The Rocket City baby! Huntsville, Alabama has so much to offer that we ended up spending almost a whole week here! With the help from our friend Beth at the tourism center we were able to plan out four solid days of tours, food stops, and cool activities around the city.

Huntsville was by far the most diverse city in Alabama we visited, much of this coming from the influx in workers for both rockets and the FBI. There wasn’t a consistent southern accent like in other cities we visited which made it feel like you weren’t even in Alabama!

Let’s get down to it! Here were our favorite restaurants, activities, and places that we visited.

Restaurants

Beezr Gastropub

Our first food stop in Huntsville took us to downtown’s one and only Beezr Gastropub. The atmosphere as soon as you walk in makes you feel like you’re at a cool hangout spot and a spot where you can grab beer and catch up with friends.

They have a large selection of beers on top and directly in the same room are all the working pieces they use to make their own beer!

We found out the hard way, but Beezr only carries two gluten free options (besides hard alcohol). There was a mishap in communication when the waitress said all of their taps were gluten free but two! In reality it was the other way around.

The beers there were pretty tasty, and to go along with it they have an awesome selection of pizzas, wraps and other yummy foods (Most with great gluten free options).

The Veggie

Best vegan spot in town! The Veggie prides themselves on a quick grab and go vegan meal. They offer all kinds of meals including salads, wraps, and vegan burgers. We are also huge french fry people, and The Veggie makes some of the best (also, they’re cheap!).

This is a great food stop, especially if you are spending the afternoon exploring Lowe Mill.

Stovehouse

Have you ever found yourself with family or friends and everyone wants something different to eat? It can be hard to make sure everyone is happy, especially if you have some picky eaters!

Stovehouse is one of the best all around areas to grab a drink, get a bite to eat, and hangout! They offer indoor and outdoor seating, outdoor fireplaces, games, nice restrooms, and plenty of event space.

Click on the subtitle “Stovehouse” above to check out all they have to offer. Personally, we can attest that Charlie Fosters (coffee), Kamado Ramen (ramen), and El Cazador (mexican) are all great choices!

Mason Dixon

Let’s talk about the best Gluten Free desserts out there! Mason Dixon is ranked in the Top 15 for best gluten free restaurants in the US! They have a variety of pastries, breads, breakfast items and more! We were so fortunate because we got to eat some Mason Dixon goodies not once, but twice! The desserts.. FREAKING GOLD. The gluten free biscuits and gravy… What a treat!

If you have any gluten allergies, you cannot miss this stop! Absolutely zero traces of gluten here which leaves you with peace of mind as you stuff your face with cupcakes!

Phuket Thai Restaurant & Sushi

If you want Thai food that legit tastes like you’re in Thailand, then this is your place! Chef Tukky, born and raised in Thailand, has made a name for herself here in the US and at Phuket Thai Restaurant. Let’s just say, she makes the real deal Thai dishes!

They offer many traditional Thai food as well as sushi options. Only thing they are missing from the menu is mango sticky rice (maybe the best dessert of all time). When you order there will be several spice options. The Thai Spicy was on the bottom of the list, and not remembering how spicy Thai food is I chose it. Thai Spicy is very very spicy!

Rhythm on Monroe

What might be our favorite food stop in town, Rhythm on Monroe is the perfect combination of fine dining and casual. They offer a lot of different options for seating including: indoor, outdoor patio and even rooftop (not in the winter). They offer several different food items for appetizers, we went with the roasted lamb chops! We also each had an apple cider fireball delight and a glass of wine to go with our meals.

For main courses, they are very accommodating to everyones budget. Burgers and sandwiches were available in the $15 range, while you could get a bit fancier like we did this night and go for a ribeye or shrimp pasta. The food was INCREDIBLE here!! 10/10 would recommend coming by if you’re planning on visiting!

Phat Sammys

Great spot for a drink! Located directly downtown, a pineapple on the outside of the building signifies the entrance. Down the stairs you will find Phat Sammys, which gives you a Hawaiian tropical vibe for a couple of cocktails or fishbowls!

The bartender was very accommodating and made something completely original for Grace’s allergies. As you may or may not know, almost every mixed drink includes lime juice which Grace is allergic to. The drink they came up with was great!

They have a variety of dishes ranging from spam fried rice to peanut butter and jelly wings!

Things To Do

Lowe Mill Arts & Entertainment

Welcome to the largest privately owned arts facility in the United States! Lowe Mill is home to over 200 artists, 152 working studios, 7 galleries and 4 performance venues. It is really such a cool area where you feel as if all the artists are working together to create a special experience. There are three different stories in the main building, all with different artists, shops and studios.

On the outside of the main building, they have a lot of outdoor areas (when it’s warm), as well as additional buildings with different food and drink options! Like we said above, we went to The Veggie and filled our bellies with some high quality vegan food!

Lowe Mill does advertise that they are dog friendly. We didn’t bring the doggos this time, but if the weather were nice out we could see it being a great place to bring your dog friend!

Side note: We don’t live in Huntsville, but if we did you would find us down at Lowe Mill on a weekly basis trying out all the different art classes!

Twickenham Tour of Old Houses

With the help from Katie Stamps, we took a stroll into the old Twickenham area. This area is a special historic district that has been preserved and protected. Each house in this district must have approval before renovating the exterior of the property to ensure the integrity and authenticity of the house remains. Most of the houses here were made in the early 1800’s and survived the Civil War. Can you imagine all that happened in these houses?!

Twickenham is Alabama’s largest Antebellum district featuring several prominent architecture styles including: Italianate, Classical and Federal. Learn about the Spite House, The Backwards House, and the Yellow House which was painted yellow back in the 1800’s to honor a famous cow!

Weeden House Museum

Take a look into the home of Maria Howard Weeden. Maria, who was nearly blind, had the gift of recording the beauty found in a person’s eye. Most of her famous artwork were portraits, specifically African-Americans. As a child and later in life, Maria and her family had servants. Many of these paintings were them. We also learned of her unique style of sharing her art. She wrote poems to go along with each portrait, which gives you a completely different look into the portrait itself.

The house is very well taken care of with all of the original interior still intact. The architecture of this building is truly remarkable, especially when you think of all the tools that we have today.You will enjoy the tour with Gina who’s passion for the house is clearly felt!

U.S. Space & Rocket Center

You can’t be in the Rocket City and miss the Space & Rocket Center! Here you will learn any and all information relating to our exploration of the moon and space! You could literally spend all day here, and if you time it right you might be able to go to Space Camp!

First enjoy the Planetarium where you will learn all about our solar system and the infinity of space! It really puts your life into perspective, there is so much that is unknown. After, head through the variety of exhibits indoors. They have an in-depth children’s area, several vehicle and missile related sections, and then their massive training/ simulation area (this is where space camp happens). There are several additional rides/simulations you can do, however they have an additional cost ($10 on average).

Following the first indoor section, take a walk around the outside of the park where there are a lot of different retired planes/rockets/ submarines etc. This is also where you can find their G Force ride… Grace loves rides, I however do not handle them very well.

From the outside, hop inside the other building on the property. This building has the first ever rocket and capsule that took us to the moon! It’s amazing to think how many different things could have gone wrong that didn’t, especially with such a big group of people working on it! This building had several different games/simulators you could try out.

This is for sure a stop that you cannot miss if you’re in the Huntsville area! Plan to spend at least 2-3 hours here. If you need a break from all the fun and information, they also have a large restaurant with different food and snack options (think fast food).

Trash Pandas

We had the privilege of going on a private tour with Josh from the Trash Pandas! The Trash Pandas are a recently new minor league baseball team, who have built a beautiful baseball stadium right out of Huntsville, in Madison.

They have created a space that is sure to grow in the upcoming years, and offers their audience a true baseball experience with lots of space to move around during the game.

If you’re around in spring, get to a game if you can! Also, make sure to go to their gift store! For a minor league baseball team, they sure know how to sell merchandise!

Huntsville Havoc

What a time it was to watch the Huntsville Havoc out on the ice! For a minor league hockey team, the atmosphere of the arena on game day was incredible! We enjoyed what was Havoc’s first sold out game since before Covid!

The arena is located directly by the Embassy Suites, which made an easy walk to and from the game. We dabbled in a couple of ciders, watched a few fights on the ice, and had a great time being a hockey fan for the night!

Expecting to be in Huntsville in the winter? Don’t miss your chance at watching the Havocs and take in the environment!

Hopefully this gave you a few tips and tricks you can take away for your next visit to Huntsville, Alabama! If you found this article helpful, be sure to subscribe to our email list below. Looking to stay caught up in real time? Make sure to give us a follow on all platforms @theggoldenroad