Martin Luther King Jr. ate here in Memphis. Thurgood Marshall stopped by in New Orleans. James Brown felt good in Harlem.
The Four Way Restaurant mural by Danielle Sierra
You can too.
These Black-owned restaurants survived the test of time. They beat the improbabilities of the restaurant business and the injustices of Jim Crow. They made Black history.
Patrice Bates Thompson, The Four Way Restaurant
- The Four Way Restaurant was founded by Irene and Clint Cleaves in 1946. “In the early 1960s, the Four Way was one of a few places in Memphis where Black and white diners regularly sat together. They served incredible soul food to their neighborhood, Stax musicians, and visiting dignitaries. The restaurant became a home for leaders of the Civil Rights Movement such as Martin Luther King, Jr., Rev. Jessie Jackson and Al Sharpton.”
Leah Chase (1923-2019), Dooky Chase’s Restaurant
Emily and Dooky Chase, Sr. opened the doors in 1941 to Dooky Chase’s Restaurant. In the 1950s, New Orleans dockworkers were highly segregated and Jim Crow was alive and well. “There were no black owned banks then; but there were black-owned bars like Dooky’s that had the cash flow and knew their patrons well enough to take a chance cashing paychecks every Friday. Dooky’s bar was packed with men standing in line to get a drink while waiting for their Po-boy sandwiches to go. Friday nights at Dooky’s became a rip-roaring good time where beer, whiskey, and wine flowed almost as fast as the current of the Mighty Mississippi.”
Sylvia Woods (1926-2012), Sylvia's Restaurant
- With barely enough seats to fit a basketball team, Sylvia Woods opened Sylvia’s Restaurant in 1962. “For almost sixty years, The Woods Family, owners of Sylvia’s Restaurant, the Queen of Soul Food continues to nourish soul food enthusiasts from all over the globe. Founder, Sylvia Woods acknowledged her numerous successes to her deep love of people and unwavering passion to give. To commemorate her family’s legacy as such, upon the passing of her husband, Herbert Woods in 2001 – The Sylvia and Herbert Woods Scholarship Foundation (SHWSF) was created. To date, SHWSF has joyfully awarded $475,000 in college scholarships to students from Harlem and surrounding communities.”
Let their food nourish you. Hear their walls talk to you. Black history has so much to say.