Tuscaloosa Restaurant Week: A Sweet First Year for The Parlor

Good morning and welcome to the fifth and final feature highlighting a participant in Tuscaloosa Restaurant Week, where we're talking with Christin Brown, the co-owner of The Parlor on Greensboro Avenue in downtown Tuscaloosa.

Each day this week, the Thread and Visit Tuscaloosa will profile one of the businesses participating in the annual event, presented this year by Huntington Bank.

Hungry to learn more? Over 50 participating eateries will offer unique items or special discounts on their most popular orders when the extended Tuscaloosa Restaurant Week returns June 18th through 27th. Learn more and get connected at the Tuscaloosa Restaurant Week website now.

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A Sweet New Staple Downtown

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 Parlor, located at 514 Greensboro Avenue next to Chuck's Fish, had its soft opening on July 26, 2025. Christin Brown said she and her husband have learned a lot in the past year and felt welcomed by the downtown community.

"We got married young, and we've been entrepreneurs ever since," she told the Thread.

Before opening The Parlor, the Browns have owned and operated Tuskaloosa Tornado Shelters, based in Moundville, since 2020.

"We've been entrepreneurs for a while, but this was our first restaurant experience," she said.

36 Rotating, Award-Winning Ice Creams

For the past year, The Parlor has been a staple downtown for Tuscaloosa residents and students alike, who choose from 36 award-winning ice cream flavors from The Ice Cream Club, a producer and distributor based outside Miami.

Among their most popular is the Insta-Graham, which they describe as a "Hashtag worthy Graham Cracker-flavored ice cream swirled with crunchy golden honey graham cracker crumbles and dark chocolate covered waffle cone pieces."

The shop's milkshake menu allows customers to spin any of the 36 Ice Cream Club flavors into a hand-mixed shake, which Brown said was a simple expansion that has become one of The Parlor's most-requested orders.

For Tuscaloosa Restaurant Week only, The Parlor is offering a Dubai chocolate sundae.

Dubai chocolate has become a viral sensation over the past two years, inspired by a chocolate bar made famous on TikTok that pairs milk chocolate with pistachio cream and crispy shredded kataifi pastry. The Parlor's Dubai chocolate sundae is its take on the trend.

Brown said the shop's milkshakes have grown in popularity since they were added to the menu in 2025, but that's not the only thing new at The Parlor.

Expanding Around a Transforming Greensboro Avenue

Brown also mentioned a renovation she's hoping to open by the shop's one-year anniversary.

"We actually have a back patio that's been under construction this whole time, and it's almost ready," she said. "It'll have seating, and it's actually going to be climate-controlled."

For now, there's a small outdoor seating area on Greensboro Avenue in the heart of downtown, although ongoing road work makes for a less-than-perfect view of it this year.

As The Parlor opened in late July last year, 2026 marks its first full summer in operation. Looking back on the first year of her family's journey, Brown said she values becoming a family-friendly spot and looks forward to this year's football season to serve out-of-town customers and students alike.

"My favorite part is the community," she said.

The Parlor's first full summer in operation comes as the city's $4.3 million streetscaping project on Greensboro Avenue is in full swing, as previously reported by the Thread. The project, which began in May, is removing a traffic lane between University Boulevard and 7th Street and adding wider sidewalks, streetscaping, landscaping and dedicated delivery zones along the two-block stretch where The Parlor, Chuck's Fish, the Bama Theatre and the future home of Slim's Pizzeria sit.

Pedestrian access to The Parlor and other businesses on Greensboro remains open throughout the work, which the city expects to wrap up before the first home football game of the Alabama Crimson Tide's 2026 season.

The Parlor is open at 514 Greensboro Avenue in downtown Tuscaloosa. For a scoop of something sweet, visit them during Tuscaloosa Restaurant Week to try the Dubai chocolate sundae, available now through June 27th.

They're open every day of the week, from noon until 10 p.m.

This is the fifth and final profile in this year's series, which partners with Visit Tuscaloosa to highlight locally owned businesses each summer. Tuscaloosa Restaurant Week 2026 is presented by Huntington Bank.

For ongoing coverage of restaurant and retail development in West Alabama, stay connected to the Tuscaloosa Thread!