Tag Archives: Florence

Wine on Court

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Wine has come to downtown Florence, Ala.! While it surely was fun to buy wine at Mapleton Cellars (in the almost 200-year-old George Coulter House on South Pine Street), it’s equally fun to buy wine downtown now that The Wine Seller is open. The Mapleton folks needed the space back in their home, so they closed the business earlier this summer. But a new downtown wine shop is filling the empty niche Mapleton left. Open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesdays-Saturdays, the Wine Seller is at 324 N. Court St., on the corner of Court and Seminary where Lori Davis Gallery most recently was located (and where Culpepper’s Bakery was 40 or so years ago — you almost still can smell the cinnamon rolls and cheese bread). The new shop is stocked with wine for any budget and any occasion, with a helpful staff to help you figure out what you need. But wait, there’s more! What’s wine without cheese? Find the perfect accompaniment to your bottle in a small cooler stocked with delicious hard-to-find-locally choices. There’s also crackers, bread, vinaigrettes, oils and other gourmet goodies, many under The Wine Seller’s own label. Plus, you can find jewelry and other gifts here. The store is elegant yet cozy, with space set up for wine tastings (planned for twice a month, including First Fridays) and other events such as after-hours private parties. Get on the e-mail list at wineseller@att.net or call 256.766.1568.

Glass As You’ve Never Seen It Before

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Most people think of “glass” as something you drink out of or something you sweep off the kitchen floor when you get too fumble-fingered. But go to the exhibit at Kennedy-Douglass Center for the Arts in Florence, Ala., and you’ll have a whole new appreciation for the word. Cal Breed, owner of Orbix Hot Glass studio in Fort Payne, truly is a master glass worker. You’ll be amazed at the shapes and colors he creates — the luminosity of his work and the subtleties of pattern and texture are mesmerizing. Be sure to watch the video, on a laptop in the lobby, before you see the exhibit — learning how Breed and his workers create their designs is fascinating. You’ll never take glass for granted again! All pieces on display are for sale, plus there are smaller pieces in the gift shop. As always, one of the best things about an exhibit at Kennedy-Douglass is that it’s absolutely free. All you have to do is walk in and admire. A reception for Breed is 5:30-8 p.m., Thursday, Sept.18 (the last day of the exhibit), also is free and open to everybody. Kennedy-Douglass Center for the Arts is at 217 E. Tuscaloosa St., on the north side of Wilson Park. It’s open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday-Friday. Call the center, (256) 760-6379, for details and visit http://www.orbixhotglass.com/ for more of Breed’s work.

Seen and Heard

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Near downtown Florence, Ala., this morning — I saw newly reelected incumbent mayor Bobby Irons walking along a busy city street, in full business attire, picking up his own campaign signs. It sort of made me wish I lived in his town so I could have voted for him.

At the car dealership in Florence yesterday — I was waiting for my car to be given the OK after its oil change and other scheduled maintenance when three older (70s? 80s?) women in perfectly coifed hair and perfectly pressed pantsuits joined me in the waiting area. Apparently they were lifelong Florence residents and lifelong friends. One was the driver and the other two had come along for the car repair. Anyway, of course we all got to talking, although I mainly eavesdropped … I mean, listened. One topic of conversation was the “hobos” who would stop by their houses when they were little and ask for food. “Times were hard then, but my mama always cooked extra for the hobos,” one woman said. “She’d put extra sweet potatoes and cornbread in the stove pipe to stay warm and then when one would stop by, she’d put him at the table, get out a plate and feed him with the food she’d saved.” Another of the trio nodded in agreement. “Yes,” she said, “those stovepipes were the original microwaves!”

Recently in Birmingham, Alabama — My college-student daughter said that during conversation with a counselor who was an older woman (60s?), my daughter had to adjust her skirt as she stood up because her slip was showing. The woman asked her, “Are you wearing a slip? Nobody wears a slip anymore. I don’t even have a slip! Why are you wearing a slip?” And of course my daughter answered, “Because my mother makes me.” The more my daughter thought about this, though, the more she wondered if she was perhaps behind the times. So a day or so later she was with a couple of friends she’d grown up with who’d come to Birmingham to have lunch with her. She asked them, “Do y’all still wear slips?” The consensus: “Of course!” The reason why: “Because our mothers make us!” I am vindicated.

Really?

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An empty storefront in downtown Florence, Ala.

A closer look at the signs on the doors. Who says nothing exciting ever happens downtown?

Eagerly waiting …

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When, oh when, oh when, oh when, oh when, oh when?
When, oh when, oh when, oh when, oh when, oh when?

Here in northwest Alabama, the Tennessee River is the Great Divide. For those of us who live on the south side, we usually have to cross it multiple times each day to see the folks we want to see and go to the places we want to go. The new Patton Island Bridge helped, but the thing is that once you cross the river — either on the new bridge, the old O’Neal Bridge or Wilson Dam — it’s usually still a convoluted series of twisting turns and up one street and down the other and going out of your way to get to where you’re going. That’s why those of us south of the river cannot wait until this straight shot to Florence Boulevard is done. Absolutely cannot wait. It’s akin to anticipating the miraculous completion of four-laning Alabama 157. Any day now…

Demos’ Comes to the Shoals

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The Shoals is in for a treat: Demos’ Restaurant (pronounced “dee-muss”) is coming! This Middle Tennessee family tradition will be a great addition to northwest Alabama dining. The Murfreesboro, Tenn., location — the original of now four restaurants and soon-to-be-five — is our go-to spot whenever my husband and I are in the ‘Boro, and that’s true for several Shoals folks when they head up that way. Demos’ is know for two things: Exemplary and prompt service and plenty of good family food with a Greek twist. It’s famous for its steak-and-spaghetti combos, too. Let’s hope all that transfers to Alabama. My favorite thing about Demos’ is that it’s one of those one-size-fits-all place– it’s good for quick workday lunches, Sunday dinners, family suppers and special nights out all at the same time. Plus, it’s one of the most popular restaurants in Murfreesboro. In fact, hanging out in the waiting area is a great way to catch up with ‘Boro news because sooner or later almost everybody in town is there. My family especially likes the stuffed potatoes (blackened chicken, seafood or chili), the lasagna and the chili spaghetti (my husband calls this Mexican spaghetti) The Florence restaurant is going up behind Books-A-Million and should be open early next year. Coming to Alabama is like returning home, the Demos’ family says in a press release, since the great-grandfather of company president Peter Demos first operated restaurants in Birmingham in the 1920s. Read more at http://www.demosrestaurants.com/ — and prepare to eat well!!!