Moonshot Creamery

Moonshot Creamery sits on the Riverwalk along the banks of the Black Warrior River at 1650 Jack Warner Parkway, Suite 1008, a spot that gives the shop one of the best views of any dessert stop in Tuscaloosa. The creamery was founded in 2016 by Paul and Audrey Vermilyea, a husband and wife team who describe themselves as devoted to Tuscaloosa and to seeing the city thrive. That local, family run ownership is central to how Moonshot presents itself, and it shows in the way the shop talks about being a community welcoming space built by parents who understand what that phrase actually means for families in the area.

The ice cream itself is handcrafted in small batches using grass fed Alabama milk, and the shop rotates through roughly 20 flavors at a time, including inventive combinations that go well beyond standard vanilla and chocolate. Dairy free options are available for customers who need them, and the shop hand rolls its own cones and hand spins its milkshakes rather than relying on pre made mixes. One recent standout flavor highlighted by the shop was Lemon Sugar Cookie, an example of the kind of playful, small batch flavor development that keeps regulars coming back to see what is new.

Moonshot is more than a straightforward ice cream counter. The shop also operates what it calls a wine cave, a curated selection of hard to find natural wines sourced from small vineyards, which it pairs with its ice cream program under one roof. That combination of an artisan creamery and a thoughtfully stocked wine shop is unusual for Tuscaloosa and gives Moonshot a split identity as both a daytime dessert stop and an evening spot for something a little more adult. For anyone who cannot make it in person, pints of Moonshot’s ice cream are also available for delivery through DoorDash and Uber Eats.

The shop keeps afternoon and evening hours that fit its riverside, destination feel. Moonshot is open Monday through Wednesday from 1 to 9 in the evening, and Thursday through Saturday from 1 to 10 at night, giving visitors a wide window to stop by after work, after class, or after a walk along the Riverwalk. The creamery can be reached at 205-210-8751 for questions about hours, private events, or its gift card program.

Because Moonshot is owned and operated entirely by the Vermilyea family with a single location in Tuscaloosa, it stands apart from the national ice cream and frozen dessert chains that have opened locations in the same shopping corridors around the city. The shop’s emphasis on grass fed Alabama milk, small batch production, and a genuinely local ownership story reflects a broader commitment to sourcing and building a business that belongs to Tuscaloosa specifically, rather than a franchise concept that could be dropped into any city in the country. For visitors looking for a true taste of Tuscaloosa’s independent dessert scene, paired with one of the best river views in town, Moonshot Creamery is a destination worth the trip to the Riverwalk.

The Riverwalk setting itself is a big part of what makes a visit to Moonshot feel different from a typical stop at an ice cream counter in a strip mall. Suite 1008 on Jack Warner Parkway puts the shop within an easy stroll of the Black Warrior River, so a cone or a hand spun milkshake from Moonshot can turn into a longer evening spent walking along the water. That location, combined with the shop’s later hours on Thursday through Saturday, makes it a natural stop for people looking for something to do after dinner downtown, not just an afternoon treat. The wine cave adds another layer to that evening appeal, giving adults a reason to linger over a glass of a hard to find natural wine while their kids work through a scoop of small batch ice cream.

Since opening in 2016, Paul and Audrey Vermilyea have kept Moonshot focused on the same core idea: ice cream made in small batches with real, well sourced ingredients, served by people who live in and care about Tuscaloosa. That consistency, paired with a genuinely unique riverside location and a rotating flavor lineup, has helped Moonshot build a loyal following among both University of Alabama students and longtime Tuscaloosa families looking for a dessert spot that feels like it actually belongs to their city.