Restaurants and Retail

A beloved restaurant and bar on the Tuscaloosa Strip paid tribute on Wednesday to two of its employees who were fatally shot earlier this week, allegedly by their former co-worker there.

When Forrest and Christin Brown couldn't find ice cream in downtown Tuscaloosa for their three kids, they had an idea to change that. This summer, their ice cream business approaches its one-year anniversary.

The heart of Downtown Northport is City Cafe, which has been pumping since 1931. But just up the block, on the corner of Main Avenue and 5th Street, a younger anchor has spent the last 13 years quietly reshaping Saturdays downtown.

Jerica and Scott Whittle's Turbo Coffee is a family-owned space built around unique, seasonal drinks and the fresh, house-made food to go with them.

The Tuscaloosa City Council has approved a $5.75 million incentives package to redevelop a portion of the Springbrook neighborhood off McFarland Boulevard, bringing new-to-market restaurants and retailers to District 7.

When Melvin Cannon decided to open his own restaurant after more than two decades in some of Tuscaloosa's best-known kitchens, he had no interest in joining the pack downtown.

For nearly 50 years, Tuscaloosa's home for healthy foods has been Manna Grocery and Deli. There, shoppers can find clean, fresh, and often locally sourced ingredients to take back home, or stop in for a bite to eat in-house.

As Tuscaloosa Thread previously reported, a developmental agreement is in the works to move the popular upscale restaurant Big Mike's Steakhouse to an easier to access site in Northport, across from Walmart.

After 4 years in Downtown Tuscaloosa, SoCal Cantina plans to close.

Mountain High Outfitters has relocating to a new shopping center with a special Grand Opening ceremony planned for Saturday, June 6.