About Town

Birmingham’s brunch scene has quietly become one of the best arguments for weekends in this city. Whether you’re after a long, leisurely table with good cocktails or a neighborhood spot where the biscuits are made from scratch and the line moves fast, the options are genuinely excellent right now. Here’s where to go. The Essential The reader’s poll already crowned The Essential the best brunch in Birmingham, and it’s hard to argue.

If you’ve been feeling the pull to redecorate lately, you’re not imagining things. Interior design in 2026 has taken a distinct turn — away from the cool, minimal, gray-toned spaces that dominated the last decade and toward something warmer, richer, and considerably more personal. Southern designers in particular are leaning into this shift in a way that feels entirely natural to the region’s sensibility. Here’s what’s defining the look right now.

We covered the early summer lineup back in June, and the Coca-Cola Amphitheater has been delivering. But the season is far from over — in fact, some of the biggest shows of the year are still ahead. Here’s everything on the calendar from August through fall, with a note on what to prioritize. August McGraw is one of the most reliable live performers in country music, and the outdoor amphitheater setting suits him perfectly. He’s joined by 49 Winchester, who are worth showing up early for.

Birmingham has spoken. Every year we ask our readers to weigh in on the best this city has to offer — from the restaurants you can’t stop talking about to the doctors you trust with your family, the shops you keep coming back to, and the spots that make this city worth bragging about. The votes are in, the results are official, and Best of 2026 is here. Whether you’re a lifelong local or new to the Magic City, consider this your definitive guide to the best Birmingham has to offer right now.

When Blueroot closed at Pepper Place last fall, they left behind a note on the door that read: “Lettuce turn over a new leaf! Blueroot is closed and we are transforming into a new neighborhood cafe. The Mustard Club is coming soon — a sandwich shop and more.” That last part — “and more” — turns out to be doing a lot of heavy lifting.

Birmingham’s music scene gets a lot of attention at the big level — the Coca-Cola Amphitheater is drawing major national acts, the BJCC fills up for arena shows — but the real soul of this city’s music culture lives in the smaller rooms. The intimate venues where you’re ten feet from the stage, where local acts break through, and where touring artists playing 300-cap rooms tonight are selling out arenas in two years. If you haven’t explored Birmingham’s small venue scene, here’s your guide.

There’s a certain kind of summer memory that feels golden in every sense of the word. Long afternoons at the lake. Hours stretched out poolside. The smell of coconut suntan oil — and something that, looking back, was definitely baby oil. For many of us who grew up in the 1960s, ’70s, and ’80s, a deep tan wasn’t just a side effect of summer. It was the goal. Foil reflectors, tanning beds, and a complete absence of SPF were simply part of the seasonal ritual. We didn’t know then what we know now.

This list comes to us from our friends at Sidewalk Film Festival — Birmingham’s premier independent film event and one of the best reasons to love this city. Over the last fifty years, Saturday Night Live has churned out some of the nation’s greatest comedic talents. Along with entertaining us on our television screens, several of them have gone on to hugely successful careers in film — whether SNL spin-offs or not.

At some point every July, Birmingham stops being charming and starts being genuinely brutal. The humidity settles in, the asphalt shimmers, and the idea of being outside for more than the walk from your car becomes laughable. This is that week. The good news is that Birmingham has more than enough going on inside to keep you busy, entertained, and comfortably air conditioned until things cool back down. Here’s where to go.

Birmingham has spoken. Every year we ask our readers to weigh in on the best this city has to offer — from the restaurants you can’t stop talking about to the doctors you trust with your family, the shops you keep coming back to, and the spots that make this city worth bragging about. The votes are in, the results are official, and Birmingham’s best of 2026 is here.