Meh, below mediocre decent food
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7/29/2022
Birmingham is better than ever, meaning it is beginning to gain half of the stuff a normal city of its size has. The food scene is definitely an exception and is above average for a city its size if you prefer southern food and some French/Italian the quality is high for the price. I wouldn't say it's as creative and the choices of foreign foods doesn't come close to a Los Angeles etc. I grew up here, lived here for thirty years and moved to the West Coast.
You MUST be religious of some type here, otherwise people won't trust you. Most people are evangelicals. You could be catholic, Greek, etc, as long as you're a church attender somewhere. There is a new money Birmingham crowd of mostly doctors and business executives of several mid sized businesses and a lot of small business owners. It's a very business friendly climate on permits and taxes and such if you don't mind it being a small market and consumers with limited curiosity. The same type things tend to work here over and over. Don't try something new here. The city government is less corrupt than it used to be. Birmingham schools are terrible. There are some mediocre religious private schools and one or two really good private schools much cheaper than in other parts of the US. Housing prices are phenomenal comparatively. Rent is low comparatively. Beware of the large landlords. They'll try and scam you out of your deposit. Take tons of pictures. Beware of parking scams in popular bar areas with towing companies and no signs.
If you are very Christian and want a cheap place to live, I'd recommend it. If you're Avant garde, a liberal, or want tons of things to do I'd recommend a larger city. People are less racist than you may expect but also it's a real thing in a subtle way. The old money people run everything in Alabama as a whole. New money runs Birmingham but they have limited power due to the State Constitution. Many people who live here grew up here and it might be really hard to make new friends. Established friend groups. You may need to join a prosperity gospel church like Church of the Highlands to make friends or network for a job. There are tons of people with degrees who won't find a job here. Things are handed out on a personal basis to people the managers know. Talk to a local who knows the city well. There are some places you never ever ever want to go, especially at night, it is an extremely dangerous city. The suburbs are cheap and boring and solid middle class places. Mountain Brook and Vestavia kinda are luxurious but overly pretensious for what they are. Don't even bother with Mountain Brook if you're not from there. Homewood is trendy and overly expensive for the small old houses kind of like California with no beach. People are more polite here than on the West Coast, however beware, Birmingham is extremely gossipy and judgmental. Don't mistake polite for trustworthy, although I will say there are people in Birmingham who would give the shirt off their back for others.
Tyler | Murrieta, CA