The History of Charlie's Eatery in Pensacola, Florida

When I crave southern comfort food or great pork chops in Pensacola, Florida, there's only one place to go. Shaded by ancient oak trees in a sleepy residential neighborhood along Pensacola Bay is a local dining icon, Charlie's Eatery. A hand-lettered sign at "B" and Main Street changes Monday through Friday, displaying the daily special, including Corned Beef and Cabbage, Pork Chops, or Fried Fish. Charlie's Eatery is owned and operated by who else; Charlie. He only serves lunch.

Where It All Started
Charlie's Eatery was built on the Pensacola Bay area property gifted to Charlie from his mom in 1972. She wouldn't let him pay her for it. Charlie's mom had entered her retirement years and knew exactly how much money she needed for monthly expenses. Every asset above that was distributed to her children. She wanted to see them enjoy their inheritance while she was still around.

Charlie's mother was practical, a trait perfected as the mother of six, all born roughly two years apart. Charlie's mother saw to it that he and his five siblings had a solid, Catholic upbringing. When asked about the nuns and priests that taught and ran the school of his childhood, Charlie reflects and recalls the usual stories of strict habit-clad instructors doling out heavy doses of discipline. Says Charlie, "It was a good way of life, a good way to learn; they taught me well."

Charlie grew up in the quiet Pensacola neighborhood his restaurant is located in. His father owned and operated Benboe's Supermarket in Pensacola. Although the market is long gone, Charlie credits the store and his father for developing his work ethic early on. Charlie would attend school, walk home for a snack, do homework, then walk about two miles to the supermarket where he'd work with his dad until closing time.

A Young Man Leaves Pensacola And Heads West
As a young man in the 1960s Charlie left Pensacola, joining three adventurous, like-minded strangers. They split the gas costs and headed cross country by car. Charlie says, "We didn't know each other when we left Pensacola but by the time we made it to California we were good friends." The group ended up in Long Beach, California. Charlie walked the streets of Long Beach looking for work. His first job was as a dishwasher at the Olympia Restaurant on Ocean Blvd., just three blocks from the beach. It was a perfect arrangement for a young bachelor.

Never afraid of hard work, Charlie saw a quick promotion out of dishwashing and began cooking for the Olympia under the direct supervision of the head chef. Charlie says, "It was my first good learning experience in the food industry." Charlie was cooking breakfast, lunch and dinner at the Olympia and would have stayed longer but in 1965 he got a call from his mother that he'd better get home; he'd been drafted.

An Army Cook First
Reporting for duty, Charlie was asked what he wanted to do in the Army. Says Charlie, "Guns and tanks looked interesting, but learning about those things wasn't going to do me a bit of good when I came home. I wanted to learn something that would make me some money when I got out of the Army." He volunteered to become a cook. After basic training Charlie boarded a Carrier with 1400 men and headed to Viet Nam. The cruise created dozens of sick soldiers hanging over the side of the ship. To keep busy on the carrier, Charlie volunteered to work in the galley to escape the boredom. "We were on that ship for 32 long days," says Charlie, adding "Cooking kept my money in my pocket." He didn't have time to gamble with the seasoned sailors who easily took money from the young soldiers.

Once in Viet Nam Charlie didn't just cook, he organized setting up the tents and building the facilities. Charlie's army days taught him plenty about running an eatery. He learned how to cook for large crowds and he perfected the art of making the best out of what you've got to work with, recycling everything usable you could get your hands on. While cooking in Viet Nam Charlie supervised 21 Vietnamese workers who helped in the kitchen. Every day after the troops and staff had been fed the Vietnamese workers would eat. Charlie's time in Viet Nam influenced his future travel preferences. Not only has he returned to Viet Nam, he's also traveled to Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia, and China. Says Charlie, "They're good people, nice people."

Cooking For Clubs & Famous Folks
After serving three years in the Army, Charlie returned to Pensacola in 1967 and put to use the cooking skills he perfected in the army. He started out as the breakfast cook at the Perdido Bay Country Club, but quickly became the head chef. He spent 14 years there. In addition to cooking for the Perdido Bay Country Club, Charlie saw the potential for the plot of land on "B" street he'd received from his mom. He enjoyed working with wood and opened a small cabinet making business.

In the early 80's Charlie moved on to work at Shirley & Wayne's in Gulf Shores, Alabama. Shirley & Wayne's was an upscale supper club with music and dancing. Charlie spent his time in the kitchen but one day while he was cooking a guy Charlie thought was just a musician wandered into the kitchen and struck up a conversation. Charlie kept cooking but engaged in the pleasant conversation, giving the guy a few ribs to sample. The next week, Charlie's new friend returned with a box of sausages from New Orleans. Charlie kept supplying ribs and the two became friends, chatting in the kitchen before the busy dinner hour hit. Finally after several such encounters Charlie's boss questioned him, "Do you know who that guy is? He's Pete Fountain, famous New Orleans-born jazz musician." Charlie got to know Pete Fountain and will tell you that Pete was a genuinely nice guy. Fountain performed at Shirley & Wayne's on occasion. In addition to Pete Fountain, Charlie has cooked for a host of celebrities including Roy Clark, Willie Nelson, Lee Majors, Golfer Jack Nicholas, and President Gerald Ford.

Long Hours and Opening His Own Place in Pensacola
After Shirley & Wayne's, Charlie got the inclination to open his own place but he still needed to work so he cooked breakfast for Pensacola's New World Landing, worked his own lunch catering business until 2:00 p.m. and then raced over to the Grand Lagoon Yacht Club to cook dinner. He kept up this pace for a year while building up his own business; a catering venture.

The Master of Recycling & A Practical Man's Primitive Decorating Style
Charlie built with whatever he could get his hands on for free. Leftover fencing materials, re-purposed timbers, and recycled planks and timbers from the old fish house that once stood on the bay. Says Charlie, "I didn't need elaborate building plans. I visualized what I wanted and then built it myself because I didn't have a lot of money to throw around. I was in an airport bar and saw these great decorated wood walls and decided to build the same thing in my building using recycled boards I got for free."

Charlie says, "I used to ask women for their opinion on decorating the place but one day I realized, I've got a brain, I can do this, I don't need to ask them." He embarked on creating his own decorating style. The decorum of Charlie's Eatery definitely has a practical man's primitive charm to it. You don't go to Charlie's Eatery for the decor and atmosphere; you go for the home-style cooking and southern comfort food.

Humble Beginnings
Charlie's eatery began from humble beginnings in the mid 80's. The cabinet workshop evolved into a kitchen and a lunch catering business. Charlie printed up a simple menu and delivered it by walking the business and residential areas around his property. Charlie's retired mom helped out by answering the phone and rolling the silverware. Charlie took orders, cooked, and delivered the meals. His business grew so quickly that he didn't have time to take all of the phone calls for orders. He purchased an answering machine and created a system that his customers were skeptical of using at first but they quickly learned that it was efficient and reliable. Customers would simply call and leave their order on the answering machine along with the delivery address. Charlie would fill the orders and deliver them. "I never had to talk to anyone, I just made the lunches" claims Charlie. His customers quickly adapted to the new system and trusted it even though they never talked with anyone.

Charlie's Principles
As Charlie's reputation for good food grew he added on the dining area and brought the lunch delivery business to a close. Still guided by his principles of practicality, Charlie is quick to reveal that everything in the restaurant comes from auctions. He points out the orange and blue booths scattered among the assorted mix of wooden tables and chairs and reveals that the booths came from the school district auction, castaways from a public school somewhere nearby. Charlie reflects on his youthful bachelor days and recalls that on many Saturday nights when money was tight he'd stay home. Says Charlie, "I was thrifty and decided to invest in my own good health because good health is what keeps you going." Charlie is proud of the fact that he has never collected unemployment. He says, "I never liked taking stuff for free from people, it cripples you, it weakens you." At 62 Charlie didn't apply for his Social Security. Finally a year later someone talked him into applying for his earned benefits. When he arrived at the Social Security office the lady all but yelled at him for not being there a year earlier.

History at Charlie's Eatery
There's a lot of history tucked inside Charlie's Eatery. You'll find a one-hundred year old cash register on display that came from Charlie's uncle's tailor shop, and an old stove that would be highly coveted by any retro-style decorator. Another uncle donated the one-hundred year old piano that was once played in Jerry Lee Lewis style by a patron. "Those were fun times", reflects Charlie, recalling how the piano playing customer always had a glass of whiskey and three cigarettes within reach while playing the piano. Customers would dance and sing along.

A Local's Place
Charlie's customers remain loyal. A local dentist has been dining at Charlie's daily for nearly twelve years. Doctors, dock hands, lawyers, fishermen, bankers, construction workers, and local politicians are routinely seen at Charlie's. Everyone is welcome and comfortable at Charlie's Eatery. There was even a wedding held at Charlie's because the bride and groom met at the restaurant.

My husband and I became loyal patron's of Charlie's just after Hurricane Ivan. Homeless after the storm, we were living in a 29' fifth wheel RV and building a new home. My husband stopped to shop for landscaping plants at The Palm Source on the corner of "B" and Main Street. When he climbed out of his truck he was lured to the restaurant by a heavenly aroma; it was pork chop day at Charlie's. We've been hooked on Charlie's southern-style comfort food ever since, especially those pork chops.

Like any Pensacola icon, Charlie's Eatery has seen its share of hurricane's. 2004's Hurricane Ivan put 18 inches of water in the place and scattered boats, debris and most of nearby Joe Patti's seafood all over the street, but within a couple of days Charlie's was open for business feeding the locals and the workers who came to help with the clean-up.

No Advertising
Charlie's Eatery has never formally advertised. Charlie thinks advertising at the opening of his business may have helped grow his business quicker but he had a less expensive, unorthodox approach to advertising. In the early days of his lunch delivery business Charlie would bake extra cake on Fridays and pack slices into individual serving containers. He would hand-deliver the menus along with a free slice of cake on Friday afternoons. His theory was that if you gave them something to eat and read they would read the menu while they ate the cake. The theory proved to be true. Free cake and word-of-mouth advertising is a successful combination because business flourished and 25 years later Charlie's Eatery is a treasured Pensacola icon, hidden in the shade of ancient oak trees, tucked inside a sleepy residential neighborhood along Pensacola Bay. Stop by for lunch. It's about ten bucks, cash only. I recommend you visit on pork chop day.

Charlie's Eatery is located at 315 S. "B" Street, Pensacola, FL Phone: 850 438-9712