Pensacola's newest gastropub is now open. Here's what's on the menu that you need to try

Brittany Misencik, Pensacola News Journal
Updated ·6 min read

The Craft Bar has made its debut at 4970 Bayou Boulevard, and there’s a lot to love about Pensacola’s newest gastropub. With over 30 craft brews to choose from, locally inspired dishes and craft cocktails, here’s how the menu breaks down and some of the must-try items.

What is The Craft Bar?

The Craft Bar is a Florida-gastropub within Wine World, which has five locations that have spread across the Panhandle since the restaurant group started in 2014. Prior to the Pensacola location, the closest to the area was in Destin Commons. Even though the locations are growing, the menu is chef-inspired and made from scratch, tying in regionally sourced flavor ideas and ingredients through customized menu variations that suit the city in which the restaurant resides.

The Pensacola location’s influences are easy to spot with menu items like the New Orleans-style barbecue shrimp, the blackened fresh catch, and the Southern fried chicken, with a menu carefully curated by Culinary Director Max Morrison. The Craft Bar is the second restaurant to be built within the superstore, as Wine World's more upscale restaurant, The Wine Bar, also serves lunch and dinner, specializing in a casual fine dining service.

The Craft Bar welcomes craft beer in the mix with more elevated casual menu items, sports on the television and half-pound burgers on the tables.

Read more on The Craft Bar here: Pensacola's Cordova area is getting a gastropub. You won't want to skip the fried chicken

What should I order off the menu?

Here are our top five picks.

Que Burger ($16)

It’s no surprise that a burger made the top of our recommendations list, as the restaurant is known for its juicy half-pound burgers. The Que Burger has some extra height, with its crispy fried onion ring topper, kick of fresh jalapeno, oak-smoked cheddar dripping down over the patty with a 16-spice Southern style barbecue sauce crowned by a cushiony, buttery brioche bun. If you want something that takes burgers to the next level, the Que Burger is a must-try. Pro tip: order it for dine-in starting at 5 p.m. on Mondays for half the price. A full list of Burger Night specials can be found at the bottom of this article.

Fresh Catch Sandwich (market price)

When The Craft Bar talks about incorporating local flavors, it doesn’t get more Florida than a fresh catch, offered pan-seared, blackened or grilled. The handheld sandwich is perfectly suited for a light, but satisfying lunch, and comes on a ciabatta delicately dressed with fresh arugula, a creamy creole remoulade sauce and a lemon vinaigrette dressing. For a more filling and formal option, opt for the grilled fish dinner plated with whipped potatoes, grilled asparagus and finished with a beach-camp beer-blanc.

Famous Fried Chicken and Champagne ($25)

The buttermilk-soaked fried chicken made The Craft Bar famous. While a Southern fried chicken sandwich, lunch plate or dinner plates are offered on the regular menu, the Sunday brunch special ties in all the craveable Southern comfort favorites harmoniously. The brunch combo takes the house-seasoned fan-favorite fried chicken and pairs with sweet peach waffles and juicy collard greens, washed down with a glass of French champagne. If you haven’t already been pairing your fried chicken with bubbly sparkling wine, Morrison is going to open your eyes to the Wine World way.

Mac N Cheese Bites ($9)

If you’re looking for something to much on while watching a game, The Craft Bar’s Mac and Cheese Bites are the snack you never knew you needed. Hot and crispy on the outside with The Craft Bar’s creamy blend of sharp white cheddar and gruyere and a housemade bacon aioli for dipping, you won’t be able to help yourself from reaching back in the basket for more.

Flat Mountain Pizza ($22)

We would be remiss not to mention the house brick-oven pizzas. The Flat Oven specifically draws in some of most notable flavors, dressed in marinara sauce and topped with goat cheese, Italian sausage, chorizo sausage and prosciutto. On par with the restaurant’s commitment to high quality ingredients, this brick-oven pizza is packed with flavor.

What kind of drink options are there?

In case Wine World’s seemingly endless aisles of wine, beer and spirits sold inside the store didn’t tip you off, The Craft Bar knows its way around a handcrafted cocktail. You can find delightfully seasonal concoctions to get you in the spirit, like the currently offered Apple Butter Old Fashioned, Cran-Orange Whiskey Sour, or Toasted Marshmallow Espresso Martini, or stick with an old reliable, like one of The Craft Bar’s refreshing house mules, made with house citrus, house simple, fresh mint, ginger root and ginger beer.

If you’re looking for something a little light, The Craft Bar offers an array of white wine, red wine and rose offered by the glass or bottle, in addition to an impressive draft list merging brews sourced from the city to around the nation. Some of the local on-tap options including Pensacola Bay’s Riptide Red Ale, Perfect Plain Brewing Co.’s Citra Spin IPA, Emerald Republic Brewing’s For One Perfect Moment wheat beer and Odd Colony Brewing Company’s Bone Harvest American lager.

How can I score the best deal?

The restaurant offers a variety of special deals and promotions, including a happy hour from 2-6 p.m. on Monday through Friday and Burger Night Monday specials for dine-in starting at 5 p.m.

On Mondays, a selection of the restaurant’s best-known half-pound burgers on a brioche bun are offered at about half the price. Offerings include:

  • The Craft Bar Burger ($9): Topped with caramelized onions and choice of Tillamook cheddar, aged gouda or Point Reyes blue cheese.

  • Que Burger ($9): Topped with a fried onion ring, Williamson Bros. barbecue sauce, fresh jalapenos, and oak smoked cheddar.

  • Pimento Burger ($9): Topped with pimento cheese and applewood smoked bacon.

  • Bistro Burger ($10): Topped with brie, fig jam, arugula, applewood smoked bacon, bistro sauce.

Weekly happy hour offers $8 snacks and $5 drinks including:

  • Hot chicken made Nashville style and served with house buttermilk ranch.

  • Mac N Cheese Bites made with sharp white cheddar, gruyere cheese, smoked applewood bacon infused crust.

  • Pretzel with smoked sea salt and served with an IPA mustard.

  • Pulled pork quesadilla served with Williamson Bros. barbecue sauce.

  • Pepino del Benicio cocktail made with Haku vodka, English cucumber, basil, house citrus and house simple.

  • Gold Rush cocktail made with Bribery Kentucky bourbon, honey syrup, citrus, lemon peel.

  • Tequila Mockingbird cocktail made with Tierra Noble Reposado, citrus, house simple, Caravella limoncello, and Angostura bitters.

  • Love Me Tinder cocktail made with gin, mint, blackberries, house simple and citrus.

More updates and information can be found on The Craft Bar – Pensacola Facebook page and website.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: The Craft Bar opens gastropub in downtown Pensacola inside Wine World