Five Sisters Blues Cafe is all about good food, good music, and good vibes. This popular Pensacola dining destination serves up hearty yet refined Southern cuisine with a heaping side of local history and culture.
Pensacola was an early hub of many musical styles with the Belmont-DeVilliers neighborhood, in which Five Sister Blues Cafe resides, celebrated for its decades-long role as an African-American business and entertainment district. The restaurant boasts a prime location in the heart of The Blocks, the city’s historic downtown district. When you stroll down its streets, you’re essential strolling through blues music history. Musicians ranging from Count Bassie and Clarence Carter to B.B. King and Sam Cooke have all played here.
Sitting on the former site of both Gussie’s Record Shot and WBOP Radio Station, Five Sisters occupies an especially meaningful spot in Pensacola history. This made it an ideal home for chef Cecil Johnson’s vision of a restaurant that would simultaneously honor the traditional cooking of his mother and her sisters as well as The Blocks’ rich blues history. In fact, the site is so meaningful that a Mississippi Blues Trail marker — which honors locations across the state that have contributed to its Blues’ musical legacy — sits just outside the front door.
The dining at Five Sisters is as impressive as its history. The menu embracing the stick-to-your-ribs comfort food for which Southern cooking is known while also incorporating Creole and Caribbean influences.
A few of our menu favorites at Five Sisters included:
Sisters’ Sampler
Why settle for one appetizer when you can try three? This hearty starter kicks the meal off right with a flavor-packed combination of fried green tomatoes, mini crabcakes, and Andouille-crusted shrimp.
Aunt Sara’s Southern Fried Chicken
While all of the menu items at Five Sisters are inspired by old family recipes, this ample-sized portion of golden-brown fried chicken reaches unprecedented levels of crispy and juicy deliciousness. To accompany it, choose from a long list of Southern sides, such as cheese grits, collard greens, pineapple coleslaw and black-eyed peas.
Make It a Meal
Speaking of sides, if they’re all speaking to you, we recommend taking advantage of Five Sisters’ unique option to turn three or four sides into a meal.
Aunt Margaret’s Fruit Cobbler
Fruit cobbler is a Southern tradition, and no one does it better than Five Sisters. The fruit varies by the season to make sure to ask about the flavor of the day.
Five Sisters’ Blues Long Island
As close as you’ll get to the moonshine of days gone by!
In addition to Five Sisters’ extensive menu, make sure to check out the blackboard for the daily house specials. Not sure which one to choose? The servers at Five Sisters are attentive, knowledgeable and ready to guide you to a selection you’ll love.
On Sundays, meanwhile, it’s all about the restaurant’s popular Jazz Brunch, which offers live music and enticing menu items such as Peanut Butter Crunch French Toast and the Smokin’ Blues Brisket Sandwich.
One last thing to love about Five Sisters? Happy Hour! Running Monday through Saturday between 3 PM and 6 PM as well as late nights on the weekends. Offers drink specials and discounted appetizers, Five Sisters is the perfect place to relax and recharge after a long day of exploring Pensacola’s many attractions.
Insider Tips:
– Five Sisters maintains a vibrant calendar full of events such as live blues music and Wing Wednesday. To see what’s happening while you’re in town, check out the website, which is regularly updated.
– If you enjoy your Five Sisters experience, consider checking out its sister network of other locally owned and operated Southern Restaurants, including The Fish House, Atlas Oyster House, The Deck Bar, Jackson’s Steakhouse, Great Southern Catering & Events, Palafox House and Angelena’s.
– In the mood for a quieter dinner? Ask to sit on the outdoor patio.