Things to do in Tuscaloosa on the day before an away football game?

quote:

---

Things to do in Tuscaloosa on the day before an away football game?

---

Lube your anus?

First off, expect the campus to be pretty dead and not to much going on. I expect most student will already be in NOLA or BR. I put this list together for some of the LSU fans this past November and thought you might find it useful during your time in Tuscaloosa. You can definitely tour the stadium, go to rolltide.com and look at the Bryant Denny page and I think it will have all the info about how to schedule a tour. I have done this myself and it is incredible. I think it is only like 5 dollars. Other Bama fans feel free to add to the list.

THINGS TO SEE:
-Walk around the UA campus (Quad, President's Mansion, Sorority Row, The Walk of Champions, Bryant Museum, Gorgas House, etc. It is truly a beautiful campus with many buildings dating back to pre-cival war)
-Manderson Landing Park (great place besides campus to take in a good run. It is a beautiful park right on the Black Warrior River)
-Ride through the historic districts around campus and look at some of the incredible houses.
-Take in a round of golf at Ol' Colony (One of the only public courses in the city. Most are private country clubs but this is a very nice course)
-Ride around the city and take in the massive damage done to the city by the April 27th tornado.


FINE DINING (all are great):
-Ephihany's
-Evangeline's
-Kozy's
-Chuck's Fish
-Opus
-Cypress Inn

TUSCALOOSA FAVORITES:
-Nick's in the Sticks (excellent steak and get a Nicodemus!)
-5 (awesome new restaurant in downtown T-town)
-Dreamland (overrated IMO)
-Archibald's (better than dreamland IMO)
-Depalma's Italian
-The Bear Trap (rooftop restaurant that overlooks the Strip)

BREAKFAST:
-Waysider (get here early or plan on waiting a long time)
-Rama Jama's

BARS (there are two central locations for the bars in Tuscaloosa, downtown in Temmerson Square or on The Strip. This is just a rough list, there are others on the Strip and downtown that I am sure I am forgetting)

Downtown Bars:
-Catch 22
-Innisfree (probably my favorite bar downtown, great drinks and a TON of "scenery")
-4th and 23rd (always have a good band playing but can get really crowded)
-Carpe Vino (wine bar/upscale feel)
-Wilhagan's (good sports bar with lots of TV's. pool tables, etc)
-Rythym and Brews (older crowd but still a fun bar)

The Strip Bars (all within walking distance to UA campus):
-Gallettes (this is the Greek bar so there will be A LOT of "scenery" here both Friday and Saturday. be sure to get a Yellow Hammer!)
-The Houndstooth (voted the best college sports bar in the country, this is a fun place also. Probably a lot of LSU fans will be here)
-Egans (don't like this place. Always seemed to be the artsy, sketchy crowd)
-The Jupiter (the place for the big bands to play in Tuscaloosa. If there isn't a good band playing do not waste your time here)
-Rounders (the closest thing to a club you will find in Tuscaloosa)

SHOPPING:
University Mall (your typical indoor mall with all the name brand stores)
Midtown Village (brand new outdoor mall with a lot of new shops and restaurants)
The Tuscaloosa Galleria (upscale boutiques, fine dining, etc)

Hope this helps! RTR

Again, if you are starting in Bham I'd suggest checking out Vulcan Park on Red Mtn. Check out the neat little interactive museum onsite and pay the $3 to take the elevator to the observation deck about 100 feet up the statue where you get an amazing view of downtown Bham, Soho Square in Homewood, and the rest of surrounding area.

As for Tuscaloosa, check out the Northriver Yacht Club area. It's a beautiful neighborhood on a beautiful golf course with some views of Lake Tuscaloosa. There are lots of sculptures as part of the landscaping if you're into that kind of thing. I'd just tour campus otherwise.

quote:

---

You left off the Bryant Museum.

---

Don't know how I left that off, thanks. The Bryant Museum is a MUST for anyone football an visiting the Bama campus.

One of my personal favorites in Ttown is Nicks in the Sticks. Grab u a Nickodemus drink and a steak and you'll be in heaven.

quote:

---

-Dreamland (overrated IMO)

---

Disagree. People who have never had it before love it. The original is a great place to go because of the history behind it but if you want the same food, with more sides, and a better restaurant feel go to the one across the river. Their banana pudding is outstanding.

The campus itself is a site of a small non-strategic civil war battle.

There are a few markings of this. The mound, roundhouse.

quote:

---

Great list, but very few are pre-Civil War.

---

Yeah, the only buildings that weren't burned down during the Civil War were the President's Mansion, Old Observatory/Maxwell Hall, the Little Roundhouse, and Gorgas House.

Thanks for the advice. Great list Rolltide6. :use:

We are flying in to Birmingham Wednesday night and will play golf Thursday morning. We are very lucky that we get to play Shoal Creek. Thanks to all for the recommendation on the other courses, they sound excellent, but Shoal Creek is special to me.

We plan to check out Birmingham Thursday afternoon and night and will be sure to visit Vulcan Park. I will be looking for other advice on our time in Birmingham.

If we don't have breakfast in Birmingham, we will go to The Waysider. We will definitely be having lunch in Tuscaloosa, so I will carefully consider all the recommendations. I was determined to go to Dreamland because I missed it last time. But I am also tempted by Nick in the Sticks and The Houndstooth.

We'll be doing the rest of the drive to Baton Rouge in the afternoon.

quote:

---

I was determined to go to Dreamland because I missed it last time

---

i hate to say this, but, these days you only go to dreamland for the experience of going to dreamland. by all means, go there for the history, but not for the ribs....:( i do still love the sauce!!