re: Great Eats Birmingham to Guntersville Al

In B'ham:

Saws BBQ - There are three locations. One in Homewood is my favorite, but Soul Kitchen in Avondale downtown has more options. The one in Crestline Park is good but too much like a regular restaurant for my BBQ preference.

Chez Fon Fon (French) or Bottega Cafe (Italian) - These two restaurants are the cheaper, more casual sister restaurants to Frank Stitt's high end joints. Both are fricking amazing places to eat, and you don't have to have a reservation or a few hundred dollars.

Gianmarcos - My favorite Italian in the city.

Mr. Chens - It's in Hoover, and it's some of the best Chinese I've ever had. They claim to be authentic, and there's usually a bunch of Asians eating there. They have a lot of weird options like intestines, beef belly, and pig's feet along with other interesting choices you may have never seen before. They do have your typical Chinese (Mongolian Beef, Kung Pao, Orange chicken, etc), but they really reinvented how to make it. You'll never want cheap Chinese again.

Avo/Dram - Avo is the restaurant and Dram is the whiskey bar. Both are ritzy and pricey for my taste, but they serve the best burger I've ever had in my life.

El Barrio - Good upscale Mexican. Not Tex Mex. Bit pricey for what you're getting, but it's damn good food. You could fight your way out to Alabaster and hit up LA Burrito, which is a authentic Mexican place with really cheap prices.

Trattoria Centrale - If you're downtown in the middle of the day during the week, you can pick up a slice of pizza and a salad for less than $10. Really nice cafe that has a simplistic menu.

Olive Branch - In Mountain Brook. Great Mediterranean. Small, small menu though. You need to like gyro or kibbeh to enjoy this place.