Many Nashvillians will be heading south later this month. Southbound Food Festival is a 10-day celebration of Birmingham, Ala.’s food scene, taking place this year from Sept. 19 to Sept. 28.Â
Formerly known as Food+, the Southbound Food Festival offers a packed schedule. Saturday, Sept. 20, will feature ROOTED: Women in Food, a market takeover by women chefs, artists and authors held at Pepper Place Farmers Market. Nashvillian Erin Byers Murray of The Local Palate will take the stage to discuss all things Southern food. Ticketholders can participate in a meet-and-greet with some of the chefs. There are guest-chef takeovers, called HOSTED, in restaurants across town, including some with Nashville chefs. There’s a live-fire tasting event and a Parmigiano Reggiano cracking demonstration.
Funk Brunch: Gospel Bird with Atlanta’s Demetrius Brown on Sunday, Sept. 28, at the Sloss Furnaces National Historic Landmark will feature Brian Morris of Hattie B’s Hot Chicken as one of the guest chefs. Sophina Uong will be there too. (OK, we know she’s from New Orleans and Little Miss Mao closed, but we’re hoping to call her ours again soon.)
From Gulf Shores and Ocean Springs to Bristol and Lexington, here are our recommendations for late-summer getaways
You can find other participating Nashvillians in the festival lineup including Carey Bringle of Peg Leg Porker, Pat Martin of Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint and Robbie Wilson of SuperNormal.
You’ll want to stay in or near downtown Birmingham, such as at The Kelly Birmingham, which has great views of the city. Some events at the fest are free, and others require tickets. Ticket prices range from $75 for brunch to $200 for the heritage dinner on Friday, Sept. 19, which includes the Frank Stitt Award recipient for industry excellence. Tickets can be purchased online — and you should do that before they’re sold out.
While in Birmingham, you can also see the city’s other food attractions, like Alabama Peanut Co., where they sell more than 100 flavors of boiled peanuts. Stop by Vulcan Park and Museum to see the largest cast-iron statue in the world. Even if you are coming to town for the food and drink, you can’t leave without visiting the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute and other sites significant to the fight for civil rights. More area picks are included in this classic Scene Road Trip article.
