9 cozy Alabama restaurants perfect for cold weather

When the weather gets below 80 degrees here in Alabama, I have a tendency to want to to eat some hearty food at small, cozy restaurants.

But what’s cozy to me may not be cozy to you, and vice versa. So our friends over at This is Alabama asked their Facebook followers to list their favorite cozy restaurants.

There were a lot of responses, but here are 9 that came up pretty often.

So, what did folks get right — and wrong? Let me know!

Cajun Corner in downtown Eufaula, Ala.Amber Sutton

Cajun Corner

Eufaula

People love Cajun Corner. The restaurant is in the perfect location in downtown Eufaula and has a New Orleans vibe. The menu is filled with Cajun essentials like seafood gumbo, crawfish etouffee, po boys and red beans and rice. (If you’re not into Cajun food, there are pastas, steaks and more.) Do not leave without trying the bread pudding.

Southern Harvest

Fort Payne

Located right on Lookout Mountain, very few places scream “cozy” quite like Southern Harvest. Co-owned by Teddy Gentry of Alabama fame, the restaurant serves up homemade Southern classics. Don’t overlook the Golden’s Hotbrown, which consists of grilled chicken breast and provolone housed between house-made ciabatta topped with tons of Alfredo sauce, fresh Parmesan and bacon crumbles. It’s decadent and comforting.

Big Time Diner

Mobile

The Port City’s Big Time Diner is a classic, all-American cafe. It has a huge menu filled with almost everything you can imagine, but according to my colleague Lawrence Specker, “You can’t go wrong with the Blue-Plate Special, which can be a meat-and-two, a meat-and-three or a meat-and-four. It doesn’t hurt that Big Time Diner has a reputation for attentive, friendly service.” He likes it so much he named it one of Mobile’s best meat-and-threes.

Good Company Café is a cozy experience. (Matt Wake/[email protected])

Good Company Cafe

Huntsville

Located in the Main Street South Shopping Village on busy South Memorial Parkway, it can be easy to miss Good Company Cafe. But to miss it would be a shame, because it’s one of the Rocket City’s best gems, serving up homemade brunch all day. My colleague Matt Wake describes the interior the best: “(It’s) already comfy and charming as a cool aunt’s windchime bungalow.” It’s no surprise he named it one of Huntsville’s best breakfasts.

Rougaroux

Forest Park and Mountain Brook

If you’re looking for a place with a fun, kitschy ambience, Rougaroux is the place for you. The Magic City eatery serves up authentic Creole/Cajun fare in two locations: An old, eclectic pink house in the Forest Park neighborhood and Mountain Brook Village. My go-to order is the Viet Cajun po boy, which is jam packed with crawfish and shrimp with flavors of Cajun spices, garlic butter, chilies and lemongrass. It’s terrific.

Ezell’s Fish Camp

Lavaca

Ezell’s Fish Camp is one of the state’s older restaurants. It’s been owned and operated by the Ezell family since 1932. Maybe that’s why the small-town eatery is so comfy to so many people. With a tried-and-true menu of mostly fried catfish and shrimp (not to mention that delectable slaw and hushpuppies) plus a cozy cabin ambience, Ezell’s Fish Camp always makes us feel at home. We also can’t hate on the Tombigbee River views.

Martin’s Restaurant

Montgomery

It seems like Martin’s Restaurant keeps making these lists, and that’s because Alabamians love Martin’s. Hey, we do too. We named it the best fried chicken joint in the state and one of the best meat-and-threes. The restaurant has been a Montgomery mainstay for about 90 years, and you never know who you’ll see there. It’s one of the few restaurants in Alabama that still serves pulley bones, and we highly recommend it, along with a piece of pie that has mile-high meringue.

Red’s Little School House

Grady

Red’s Little School House is an Alabama treasure that more people should know about. Located in the former Hills Chapel Community School on the winding backroads of Montgomery County, you’re not likely to stumble upon it, but if you do you’re lucky. The restaurant serves classic country cooking in a buffet setting. (There’s also a short order menu, but the buffet is the route you want to go.) If you’ve never been here, put it on your bucket list.

Pirates Bar and Grill

Dauphin Island

Pirates Bar and Grill has it all. There’s a beach view, of course. It’s in one of the Coast’s most interesting pieces of architecture. (It’s on the National Register of Historic Places!) It also has a blue crab and Conecuh sausage spinach dip that I think of often. You may not think of the beach when you think of cold weather, but if there’s any coastal restaurant that could make you feel cozy, it’s Pirates Bar and Grill.