Birmingham AL restaurants
 

We'll be in town one nite next week (staying P'line in Inverness area). Interested in someplace good for dinner. Have done the search - any more details (including locations)about Nikki's; Highlands Bar & Grill; Smokehouse; and Golden Rule BBQ? Or any other favorites? Sushi and middle-eastern would be no-no's; pretty much open to anything else (except national chains). BBQ or really good shrimp might be at the top of the list. Hoping to visit the Impressionist collection at the Museum in the morning.

Last item - if hunger attacks before we make it all the way to B'ham, is there anything along the way (on I65) worth making a stop for? Thanks!

Just realized - we'll be there on Monday night - which may rule out some places....?

The Prairie Fire Grill is excellent and not too far from Inverness. They are opened on Monday.

Hello. You have some difficult decisions to make. I feel Nikki's and the Smokehouse are best at lunch as they are the meat and 3 sort of places so, personally, I would save these for a future trip. Highlands (2011 11th Ave., S. 205-933-8324) is a great choice in an interesting neighborhood.
Another great choice in the same area is Bottega (upscale Italian) (2240 Highland Ave. 205-939-1000).

Since you specifically mentioned BBQ and the Golden Rule, I will offer that the one (they are a local chain) at 1571 Montgomery Hwy. is close to you.
I also like Johnny Ray's at 3431 Colonade Pkwy.. They have great BBQ and deliciously decadent homemade cream pies.

A wonderful restaurant for shrimp and any other seafood is The Fish Market.
Go to the one downtown at 611 21st St. South 205-322-3330, owned by a local Greek family.

You don't say from what direction you will be traveling on I-65 so I will guess that you are traveling south. An
all time favorite will be just slightly off of I-65 in Cullman, AL. The All Steak (314 2nd Ave., S.W. 205-734-4322) is a local institution. Everything there is fresh and homemade and they have great shrimp! An extra added bonus are the heavenly made from scratch orange rolls.

I've included phone numbers so you can make sure that these places are open. All of them consistently get good health ratings. (I am very picky about this.) Just wait until after 6 p.m. to get out and about and the traffic should be o.k. Make reservations for Highlands and Bottega -all the others are very casual.

Enjoy your stay in Birmingham! We enjoyed the Impressionist collection.

While this restaurant is not in Birmingham proper, it is probably my favorite restaurant anywhere. It is the Bright Star located in downtown Bessemer. It is probably 20 minutes from Inverness. This restaurant is 100 years old I think. They have great seafood and steaks at dinner. For lunch it is more meat and vegetables.

The address is 304 19th Street North, Bessemer, AL. It is west of town off I20/59.

Thanks all! Am copying out the info now. I've just finished shoveling out the driveway from our latest 3 inches or so of sloppy, snow dump and we leave here within the hour to start our FL trek. Talk about ready!!

Can anyone tell me if the restaurants on this list are still in business? It looks like we will be spending some time off and on in Birmingham for the next four years, and I am trying to find a place to stay overnight and good restaurants to make the first few trips go more smoothly.

I don't know Birmingham at all, only that we need a hotel or B&B located near both Indian Springs and the Hoover Country Club. I would love to find a nice B&B in that vicinity for these trips.

Thanks in advance for any help--k

kswl: I really don't know, but there is now a Dreamland BBQ in B'ham. Also, remember that Fanny Flagg has a diner type place (fried green tomatoes).
Also, Five Points South area (of downtown)always has some good restaurants.

I feel sure Golden Rule and Johnny Ray's are still in business.

If you happen to be traveling I-65 N. from Montgomery, be sure to stop at exit 205 - Peach Park...my favorite stop! They have good BBQ as well and I love their soft serve yogurt covered with fresh fruit!
http://i2.tinypic.com/11aipoh.jpg

Maybe this will help?
http://tinyurl.com/s8lvm

I was there a couple weeks ago for training, and the instructors took us to a barbecue place called Jim & Nicks. It was very good, and it appeared to be the place that a lot of locals went for barbecue.

thanks to both of you---I am a Barbeque Freak and am looking forward to exploring new restaurants in that area of AL. If either of you thinks of a good place to stay on the occasional weekend in that area, please post it! Thanks :)

Hi K,
I'll ask my B'ham friend about the BBQ. We used to go to a small place in a strip mall that was her favorite in town. I used to enjoy Surin in 5 points for Thai. I noticed on TripAdvisor that there is a J Alexander's now - GREAT for brunch. I used to stay at the Hampton Inn - Irondale - just because it was on the "Atlanta" side of town. There's an interesting B&B on the east side of B'ham that I considered when I was traveling in the area. My friend is now dating a retired surgeon, so I'm sure she has new restaurant recommendations. I'll be back in touch.

Thanks, Starrsville. I had thought to stay with my sister-in-law in Mountain Brook, but they are strongly considering a move to Omaha, NE, of all places, so now we will have to find some good local resources. I think that two six-hour round trips from Griffin to B'ham are just too much for a weekend, and I would like Skip to come home about once a month. :)

We also have been staying in Irondale, at the Holiday Inn Express prior to early morning flights the next day, the last couple of trips.
We have been very pleased with the place...comfortable, clean, quiet, has a small fitness room, computer room, pool (never used while we've been there). Included in the price: They provide pizza/apple/cookies/soda for supper, and have a rather large assortment of buffet breakfast, and 24 hour coffee available.
If you forget something, both a Wmart and a Sams right there.

I don't know why those two words appear to be a link...they are not.

That sounds almost better than a B&B. Thanks, Belle, I will look it up on the internet and make our first reservation. The child's orientation to boarding school begins on my birthday in August :'(

Well, it doesn't have the charm of a B&B but the people are friendly and seem to have a 'we try harder' approach to service.

Hope you find it to your liking!

Hi kswl! We've made 2 trips to Birmingham lately and have a son starting UAB this fall, so we will also be there a bit for the next 4 years. I did enjoy the Dreamland BBQ, tho maybe not quite as much as the one in Tuscaloosa. Our favorite spot so far is the Five Points Grill in the Five Points area, of course - duh. The shrimp and grits was one of the best meals I have ever eaten. They offered a pretty wide variety of local specialties that appealed to all four members of my family. The dessert was easily split 4 ways.

A little pricey, but not too bad without expensive drinks. I will gladly eat Subway for lunch for the chance to return there.

Thanks, mom! Maybe the AL crew can time a GTG when we're there dropping off or visiting kids :)

We tried the Dreamland BBQ in B'ham, in Feb 2006, on our way to Montgomery. It was hard to get to and we weren't overly impressed with the food. However, it was pretty crowded at Lunchtime & we used lots of napkins!