The Sun Sets On Magnolia's Sunshine Coffeehouse and Cafe...

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As work begins on renovating the downtown area, one of its anchor businesses, the gracious Sunshine Coffeehouse and Cafe closed its doors. Owner Vickie Giroir had created a work of art in Magnolia: a great place to eat and spend time. Unfortunately, despite great hopes of better days in the future with the ongoing renovation, the tough economic times forced the cafe’s doors to close. Not only did the cafe create an artsy, comfortable environment to waste away an afternoon, looking out over the Depot park grounds, but it offered some of the best New Orleans cuisine to be found outside of the Crescent City. No one made a better Muffaletta in Mississippi. That thick sandwich made of ham, salami, provolone, and olive salad was a meal for two or three and left no one unsatisfied.
As Magnolia’s fine Mayor Harris notes in his column this week, bulldozers have begun ripping up the sidewalks in front of the Victoria Hotel. The plan calls for new, improved sidewalks with brick work, as well as bettering the lighting, planting garden areas, and placing walkways around the Depot and along both sides of Railroad Avenue. The Depot is also in the process of being renovated, so help is on the way for downtown which should improve its business life. Until then, please support South Pike’s restaurants and local businesses. Go eat at Mercedes Cafe (La Mariposa), Betty Brumfield’s Seasonal Shop, Jimmy Harris’s Creole Cottage at the Village, the Star Drive-In, Fernwood Seafood, Osyka’s Seafood, and don’t forget the one and only Nyla’s in Osyka. If you want nice places to eat, South Pike citizens need to eat at our local restaraunts regularly and support them. Or expect them to close their doors like the wonderful Sunshine Cafe. Farewell to Magnolia’s best Muffalettas and Panninis. Godspeed, Sunshine Cafe