Five Sisters Blues Café, Pensacola

Ahhh, good food, music, and history; all in one unique historic Pensacola area recognized on the Mississippi Blues Trail.  Last Thursday, Linda and I headed to Five Sisters Blues Café in an area known as “The Blocks” in downtown Pensacola. For decades, the intersection of  Belmont and DeVillies was the epicenter of African American business and social life.

Five Sisters is part of the Great Southern Restaurant family in Pensacola, known for highlighting the historic aspects of each of its establishments. This restaurant is described as a place where, “Blues artists share top billing with Creole-style Southern fare in this energetic, historic place.” With record albums on the wall, the café harkens back to the area's rich history. In 2010, it was given new life. Known as the “chitlin circuit,” famous musicians and bands have entertained here for decades.

Located in the former Gussie’s Record Shop, Five Sisters is the spot to enjoy delicious soul food with a blend of the blues. The site was honored in 2018 with a Mississippi Blues Trail historical marker. The good times rolled with the likes of  Louis Armstrong, Aretha Franklin, James Brown, Ike and Tina Turner, Ray Charles, Fats Domino, Percy Sledge, and Otis Redding playing their music.

We arrived as Five Sisters was serving lunch and the smell of fried chicken, for which they are known, made our lunch decision easy. We both had two pieces of dark meat, with collard greens and black-eyed peas with a side of fried okra because, well just because…. A cornbread muffin and we were set. It was delicious. A short time later, we were members of the clean plate club and thought we would enjoy a nap.

We spoke with our server, Cowboy, his given name because he is from Dallas and his dad was a Cowboys fan. He was excellent, attentive, and pleasant. We walked around a bit after lunch taking photos of the records by famous artists on the wall, with song names like Hard to Handle, Baked Beans and a Bottle of Beer, The Bartender is just Like Mother, A Married Man is a Fool, and my personal favorite, Stop and Fix it, Mama.

The inspiration for Five Sisters Blues Café says it all, “Our love for food and music is what created  the vision for this restaurant, where both of these things come together for you and your family to enjoy!” It certainly lived up to its billing!