 

This opportunity is also allowing Delgado to grow in other ways as a chef, such as introducing new menu items to customers. She’s digging into her past, using different ingredients to craft dishes that will remind someone of their childhood or other memories, while also putting a modern twist on it.

An example of this is costillas de res, a dish of crosscut flanken ribs with ensalada nopales, salsa molcajete, and tortillas. Delgado says the inspiration for the ribs comes from her memories of her uncles grilling, while the nopales are drawn from her mom, who eats very healthily and loves anything fresh. Delgado created a dish she says showcases the fruits and vegetables that so many people grew up eating.

Her impact extends beyond her own kitchen. The chef’s signature dishes are put to the test at Ninfa’s Uptown before being added to the menu at the flagship East End restaurant. Delgado says the Uptown location is the perfect spot to try these dishes out because they have the space to do so in the larger kitchen. She says the new dishes have received great feedback at both locations, but even more so at the OG spot, where the chef specials are “rocking and rolling,” according to sales.

“It’s great to be able to bring these two restaurants together,” Delgado says. “We’re learning the history and culture of Navigation and embracing it, because you have to embrace the past and give it a spotlight. And then with Uptown, we’re creating new dishes and taking from some of that [original culture] with newer inspirations, putting it together to continue to create new Tex-Mex [dishes].”