Birmingham has never been hotter!

Birmingham is having a moment. There’s the new minor league ballpark downtown, a fresh crop of musicians redefining the Southern sound, and a food scene that’s garnering attention nationwide. Earlier this year, in an interview about the show Portlandia, co-star Carrie Brownstein stopped just shy of calling Birmingham the “Portland of the South.” She cited the revitalized downtown, the unusual wealth of creative types, and the local emphasis on “authenticity and craftsmanship.” That’s no surprise to us—the ’Ham’s never been better. Once known primarily for its turn-of-the-last-century industrial legacy and its scars from the Civil Rights Movement, this foothills town, with more public green space per capita than any other city in the country, has reached a fever pitch of reinvention. That’s not to say Birmingham’s having an identity crisis. She still sits neatly at the intersection of high and low, modern and traditional, much like your grandmother who wore her pearls to garden. It’s just that, these days, the Magic City is proving she still has a few tricks up her sleeve.