i have as well but also everyone i know who has been did so during the friends and family period lol. looks like they're booked solid for awhile now but have first come, first serve bar seating
And Pizza Grace gets nominated for a Beard then has to sell out to the Big Spoon owners for some reason. Weird times for Bham pizza.
The Pizza Grace one was solely because the owners weren’t enamored with Bham and wanted to move back to DC area
Tempted to say fuck them from moving from the original location. I get it...sort of. But they were resting on their laurels and just upping cost IMO.
Mike Wilson died and John Hall moved. Rents went up, and they didn’t have outside investor money to offset. It was a good run, but that’s kind of it.
I also heard that the expansion to Lane Park was too much at the wrong time. They couldn’t keep both spots fully staffed and the service and quality suffered at both
From what I understand, it was still plenty profitable, but the increase in rent at Avondale made the margins too small to risk their own money and then the same thing happened at Lane Park. I think John starting his new restaurant in Washington probably had something to do with the decision, too.
speaking of pizza the Edgewood Slice blows. i liked the original location but I am not a fan of all the expansion. The only time the Edgewood Slice gets any crowd at all is when there is spillover from Taco Mama.
I’ll never understand how Post Office fucked up a pizza place in Tuscaloosa right behind Innisfree. Trying to open with no alcohol license for like 6 months was idiotic and sealed their fate. But yeah, in general their quality fell off quick.
While we’re doing food talk, is Abhi any good? Gf’s friend wants us to meet her there for din and don’t believe I’ve ever had it
Yeah, but I figured Hall would be more interested in it not tanking (by attention and by getting investors).
really think like a lot of things, the pandemic just fucked it up. he was planning at one point (and i think may have even purchased a space) to open an upscale restaurant in woodlawn that never materialized. then he met a girl from the pacific northwest and decided to go out there
We ate there once a few months ago and unbeknownst to me my toddler dropped his little blanket on the way out the door. We got to the car and I realized it was missing and went back to get it. I walked up to the hostess stand and said "Hey, we just finished dinner here and my child left something on our way out." The hostess replied "Was it a blanket?" To which I said "Yes actually. Did y'all see it?" And then she walked inside for 20 seconds before returning and telling me they didn't have it. I'm still baffled by that interaction.
aight what's everyone think about Armour House and Bayonet? got a date night Saturday and will probably try to walk up to one of them.
We were supposed to go to Armour House last night but our friends kid was sick so we pushed to the 17th. Hope that helps.
I’m not a big steakhouse guy, but my one trip to Armour House was outstanding. Definitely better than Little Betty imo. The level of service at Armour was exceptional. Also, every thing I tasted was great. Starting at the speakeasy downstairs before your res is a nice touch too.
That being said, between your two choices I take Bayonet all day every day. I’m choosing a raw bar over steakhouse everytime but Bayonet is awesome.
Tuscaloosa/Mercedes is an afterthought for touring bands after Huntsville/Orion was built and now Bham/Coke.
Live Nation built the Coca Cola amp (dumb name) largely in response to Orion’s developers rejecting Live Nation’s request to sell Live Nation tickets at the Orion. Consequently, the Orion will most likely continue to host non-Live Nation artists (such as Billy Strings), and going forward Live Nation will steer 99% of its artists through Bham rather than anywhere else (there are exceptions where LN artists may play non-LN venues). There is a middle ground between the two extremes, so if they’re smart the owners and promoters of the Tuscaloosa amp will try to get there.
I’m afraid Orion is going to end up the loser here. I get not wanting to deal with Live Nation but the quality of acts has steadily decreased over the last 2-3 years. I’m biased, but Orion is a great venue and Coca Cola amp looks like dogshit.