At exactly 11 a.m., Dee Simpson opened the large black door to the family’s restaurant, propped a planter against the Shirley Mae’s Café door and let the sun shine into the entrance of one of Louisville’s most beloved soul food eateries.
Within 15 minutes, a large crowd of Smoketown residents and community officials gathered May 10 on the sidewalks of Clay and Lampton streets to watch as Dee’s brother, Warren, climbed a ladder and carefully removed one rubber band and then another that held a black trash bag tight to a street sign.
Just below the green sign for South Clay Street and just above the one for Lampton Street is a new brown sign: Shirley Mae’s Way.
Shirley Mae’s Way was unveiled at an honorary street name sign for Shirley Mae Beard, owner of Shirley Mae’s Cafe and dedicated community leader. May 10 2025
The honorary street name honors the Simpsons’ mother, a Smoketown institution and the iconic person behind the restaurant’s name: Shirley Mae Beard. Beard opened her café at 802 S. Clay St. on New Year’s Eve 1988, serving up soul food ― like fried chicken and hot water cornbread ― that’s become a staple of Louisville’s food scene.
Beard died January 11. She was 84. Bill Simpson choked up minutes before the unveiling, telling the Courier Journal it will take some time for the family to grieve the loss of his beloved mother.
As the ceremony got underway to proclaim the day “Shirley Mae Beard Day” and unveil the sign, Bill held his cell phone as his sister Theresa “Teri” Simpson spoke about how former Mayor Greg Fischer and current Mayor Craig Greenberg came together to celebrate.
“That’s what mom was all about,” Teri said,” bringing people together, whether it was a conversation or food.”
Louisville Metro Council member Ken Herndon, who represents District 4 where Smoketown is located, said when he campaigned for his spot on the council last year, he made sure his door-knocking days were the same as the ones Shirley Mae’s Café was open.
“…so at the end of that day I could come over here and get a hug through the window (from Teri), place my order and go home with a smile of anticipation,” Herndon said.
The cash-only cafe is open for carryout orders from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday-Sunday. It is closed Monday-Wednesday.
Mayor Craig Greenberg salutes Shirley Mae Beard by giving her daughter Therese Simpson a proclamation to her mother. May 10 2025
Mayor Greenberg called Beard “an amazing woman, an entrepreneur, a connector, a community leader,” before handing a proclamation to Teri.
His predecessor, Fischer, said he has had many lunches at Shirley Mae’s over the years.
“What is the ‘Shirley Mae’ way?” Fischer asked the crowd. “Her way, when you think about: teacher, manager, historian, entrepreneur, sometimes rabble rouser, activist, but first and foremost, a mom.
“She was the happiest, when I would see her, is when all of her family was around her and she would just be reveling in the love that emanated from everybody and you could see her saying to herself, ‘Look what we’ve done together.'”
Beard did more than cook up soul food for the city for nearly four decades. In May 1989, she launched the Salute to the Black Jockeys Who Pioneered the Kentucky Derby event, now Salute to Black Jockeys, Inc. She and Teri went to the Kentucky Derby Museum and uncovered Black jockey photos and memorabilia “hidden away in the basement,” per the restaurant’s website.
“She wanted the little black kids in Smoketown to see these Black jockeys that made history and where they could say, ‘Maybe I could do something with my life, too,'” Fischer said. “So it’s appropriate now, I think, when the children of Smoketown come around here to this corner and they look up here and read ‘Shirley Mae Way,’ they’ll now know the story and the history of Shirley Mae and understand what a great human being is all about.”
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Community leaders and family gathered for photos underneath the new Shirley Mae Way sign. One held a board painted with Shirley Mae’s portrait. A grill fired up down South Clay Street to serve the crowd burgers and hot dogs.
Across from the café, down Lampton Street, Dee Simpson stood away from the crowd. Tears gathered at the corners of her eyes.
She wanted a moment to just step back and look at a sign from her mom, a woman who changed Louisville with warm food and a warm heart.
Stephanie Kuzydym is an enterprise and investigative sports reporter, with a focus on the health and safety of athletes. She can be reached at skuzydym@courier-journal.com. Follow her for updates at @stephkuzy.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville officials honor Shirley Mae Beard with new street sign