Birmingham guide
The best restaurants for big groups in Birmingham
Birmingham has 13 standout restaurants for big groups worth your time — these are the ones locals actually send people to, ranked by how well-loved each spot is and checked by hand. El Barrio, Good People Brewing and Paramount lead the list. No chains, nobody pays to rank.
El Barrio
Modern Mexican & weekend brunch. The downtown original on Second Avenue North; the second one is in West Homewood. Weekend brunch is the big draw.
Good People Brewing
Alabama's oldest brewery. Alabama's oldest brewery, across the street from Regions Field. Get a beer before a Barons game.
Paramount
Burgers & vintage arcade. Old arcade cabinets, a good burger, and a crowd that ends up on the sidewalk on 20th Street.
Tortugas Homestyle Pizza
Pizza by the slice. Slice shop near Regions Field. Food Network picked it for Alabama in its 50 states of pizza slices.
Food Network: Alabama's best pizza slice
Paramount (West Homewood)
Burgers, wings & Skee-Ball. The second Paramount, at West Row, with Skee-Ball, claw machines and a long draft list. A hallway connects it to El Barrio.
El Barrio (West Homewood)
Mexican-Southern plates and margaritas. The downtown Birmingham favorite, now in Homewood's West Row development. Mexican and Southern cooking mixed together.
Black Market Bar & Grill
Bar food till 2 a.m.. Moved from Five Points to the corner of Third Avenue and 41st Street in 2024, in the old Common House space. Open late most nights.
The Ridge Eat & Drink
Burgers & bomb tots. Mudtown's sister restaurant on Rocky Ridge, open since 2011. Hot dogs and burgers to pasta, and a bar.
The Local Bourbon House & Eatery
Bourbon list & Wagyu smash burgers. Bourbon bar on Highway 31 in the old Hillside Music & Que space, under new owner Kiran Sunkavalli. Smash burgers, tacos and Southern comfort food.
Carrigan's Public House
Patio pints & pub food. Pub food and a long bar on Morris Avenue. The patio fills up when it's nice out.
SoHo Social
Patio drinks on SoHo Square. Where Homewood goes after work. Busy patio, plates to share.
Mudtown Eat & Drink
A beer and a burger after the game. Cahaba Heights bar and grill where the neighborhood shows up on a Friday.
Otey's
Neighborhood tavern & game-day crowd. Crestline's neighborhood bar. Bar food, cold beer, football on Saturdays.
Good to know
What is the best restaurants for big groups in Birmingham?
El Barrio — modern mexican & weekend brunch. Good People Brewing and Paramount round out the top of the list. Every place is locally owned and checked by hand.
How many restaurants for big groups are on this list?
13, all locally owned and ranked by how well-loved they are. None of them paid to be included.
Which have a Michelin or James Beard honor?
Tortugas Homestyle Pizza.