Our Day Trip to Birmingham -- from Madison AL and some Questions (Hoover: condos, house)

[ionlife]

We drove to Birmingham today so I could attend a meeting down there. Any rate, the drive was totally easy and uneventful despite the rain. To and from Bham we kept saying, wow, it's a lot easier to do this than going to Baltimore Inner Harbor in NoVA. When we got there we had time to kill before the DH and my daughter left to go check out the galleria off of I65. We thought we were going to the Whole Foods, but ended up in the village of Mountain Brook by accident. It was delightful: found a cool Jewish Deli, very fun shops (super expensive too) and a unique, almost European, tudor flair. LOVED IT! We were told about two other villages that were "new" and tried to find one in Homewood before I went to my meetng, but failed. Also missed Whole Foods but will find that easy enough. They dropped me at my meeting place and went to the Galleria Mall for shopping. Then when my meeting was done, they got me and I went back to the big mall with them.

It was very noisy, lots of glass and light, but tons of echoing. Not a lot of upscale furniture type stores like I'd expect of a galleria mall (eg Pottery Barn, Williams Sonoma, Etc) but there was a Forever 21 and a Delia's so my girl was happy. Great food court as well.

So, two questions--where are the other villages like Mountain Brook and does one of them house Whole Foods?

And there is an upscale castle looking Marriott that we want to go stay at for relaxation in Hoover, AL... anyone know about it? I have the web site, so I don't need it now, but just want to know if anyone has stayed there and has inside info.

Thanks!

[hlsess]

the other 2 villages could be Crestline and English village-thay are also in Mt Brook- they do not house Whole Foods- it is in Cahaba village Plaza on 280 with just a few other stores and condos
another area that is semi-new is Soho in Homewood
I believe you are talking about Ross Bridge in Hoover- never stayed but have heard great things about ti- glad you enjoyed your stay- come back soon!!

[ionlife]

I think it was Soho that someone mentioned. Actually we found the Mounain Brook Village bc I typed Cahaba St. into the GPS and it led us there instead of Whole Foods. Talk about a Happy Accident. hehe--Yes it is Ross Bridge in Hoover. We decided to take the plunge and book two nights there over Labor Day Weekend. We didn't have a real summer break as we moved from up north to here and school started really early for us. And the boxes and work of getting a house pulled together just took over our lives.

So we are super looking forward to our trip down to the Birmingham area again. I'll be down pretty frequently as I will have regular meetings down there on Saturdays every so many months. I can't wait to explore more!!

[cpg35223]

We're glad you enjoyed your stay and look forward to hosting you again. There are a lot of furniture stores around, but the Williams Sonoma and Pottery Barn are (I believe) at the Summit, which is at the intersection of I-459 and Highway 280, about five miles due east on 459 from the Galleria (And, about 1.5 miles north of the Summit on Highway 280 is Whole Foods. You can't miss it).

That being said, if you like poking around looking at furniture, you should really take a look at the district around the Pepper Place on 3rd Avenue South in downtown B'ham. It is antique furniture, art, and decor heaven, with lots of shops to poke around in. You might want to Google it for the exact mix of shops and locations.

Soho, which is really downtown Homewood, is a good place to shop, too. In Mountain Brook, there is Crestline Village and English Village. English Village really is the smallest of the three, something you can cruise through in about 30-45 minutes.

Ross Bridge is really nice I hear. Lots of couples book it for a getaway. The only drawback for an out-of-town visitor is that it is a little remote from some of the other attractions, particularly the area's superb restaurants.

Speaking of, when you come to town, you really should considered going out to one of our many fine restaurants. Birmingham has a ton of locally owned places that are top-notch, most of which are clustered in the Five Points, Southside, and Mountain Brook parts of town. I'd say that Highlands, Hot&Hot Fish Club, Bottega, Ocean, Little Savannah, and a few dozen others are worth the trip.

Good luck on your next trip. Most of Birmingham leaves town for the beach on Labor Day, so you might have the place to yourself.

[Southlander]

Be sure to plan a visit to Birmingham Warehouse Furniture. Locally owned...downtown (southside - south of the railroad tracks that split downtown). Lots of good quality furniture at some fairly reasonable prices.

[hlsess]

I believe you are talking about B'ham Wholesale Furniiture- it is on 2nd and 22nd st s- I just bought my new sofa from there a great place with alot of variety

[ionlife]

/thanks--I will check out the places you suggested. The place we're staying at over Labor day is a bit secluded, but we all need some serious R&R after the move and short summer. We'll hit Whole Foods and Summit on Monday before we head back to Madison.

I'll be down again soon for another meeting in Homewood. I'll be checking out the area and this site for sure.

[cpg35223]

Originally Posted by dramamama

/thanks--I will check out the places you suggested. The place we're staying at over Labor day is a bit secluded, but we all need some serious R&R after the move and short summer. We'll hit Whole Foods and Summit on Monday before we head back to Madison.

I'll be down again soon for another meeting in Homewood. I'll be checking out the area and this site for sure.

Good deal. Feel free to ask our advice.

By the way, here's a great web site that details all the things to do in town.

activeculture.info: arts and cultural events in Birmingham.

[ionlife]

Is there a Nordstrom in Bham? Someone asked me about it today so I thought I'd ping you--course I could just do a store finder on that one--But I am lazy

[Southlander]

No Nordstrom, not yet. They are putting a store at Galleria (I think), but it'll be next year before they open. Your choices: Belk's, & Dillard's (both at Summit and Galleria), Macy's (Galleria only), and Saks (Summit only).
There are also some really cool shops in downtown Homewood - locally owned dress shops,stuff for the home, an awesome bakery, and lots of restaurants.