The best places to eat in Huntsville, Alabama, are its downtown restaurants around the courthouse square, its long-running Southern cafes and its North Alabama barbecue joints. For a first visit, book dinner at Cotton Row or Commerce Kitchen on the square, eat lunch at Big Spring Cafe or Ted’s Bar-B-Q, and save a morning for the bakeries downtown and in Five Points.
This guide is organized the way locals choose where to eat: by meal and by craving. Every restaurant linked below is locally owned and listed in our directory, where you can check hours before you go. For the bigger picture of the city, start with our Huntsville guide.
Where to eat in Huntsville at a glance
- Best for a special dinner: Cotton Row Restaurant, Commerce Kitchen, Mazzara’s Vinoteca.
- Best Southern plate lunch: Big Spring Cafe, Blue Plate Cafe, S&V Down Home Cooking.
- Best barbecue: Ted’s Bar-B-Q in Five Points, Salt Smokehouse in Lincoln Mill.
- Best seafood: Sea Salt downtown.
- Best brunch: The Standard Social Market, Revivalist, Good Company Cafe.
- Best with kids: Q Korean BBQ & Revolving Sushi, Ale’s Kitchen at Straight to Ale.
- Best bakery: The Moon Bakeshop; Mason Dixon Bakery & Bistro for gluten-free.
What are the best downtown Huntsville restaurants?
The best downtown Huntsville restaurants sit on or within a block of the courthouse square, and several belong to two local restaurant groups. That makes it easy to park once and walk to dinner. Browse downtown Huntsville restaurants for the full list.
Cotton Row Restaurant
Cotton Row Restaurant on Southside Square is chef James Boyce’s fine dining room, open since 2008, and the classic downtown choice for anniversaries and business dinners.
Commerce Kitchen
Commerce Kitchen, just off Southside Square, has served reimagined Southern cooking with a seafood accent since 2010. It is a good middle ground: polished enough for a celebration, relaxed enough for a weeknight.
Pane e Vino Pizzeria
Also from James and Suzan Boyce, Pane e Vino Pizzeria sits beneath the Huntsville Museum of Art at 300 Church Street SW, and its patio looks out over Big Spring Park. On a mild evening, those patio tables are some of the most sought-after seats in the city, so take reservations seriously.
Mazzara’s Vinoteca and Sea Salt
Matthew and Stephanie Mell, who grew up together in Scottsboro, run the Church Street Family group of restaurants downtown. Mazzara’s Vinoteca is their Italian dining room, set in a house at 102 Gates Avenue SW with roots that go back to 1848. Sea Salt is their seafood restaurant, inside a converted garage bay at 114 Clinton Avenue East whose doors roll up to the sidewalk on warm evenings.
Del Chuco Cocina y Cantina
Del Chuco Cocina y Cantina on North Side Square serves Tex-Mex by way of El Paso, Texas (the name is a nickname for the border city), so expect a regional point of view rather than a generic menu. It takes reservations and has outdoor seating on the square.
Domaine South
Domaine South on West Side Square runs a full restaurant and a dedicated wine bar under one roof, with a seasonal, locally sourced kitchen and a serious wine program. It works for dinner or for a glass and small plates before a show.
Where do locals eat Southern food in Huntsville?
Locals eat Southern food at the long-running cafes and meat-and-threes spread across the city, most of them a short drive from downtown. Our Huntsville Southern and soul food page lists them all.
- Big Spring Cafe has fed Huntsville since 1922 and calls itself the oldest operating cafe in the city.
- Blue Plate Cafe on Governors Drive has served Southern comfort food from family recipes since 2003.
- S&V Down Home Cooking on North Memorial Parkway grew out of a catering business in the late 1990s and serves soul food plates.
- Sac’s Kitchen on Mastin Lake Road is a mother-and-son restaurant cooking Southern dishes from family recipes.
- Walton’s Southern Table on Whitesburg Drive serves scratch-made Southern plates a few minutes south of downtown.
Where is the best barbecue in Huntsville?
The best barbecue in Huntsville is at Ted’s Bar-B-Q in Five Points and Salt Smokehouse in the Lincoln Mill District, with JJ’s BBQ+ for barbecue and soul food on the same plate.
- Ted’s Bar-B-Q in Five Points carries on a North Alabama family barbecue tradition that dates to the 1960s.
- Salt Smokehouse smokes meat in the redeveloped Lincoln Mill District just north of downtown.
- JJ’s BBQ+, founded by Army veteran Dr. Janis Hatcher, pairs smoked meats with soul food sides.
North Alabama is also the home of white sauce, the mayonnaise-and-vinegar barbecue sauce invented at Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q in Decatur, where Bob Gibson started smoking pork and chicken in 1925. It is about a 30-minute drive west and worth the trip; our day trips from Huntsville story covers Decatur.
Where should you eat breakfast and brunch in Huntsville?
For brunch, go downtown to The Standard Social Market or Revivalist, or to Good Company Cafe in Five Points, which serves brunch all day.
- The Standard Social Market downtown serves brunch seven days a week.
- Revivalist on Jefferson Street covers weekday breakfast, weekend brunch and dinner.
- Good Company Cafe at 720 Pratt Avenue NE in Five Points serves brunch all day, every day it is open; its first location is on Memorial Parkway SW.
- The Local on North Side Square is a breakfast and lunch counter built around handcrafted sandwiches, fresh bread and house-made spreads.
Bakeries and coffee
The Moon Bakeshop on Jefferson Street, family owned since 2019, mixes Southern baking with European technique. Mason Dixon Bakery & Bistro on Church Street NW is a dedicated gluten-free bakery where no wheat flour comes through the door, a real find for anyone with celiac disease. For coffee, Honest Coffee near the square is one of the busiest independent counters downtown.
Where can you find international food in Huntsville?
Huntsville’s engineering workforce draws people from around the world, and the restaurant scene reflects it. Head to University Drive, Airport Road and the MidCity District for the widest range.
- Dragon Alley in the MidCity District is the neighborhood’s Asian street food spot, with reservations, takeout and outdoor seating.
- Viet House on Airport Road SW is a family-owned Vietnamese restaurant with a long menu built to introduce newcomers to the cuisine.
- Q Korean BBQ & Revolving Sushi on University Drive combines all-you-can-eat tabletop Korean barbecue with a conveyor belt of sushi.
Where should you go for steak and Italian in Huntsville?
For steak, locals go to Nick’s Ristorante or one of the Steak-Out locations; for Italian, Mazzara’s downtown and The Boot in south Huntsville.
- Nick’s Ristorante on Bailey Cove Road is a steakhouse with an Italian accent, pairing Certified Angus Beef with third-generation family recipes.
- Steak-Out has served char-grilled steaks and burgers around Huntsville and Madison since 1986. The Martin family still runs it, now with several locations in Madison County.
- The Boot Pizzeria, also known as De Baggis’s Family Pizzeria, is a family-run pizza kitchen on Memorial Parkway in south Huntsville.
Where should you eat in Huntsville with kids?
With kids, pick casual places with room to move: Q Korean BBQ & Revolving Sushi, where the sushi rolls past on a belt, or Ale’s Kitchen at Straight to Ale and InnerSpace Brewing Company at Campus No. 805, which are both kid friendly. A Big Spring Cafe breakfast before the U.S. Space & Rocket Center works too. For more on family evenings at the brewery complex, see our guide to Campus No. 805 and Huntsville’s best breweries, and for a family afternoon of art, our Lowe Mill guide.
Huntsville restaurants compared
| Restaurant | Area | Style | Good for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cotton Row Restaurant | Downtown | Fine dining | Special occasions |
| Commerce Kitchen | Downtown | Southern with seafood | Date night |
| Pane e Vino Pizzeria | Downtown | Pizza and Italian | Patio over Big Spring Park |
| Sea Salt | Downtown | Seafood | Warm evenings, open-air dining |
| Big Spring Cafe | Huntsville | Classic cafe since 1922 | Breakfast and history |
| Ted’s Bar-B-Q | Five Points | Barbecue | A casual lunch |
| Good Company Cafe | Five Points | All-day brunch | Late breakfast |
| Q Korean BBQ & Revolving Sushi | University Drive | Korean barbecue and sushi | Groups and kids |
Tips for eating out in Huntsville
- Book weekends downtown. Mazzara’s, Pane e Vino and Del Chuco all take reservations, and Friday and Saturday nights fill.
- Park once. Downtown’s square is compact; park in a garage and walk between dinner and drinks.
- Time your drives. Memorial Parkway and I-565 get heavy at rush hour when Redstone Arsenal and Research Park let out.
- Check hours. Several cafes serve breakfast and lunch only. Each listing page shows current hours.
Browse all Huntsville restaurants in our directory for more options.
FAQ
What food is Huntsville, Alabama, known for?
Huntsville is known for Southern cooking, North Alabama barbecue and, just down the road in Decatur, white barbecue sauce. Its fast-growing population has also brought a strong mix of Asian, Mexican and Italian restaurants.
What is the oldest restaurant in Huntsville?
Big Spring Cafe has served Huntsville since 1922 and calls itself the oldest operating cafe in the city. Ted’s Bar-B-Q carries on a family barbecue tradition that dates to the 1960s.
What is the best fine dining restaurant in Huntsville?
Cotton Row Restaurant on Southside Square, chef James Boyce’s dining room since 2008, is Huntsville’s best-known fine dining restaurant. Commerce Kitchen and Mazzara’s Vinoteca are strong alternatives nearby.
Are there gluten-free restaurants in Huntsville?
Yes. Mason Dixon Bakery & Bistro on Church Street NW downtown is a dedicated gluten-free bakery, with no wheat flour in the kitchen. Many other restaurants note gluten-free options on their menus.
Where should you eat near the U.S. Space & Rocket Center?
The Rocket Center is west of downtown off I-565, so the easiest plan is a short drive east to the courthouse square, where Commerce Kitchen, Pane e Vino and The Local are all within a few blocks. Go early or late to miss the rush-hour traffic on I-565.