A popular Birmingham night spot is moving further downtown in January.
Carrigan’s Public House, also known as Carrigan’s Philanthropub, will be taking a place in The William, located at 1911 3rd Avenue N. Carrigan’s has been a staple of downtown life since 2013 and is currently on Morris Avenue.
Owner David Carrigan said the move will take place sometime after New Year’s.
“The space will be a little more intimate, but with a lot of the same design character,” he said. “As far as menu, we’ll have the same full cocktail program. The bar side will be familiar. The food we will upgrade a little, and put a few more sharable items, a little elevated, a little nicer.”
Staple foods such as the burger, corndog and house cut fries will remain.
The restaurant will be open all six days, with lunch offered. The move allows a certain downsizing, but with more of a focus on quality, he said.
“We were one of the first full-on restaurant bars, and we’ve kind of watched things change downtown,” Carrigan said. “We’re adjusted to what we’ve seen that’s changed in the market. Some of that’s post-COVID, some of that’s saturation with other options.”
One entrance will be through a back alley as well, which Carrigan’s hopes to light and reactivate.
“It’s something new and exciting that has been successful in other cities,” he said. “We have the buildings and infrastructure to do it.”
The William will feature 27 apartments, retail space, and a private rooftop cocktail bar.The William
The William is a redeveloped building originally constructed in 1905 as a furniture store which has been converted into a mixed-use development. It takes its name from a department store that was once located there, as well serving as an homage to Carrigan’s father of the same name.
The building includes 27 residential apartments styled as boutique-living. Residents will get personalized concierge services, such as cleaning and laundry services.
After redevelopment, the William has a 65-foot interior atrium across all five floors, with nine apartment units to each floor. Two apartments each face the street and the alley, while the other five get exterior lighting from the atrium.
“That allows natural daylight on every floor,” he said.
There will also be space for retail shopping and a private rooftop cocktail bar run by Carrigan’s, which will serve as an event space similar to one at the present Morris Avenue location.
“We want to have some private cocktail evenings, reservation only, and mixers for the tenants,” he said.
Carrigan said the move goes hand-in-hand with his hopes for downtown walkability.
“We’re really excited about being in the city center,” he said. “Maybe that’s not a primary motivation, but it’s an indirect motivation. My passion is for downtown adaptive reuse projects.”
The apartments are preleasing and slated to open Jan. 1. For more information, visit the website.
This is a true story from my childhood, growing up on a farm in the hills and hollers of Kentucky. I love pigs.
Where I come from, the cool November air makes a hog antsy. They quit eating. They stalk the pen like a prisoner, pacing, snorting, searching for a sniff of freedom. A hog can sense what’s coming. It took several Novembers for me to figure out what a doomed hog knows by nature. I was 9. My sister was 6.
“We have a problem,“ I said. “Men are coming to kill our hogs.”
“Let’s tell Daddy,” Donna said.
“That’s the problem,” I said. “He’s in on it.”
Like he’d done every year as far back as I can remember, Dad bought a couple of shoats in the spring.
Pigs (photos.com)photos.com
Maybe he called them meat hogs from the start, or maybe he didn’t. It doesn’t matter. We were in the pen playing with those little pigs from the get-go. They were our pets, just like the dogs.
When they got too big to trust — hogs will eat a young ‘un, we were told — we would stand outside the pen and scratch their backs with a garden hoe. Later in the year, usually around Thanksgiving, those big hogs would up and disappear. Poof! Next spring, we would have two new pigs to play with. We named them, slopped them and used them as props for made-up adventures. We had gotten pretty attached to Smoky and Snout.
The Plan
“Dad might kill a meat hog, but he wouldn’t kill a mama,” I said. “We have to make him think they have babies.”
Real baby pigs would be hard to come by, but we had plenty of stray dogs and dropped-off puppies in our rural neck of the woods. On average, we kept and fed about half a dozen dogs. At one point we had 12 grown dogs, a fact I boasted about the way a Texas rancher brags about his cattle. We may have been dirt poor at times, but we were always dirty dog rich.
Looking back, I don’t see how we kept so many bellies full. There were seven people in our five-room house, a bunch of dogs and at least two hogs, all fed from the same table. After we ate firsts and seconds, Mom made extra gravy and splattered it on the sidewalk by the backdoor step for the dogs, and they licked it up with leftover biscuits, potatoes and bones. In those days, dogs didn’t choke on chicken bones, and they didn’t die from chocolate. Dogs didn’t start suffering from these things until the communists tricked liberals into buying dogs at the mall — in the mid 80’s, I think.
The hogs got everything else, mixed up in delicious sour milk slop. I loved listening to them eat. Hogs have their own music, you know. With their bodies thumping at the trough and their teeth grinding up corncobs, apple cores and melon rinds, their grunting lays down a steady, funky bass line that builds to a crescendo of squealing solos that could have inspired Jimi Hendrix, B.B.King and Stevie Ray Vaughan to shred and wail. Hogs know the blues.
If we didn’t act soon, these hogs may have played their last concert. The plan was to go on a neighborhood small dog and puppy sweeping spree. We would disguise the dogs as pigs and plant ‘em in the pen with the hogs. The plan would work, I assured Donna. My loyal little sister nodded, reluctantly, but reckoned it would. It had to. It was a brilliant plan!
It didn’t matter that both hogs were male. It didn’t matter that, even with construction paper pig ears, puppies still look like puppies. We were too desperate for details. If nothing else, when our dad sees the effort we put into saving these hogs, that would be enough for him to stop this madness.
We marched across the pasture on a mission.
Hog killers
“David! Donna! You kids get in the house!” Mom was calling. It was too late. A beat-up red pickup truck pulled into our driveway. Two burly, beastly figures climbed out. The hog killers were here.
From this point on, memory has turned these events into a surreal slow-motion film, in shades of black, white and red.
If you’ve never seen hog killers, you’ll know exactly what they are when you do. They’re fearsome men, caked in mud and blood from their beards to their boots. They wear overalls soaked with the stains of their business. One man carries a big rifle, the other a large knife. From the looks of things, these two had already met several deadlines by the time they got to our place.
Mom was at the stove, old country ham sizzling in the skillet. Donna and I looked out a kitchen window. We watched the killers disappear through the trees that shielded our view of the shed where our hogs awaited their fate. I don’t remember breathing. But Donna and I were praying awfully hard for a miracle – a stay of execution – for our hogs.
It was deathly quiet for the longest time.
And then a commotion.
One hog emerged from the trees — then two. Smoky and Snout were loose and running for their lives! I wish they had headed for the woods. Instead, the hogs ran around and around the house, the killers chugging along behind in their mud-bloody boots, waving their weapons. There was a lot of hollering and squealing.
Donna and I raced from window to window cheering our heroes on at the top of our lungs. I don’t know how long the chase lasted. Two minutes. Maybe twenty. It seemed like a long time. But it wasn’t long enough.
The cheering stopped with a gun blast. Then two. At our back door. From the kitchen sink window, Donna and I were perched for a great view of the horror. On the sidewalk between the doorstep and the old water pump — right where we fed the dogs — our hogs were shot dead, their throats slit to bleed out. There was enough blood to drown all the dogs we’ve ever owned.
The crimson stain on that sidewalk never washed away. To this day, you can still see flecks of it in what’s left of that old sidewalk. When the wind’s right, you can still hear the squeal of two hogs and two kids who cheered them on to the finish line.
If hog killers ever show up at your house, God help you. I hope you have hogs.
JD Crowe is the cartoonist for Alabama Media Group and AL.com. He won the RFK Human Rights Award for Editorial Cartoons in 2020. In 2018, he was awarded the Rex Babin Memorial Award for local and state cartoons by the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists. Follow JD on Facebook, Twitter @Crowejam and Instagram @JDCrowepix. Give him a holler @[email protected].
Whether the Birmingham Race Course began as a heavy favorite or a long shot, it faded down the stretch of a track that proved daunting against longer odds than anticipated.
Owned by the Poarch Band of Creek Indians, Atmore-based Wind Creek has purchased the track and its holdings from its longtime owners, the McGregor family.
Wind Creek said in a release Monday that it will transform the track “into a premier entertainment destination in the Southeast and will continue to offer parimutuel and historical horse racing games currently in operation.”
It’s unclear what that means. Kip Keefer, chairman of the Birmingham Racing Commission, said it has not yet received any paperwork related to the sale. which is expected to be finalized early in 2025.
Attempts to contact Wind Creek for comment were not immediately successful.
Birmingham City Councilman Hunter Williams, chair of the council’s Economic Development & Tourism Committee, said the “ink is not even dry” on the deal, but he’s excited.
“That site has been there for several decades and at its time, it was a premier spot. Time had its toll on it, and it became less and less a premier spot,” Williams said. “When you have a group like the Poarch (Band of) Creek Indians, who have funding and knowledge of running an entertainment site like that, it has a definite upside. They’ve been able to execute on some top-notch facilities that bring jobs and second line jobs for groups that service them, as well as a lot of revenue. I think there’s a lot of upside.”
History of the Birmingham Race Course
Whatever the plans may be, they will have to go a long way to top the ambition with which the venue opened back on March 4, 1987.
The Birmingham Turf Club, as it was then known, welcomed more than 13,000 visitors on opening day, according to reporting at the time. Traffic backed up for miles along John Rogers Drive, named for the legislator who pushed for the track. Crowds swarmed as the gates opened.
The Turf Club was an $85 million showplace, with a seven-story grandstand seating 5,200. There were several restaurants, lounges and private meeting areas.
The Birmingham Symphony Orchestra provided entertainment as high-dollar guests sipped champagne on opening night. Mayor Richard Arrington and several dignitaries were paraded around the track.
Queen Alexandra was the first horse to win a pari-mutuel thoroughbred race in Alabama history. The track tallied a betting handle of more than $720,000.
But still, there were ominous signs. A fireworks display sparked a blaze on the turf course. Betting lines backed up, as new clerks met new betters, with a little something lost in translation on both sides of the counter. A computer glitch meant that some people buying tickets found someone else sitting in their seats. And while the opening night total was high, it was south of the $1 million anticipated.
The Turf Club had been expected to bring $250 million to the Birmingham metro area, and herald the coming of restaurants, entertainment venues and other businesses.
But by the next night, March 5, when a mere 4,500 people showed up, it was obvious many expectations for the Turf Club were going to need rethinking. Owners retreated from the champagne and glitz of opening day, slashing prices and attempting to rebrand the track towards a blue-collar clientele. But on its one-year anniversary, the club was closed, with no working capital to operate. Its operators lost more than $50 million during a 175-day season.
Racing returned in 1989 with a new name – the Birmingham Race Course – but talk was already starting of greyhound racing being more sustainable.
That came in 1992, when a referendum allowed dogs at the track. New owner Milton McGregor began a $7 million conversion, putting the dog track inside the thoroughbred course. On Oct. 29 of that year, more than 12,000 people came for the first day, with bets on the inaugural race totaling more than $112,000. The dog gamble seemed to have paid off.
But again, the opening day crowds did not herald better things ahead. Within a few months, McGregor’s other venue, VictoryLand, was outearning the Race Course.
The only two operational dog tracks remaining in the United States are both located in West Virginia. Commercial greyhound racing is illegal in 43 states, and Alabama is one of only six states where it remains legal, but racing does not take place.
Note to readers: Make your picks for Joe’s 6-0 Challenge at the bottom of the post.
This is an opinion column.
___________________
Alabama doesn’t play Auburn in basketball until mid-February, but the comparisons will begin now.
Give the first round of fisticuffs to Nate Oats, the masterful coach of the Crimson Tide.
Alabama lit Birmingham’s Legacy Arena ablaze on Wednesday night, and then afterwards Oats scorched Pearl with a burn that will sting throughout the cold winter.
Displaying the type of depth that can deliver a league title and earn a No.1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, Alabama defeated a good Illinois team 100-87. Notable was the fact that Alabama’s veteran guard, Mark Sears, didn’t score a single point, and apparently even benched himself, and yet Illinois trailed by double digits for most of the game.
Sears didn’t speak with reporters during post-game, but, according to Oats, Alabama’s starting point guard held himself out of the second half because he could see that his backcourt mates had things under control. Starting two-guard Latrell Wrightsell, Jr., had an efficient 16 points, but the headlines will go to Labaron Philon and Aden Holloway.
Labaron, the freshman from Mobile, had a LeBron-esque 16 points, nine assists and seven rebounds. Holloway, the transfer from Auburn, had 18 points on 7 of 10 shooting and 3 of 4 from distance.
Based on his defense, Labaron is starting to look like a future first-round pick. His energy is infectious. I asked Labaron about his hot start to the season. He said he’s not trying to be a hero on the court. Put it on a poster. I’m already in love with his game.
Incendiary Oats was then asked about Holloway’s role on the team and Alabama’s coach didn’t shy away from the question.
Certainly Holloway had good games at Auburn, Oats said, before adding that, “We thought he could be more like he was out of high school, and that’s what he was tonight.”
Intentional or not, it came off as a direct shot at Pearl’s ability to develop guards. For the record, both Pearl and Oats have a pretty good history of putting players in the NBA.
Have I mentioned yet how fun this basketball season is going to be?
Oats, fresh off of his first trip to a Final Four, is feeling himself these days. He has one of the best teams in the country, and he’s already using his once-Auburn guard to go after Alabama’s in-state rival. If Holloway develops into a consistent player, then it could be used as a major chess piece for Oats on the recruiting trail.
The next opportunity to compare Alabama and Auburn isn’t far off. Alabama travels to Las Vegas on Tuesday for a Thanksgiving-week showcase against Houston. Auburn went to Houston and manhandled the Cougars 74-69 back at the beginning of November. It remains one of the best wins of the non-conference schedule in the country.
Alabama’s victory against Illinois isn’t far off, though, and especially considering Sears wasn’t at his best.
“He’s under a lot of pressure,” Oats said after the game.
Oats has a habit of saying pretty much everything he’s thinking, but that observation of his star player felt loaded down with layered intent. Oats is known as a stats guy, but he’s also an excellent motivator. Sears has played in a Final Four, so the bright lights of Legacy Arena shouldn’t have been a problem. If Sears is feeling any pressure at all, then it’s coming from Alabama’s own depth at the guard position.
Philon, the freshman who prepped at Baker High School in Mobile, looks like one of the best young guards in the country. He was originally committed to Kansas last summer, but he ended up choosing Alabama in the end. It looks like he made the right decision.
I asked Oats if he was surprised by Philon’s immediate impact. It’s not just his offense. Philon is already Alabama’s second-best backcourt defender behind Wrightsell. Oats said he would have been surprised by Philon last summer, but that when he showed up on campus he quickly became one of Alabama’s best guards.
Oats said the key to Philon’s early ascension is open competition on the practice court. No one is guaranteed minutes. No one is promised anything. It’s Saban-type stuff. Survival of the fittest. That’s a tricky proposition in the NIL era, but Oats is managing it well. It’s why NBA executives are paying attention to Alabama’s fiery coach.
Oats might very well be a coach in the NBA one day, but I don’t think he’s leaving Alabama for another college-level gig at this point. He has everything he wants at Alabama, and that includes a better version of Auburn’s former guard.
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Dear Eric: I’m gay and a dad. Recently, my 16-year-old’s phone was connected to the car display, and I noticed from a notification that he had changed his phone contact for me from Dad to my real name and changed my husband’s name to Dad. My feelings are hurt. Am I overreacting or should I have a discussion with my son about it? I can’t stop thinking about what could’ve happened to cause this change.
– Used to be Dad
Dear Dad: I understand why this hits a sensitive spot for you. Your relationship with your kid probably continues to change and develop as he moves toward adulthood. And I imagine there have been people at various points in your life who have questioned the legitimacy of your family structure. But you know the truth: you are your kid’s dad, and you always will be.
So, what’s going on with him? Probably nothing. Maybe it’s funny to him that when his father calls, his full government name pops up on the screen. Maybe he’s experimenting with being more mature and testing out new nomenclature. Our phones are places where we deposit the weird insides of our brains, and it doesn’t always make sense to the outside eye.
I’m curious what he calls you when speaking to you. Are you still “Dad?” Or has that changed, too? That’s a better measure, I think.
But the best measure of the strength of your relationship is your actual relationship. Try to put aside the hurt; chalk it up to teen capriciousness. Mention it to him casually if you’re nervous that it means something bigger. “I see you changed my name on your phone. Any story there?” If he gives that textbook teen response “Nothing” (or its cousin: a shrug), let it be just that.
Send questions to R. Eric Thomas at [email protected] or P.O. Box 22474, Philadelphia, PA 19110. Follow him on Instagram and sign up for his weekly newsletter at rericthomas.com.
The Week 13 Huntsville Times football Player of the Week helped keep his team unbeaten in an emotion-packed second-round playoff win.
West Morgan running back Ty Jones picked up 87 percent of the 821 votes cast in the survey after scoring three touchdowns in the Rebels’ 28-7 win over Madison Academy in Class 4A play. Jones, a 6-foot, 195-pound senior, had a 32-yard TD reception and scored on runs of 13 and 1 yard in the win.
Jones is the first student-athlete from West Morgan to finish atop the poll this season.
The game pitted West Morgan head coach Drew Phillips against his former high school coach Bob Godsey with the student moving on to the quarterfinals.
West Morgan (12-0) will host 7-5 Anniston on Friday while Madison Academy closed out the season at 7-5.
Fyffe running back Ryder Gipson finished second in the poll with 9 percent of the total. Gipson, a 5-11, 185-pound sophomore, had 25 carries for 230 yards and 4 touchdowns as the fifth-ranked Red Devils beat No. 6 Gordo 42-14 in the Class 3A playoffs.
Fyffe, at 9-2, will travel to play No. 3 Piedmont (12-0) on Friday for a chance to earn a spot in the semifinals. Fyffe has beaten the Bulldogs all three times the teams have met.
Christian Pritchard was third in the balloting with 2 percent of the total. The 5-8, 140-pound Muscle Shoals defensive back had a 74-yard fumble recovery return for a touchdown with less than a minute left in the game as the Trojans beat defending Class 6A state champions Clay-Chalkville 31-21 last week.
No. 9 Muscle Shoals (9-2) will travel to meet second-ranked Parker (11-1) in the quarterfinals.
Watch for the weekly nominees on Sundays this fall and be sure to cast your vote each week.
It was chilly in Alabama on Thursday morning as cold air settled in across the state.
Here were some of the overnight temperatures from the National Weather Service (not the official lows):
* Alexander City: 38 degrees
* Anniston: 36 degrees
* Birmingham: 39 degrees
* Decatur: 43 degrees
* Demopolis: 37 degrees
* Dothan: 42 degrees
* Eufaula: 38 degrees
* Evergreen: 38 degrees
* Gadsden: 32 degrees
* Greenville: 40 degrees
* Haleyville: 37 degrees
* Huntsville: 40 degrees
* Mobile: 42 degrees
* Montgomery: 41 degrees
* Muscle Shoals: 40 degrees
* Ozark: 42 degrees
* Prattville: 41 degrees
* Sylacauga: 34 degrees
* Talladega: 33 degrees
* Troy: 37 degrees
* Tuscaloosa: 37 degrees
Temperatures during the day won’t warm up all that much. Highs today will only make it into the 50s for north and much of central Alabama, according to the weather service. South Alabama will top out in the 60s. (Today’s forecast highs are at the top of this post.)
It is expected to be even colder tonight, according to the weather service.
Low temperatures are expected to fall into the 30s across a wide area. Here is the low temperature forecast for tonight:
Lows in the 30s will be possible across the state tonight, with 40s in south Alabama.NWS
Another cold day is in store for Friday as cold air continues to flow into the state from the northwest. High temperatures on Friday could be a degree or two colder than today in many areas. Here is the forecast for Friday:
High temperatures on Friday will again only make it into the 50s for many in Alabama.NWS
Friday night could be the coldest of the week, with temperatures dipping below freezing across a large part of the state by early Saturday morning. Even many areas in south Alabama will experience temperatures in the 30s:
Here are the expected low temperatures for Friday night into Saturday morning.NWS
The weather service said the cold from Friday night into Saturday morning will likely end the growing season for north and central Alabama.
Saturday temperatures will still be chilly, but Saturday could begin a slow warming trend that will go into next week. Many areas will make it into the 60s for highs.
Here are Saturday’s forecast highs:
Chilly but not as chilly temperatures are forecast for Saturday.NWS
Saturday night will again be chilly, but it will be the last of the really cold nights. Here are the forecast lows for Saturday night into Sunday morning:
Sunday will be the last of the really cold nights for a while.NWS
A warmup really gets going on Sunday, with highs expected to rise into the 60s and 70s statewide:
Sunday will be a return to warmer temperatures.NWS
Warmer temperatures are expected to continue into next week, according to forecasters.
Looking a bit further into the future, it appears that warmer-than-average temperatures could return to Alabama through the end of the month.
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Here is the six- to 10-day temperature outlook from NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center. It shows that warmer-than-normal temperatures are favored for the state through Nov. 30:
Warmer-than-average temperatures are favored for Alabama through Nov. 30. But take note of the cold air up over the northern states.Climate Prediction Center
Whenever Eric Burkholder, an assistant professor at Auburn University’s physics department, feels “out of sorts,” as he says, a student will point to a pillow in his office that reads, “The horrors persist but so do I.”
For the past few months, Burkholder has been the faculty adviser for the Sexuality and Gender Alliance Group. Many of his LGBTQ students and fellow faculty members have displaced from community spots and say they feel unwanted because of the anti-DEI legislation that began in October.
The law prohibits state institutions from using public funding for diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives focusing on gender, race, and sexual orientation. Now, those topics are considered “divisive concepts.”
The University of Alabama also closed its DEI office and safe zone this year as a result of the law. Nationally, 28 state legislatures have introduced 86 anti-DEI bills. So far, 14 have become law, according to the DEI legislation tracker at the Chronicle of Education.
Burkholder hoped that Auburn’s space would stay open because it is available to allies of the LGBTQ community and wasn’t designated only for LGBTQ people.
“I feel like we were given false hope,” Burkholder said. He said he thinks the space itself didn’t violate the law, but the name of the space “drew heightened attention,” so “out of an abundance of caution,” it was closed.
Dakota Grimes, a chemistry graduate student, is president of the student organization. and said all the resources LGBTQ students have come to rely on now are scattered.
“While those resources still exist, now they’re decentralized,” Grimes said. She said the Pride space was lovely, and she enjoyed going there when she had time. Now students like her feel displaced.
“It was a safe space for LGBTQ students to hang out in between classes where they could be with others like them,” Grimes said. “They could relax, not have to worry about any judgment or feeling unwelcome on campus.”
She said there’s no space to “just exist on campus as queer students.” LGBTQ students must find room in the student center or the library to study, but “there’s no designated place for us to really gather as a community.”
Grimes said Auburn has improved when it comes to LGBTQ inclusivity, such as allowing pronoun selection when students enroll in online activities. But it’s still tough to make sure people feel accepted.
“It’s a very red school in a red city in a red state,” Grimes said. “There are a lot of people that make homophobic jokes, transphobic jokes, even around people that they know are queer, because they just don’t care.”
Burkholder said some faculty and staff aren’t comfortable being out as LGBTQ and are frustrated. He worries that other areas of university life, such as research, could be affected.
“I think a lot of the message that I’m getting is, ‘We don’t really want you here. If we do, you should be quiet,’” Burkholder said.
Burkholder said LGBTQ people now need to go off-campus or work with organizations such as Pride on the Plains, which hosts Pride events and drag shows regularly at local parks and bars, to find public celebration and community.
Coffee Mafia, an Auburn coffee shop, regularly hosts Pride events. The cafe is a popular spot for the LGBTQ community and allies.(Contributed)
One off-campus hangout is Coffee Mafia, now run by Auburn native Ian Oriol. He said the space has always felt LGBTQ-friendly, even growing up, when it was under different ownership and called Mama Mocha’s.
“We’ve always attracted unconventional people, people that are looking for a sort of alternative space in the area,” Oriol said. “I’ve leaned more into that. When I took over, as a queer person from the Bible belt, I think it’s important to kind of curate that sort of space, make that space available. Especially because there aren’t many spaces like that in this area.”
Oriol, who’s performed drag for a decade, said he’s recently seen an uptick in newer and younger faces at the shop and at drag performances. These students are grateful for the space.
“I’ve had many a freshly queer person in their first semester at Auburn cry and hug me in full drag after a show,” Oriol said.
Burkholder said students are resilient and will find ways to connect with each other.
“We queer people have always found spaces,” Burkholder said. “I think ultimately the students will find a way to carve out a place for themselves where they feel safe.”
Dear Eric: I have two brothers that have recently failed to send a birthday gift or even a card to my 12-year-old daughter. My wife and I on the other hand always send birthday gifts or money and a card to their kids, our nieces and nephews.
My daughter took note of not getting a gift from them this past year in a sad kind of manner. She enjoys her aunts and uncles and cousins otherwise.
One of my brothers just sent a request for a video game birthday gift to his 9-year-old son. I am happy to give a gift to my nephew but also a bit annoyed that this is not reciprocated. Welcome your advice.
– No Gift Back
Dear No Gift Back: Send the gift but have a separate conversation with your brothers about what gifts mean to your daughter and how the lack of acknowledgment has made her, and you feel.
The niece/nephew gift exchange need not be tit for tat, but it’s important that your brothers know that you’re not feeling the kind of family connection that you want. Offer to send them reminders or gift request lists, if you want, for your daughter’s sake. This may not be an intentional slight; they may simply not be great at keeping up with birthdays.
Send questions to R. Eric Thomas at [email protected] or P.O. Box 22474, Philadelphia, PA 19110. Follow him on Instagram and sign up for his weekly newsletter at rericthomas.com.
From department stores to restaurants and more, a lot of great Alabama businesses have come and gone over the years.
So when our friends at This is Alabama asked its Facebook followers to tell them what Alabama stores and eateries they used to love, we knew we were in for a trip down memory lane and would quickly be reminded of many great businesses that have closed over the years.
From Parisian to Catfish Cabin, The Lamplight, Red Bird Inn and more, you can take a look at nine of the businesses readers used to love below, and you can read all of the responses — and add your own — on the This is Alabama Facebook page.
Catfish Cabin in Albertville, Ala., is closing after more than 40 years in business.
Catfish Cabin
Catfish Cabin, which had several locations in Alabama, came up often as a restaurant folks used to love. Most notably, the Albertville location of the beloved eatery announced on Facebook that it would be closing its doors after more than four decades in business in 2021. The restaurant was known for serving everything from catfish filets to ribeye steaks, seafood gumbo, homemade desserts and much more. That said, Catfish Cabin II remains open in Athens.
The Lamplighter in Tuscaloosa may have shuttered its doors more than 30 years ago, but that didn’t keep it from garnering a spot on this list. Known for its wide menu offering affordable steaks, fresh seafood and more, The Lamplighter closed its doors sometime in the 1980s. Even with so much time passing, many folks still have fond memories of eating there, including Linda Smelley of The Waysider Restaurant.
“That’s been so long ago that I can’t even remember when that was,” Smelley told AL.com “But it was always good.”
The former Parisian store on 2nd Avenue North from circa 1939. (Birmingham Public Library)
Parisian Department Store
Many residents from all over the state have fond memories of shopping at Parisian department stores, which got their start in Birmingham in 1877 and opened multiple locations in Alabama before ultimately going out of business in 2006. While these days online shopping is the go-to, many readers said they missed visiting the old department store and the experience of shopping there.
Another restaurant that closed nearly 40 years ago but is still missed by readers is The Red Bird Inn. Located on Seibels Road in Montgomery when it opened in the 1920s, the eatery was known for its fried chicken and onion rings, according to the Montgomery Advertiser. It closed it’s doors for good in 1983, but the memory of its signature dishes lives on.
The Pizitz building on 2nd Avenue North in Birmingham was restored to house a food court, retail space and apartments. (Frank Couch)al.com
Pizitz Department Store
Like Parisian, Pizitz department store was once a shopping destination for families all over the state before its closure in 1988. Louis Pizitz opened his first store in the late 1800s, which grew into several locations throughout the Birmingham and Huntsville area. Today, the Pizitz building where the department store was founded is now home to The Pizitz Food Hall, offices, apartments and the Sidewalk Film Center.
Britling’s Cafeteria once had locations all over Birmingham after the first restaurant was opened in 1919 by W.B. Johnson. At one time, there were three downtown and several more in the suburbs, but during the 1970s and 1980s, each Britling’s location eventually closed due to the competition of other eateries. Still, readers said they missed the popular cafeteria, and we like to think some of them still have that signature mug kids who finished their milk were awarded.
A photo of classic Huntsville restaurant Zesto. (Courtesy Amelia Mathison)
Zesto
Zesto first got its start in Huntsville in 1947 as an ice cream shop franchise before being converted into a diner-style eatery in 1951 that became known for its “dip dogs” and “dip burgers.” While it closed in the early 2000s, anybody craving a “dip dog” can still score one and much more at the ZestoAF food truck run by Amelia Mathison, the daughter of former owners Earl and Virgina Noe.
In 2016, McCollum’s Catfish in Decatur served dinner for the last time, and fans of the seafood spot have been missing it ever since. Open since 1961, the family-owned restaurant developed a strong following of loyal customers thanks to its menu of fresh seafood, hamburger steaks and more, but ultimately rising food costs and competition for business led to its demise, according to WHNT.
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Bonus: Quincy’s Restaurant
Quincy’s, a popular steakhouse and buffet in the early ‘90s, might not have got its start in Alabama, but many readers still brought it up as the restaurant they miss the most (and yes, those yeast rolls were a big part of why). The restaurant chain once had more than 200 locations throughout our state and the rest of the South, but today, there ARE only two Quincy’s still open and neither are in Alabama.
