8 old-fashioned Alabama soda fountains that take us back in time

Feeling nostalgic for a hand-spun shake or a Coke float at an old-school Alabama soda fountain?

Longing for an orange-pineapple ice cream cone at Trowbridge’s in Florence, or maybe a hot fudge sundae at Payne’s Sandwich Shop and Soda Fountain in Scottsboro?

Whether you’re craving a black cow or a banana split, a key lime shake or a strawberry soda, here are eight classic Alabama soda fountains that take us back in time:

Mobile's best ice cream: Our top 5 — Sundays are "Banana Split Sunday" at Cammie's Old Dutch Ice Cream Shoppe, a Mobile favorite since 1969. (Photo courtesy Cammie Wayne)

Cammie’s Old Dutch Ice Cream Shoppe in Mobile

This Port City sweet shop has been dishing out delicious frozen treats since 1969, when it started as Widemire’s Old Dutch Ice Cream Shoppe. A quarter-century ago, though, Cammie Wayne bought the business from Edwin Widemire, who had been boss at her first job when she was 16 years old, and as AL.com’s Michelle Matthews writes, Cammie “has reigned as queen of the ice cream scene in Mobile ever since.” She and her husband, Larry Wayne, make about 700 gallons of ice cream a week at their creamery on Halls Mill Road, where she has opened a second location of Cammie’s. The original shop -- a bright yellow building that had been a Texaco service station in its previous life -- remains a Mobile icon. Cammie’s offers nearly 50 flavors of ice cream, which is served in shakes, sundaes, splits and, of course, by the scoop and in a cone. Creole praline is the customer favorite.

Cammie’s Old Dutch Ice Cream Shoppe is at 2511 Old Shell Road in Mobile, Ala. The phone is 251-471-1710. For more information, go here.

Carlisle’s in Alexander City

Carlisle’s, which opened as a drug store and soda fountain in 1914, has been the hub of activity in downtown Alexander City for more than a century. “Carlisle’s is sort of the epicenter of downtown,” says local attorney Larkin Radney, who, along with his friend and business partner, Kenny Riley, bought the building from the Carlisle family in 2005 but kept the Carlisle’s name. Radney’s connection to Carlisle’s goes way back. His father’s first job, when he was 12 years old, was working as a soda jerk at Carlisle’s, and his mother used to go there every day when she was a teenager in the late 1920s, he says. The pharmacy moved out a few years ago, but the soda fountain is as busy as ever, as students at nearby Alexander City Middle School swing by in the afternoons for milkshakes, limeades and cherry Cokes -- just as they have done for generations. “A lot of people come in with their grandchildren and say, ‘This is where I came after school,’” Radney says. “It’s a pretty neat tradition.”

Carlisle’s is at 12 Main St. in Alexander City, Ala. The phone is 256-392-3800. For more information, go here.

Gilchrist in Mountain Brook

Marvin “Doc” Gilchrist opened the Mountain Brook Apothecary in 1928, but not long after, the pharmacy became known as Gilchrist Drug, or, as it is better known today, simply Gilchrist. Like many drug stores from that era, Gilchrist also had a soda fountain, and although the pharmacy moved out in the mid-1980s, the fountain and lunch counter have remained. In 95 years, Gilchrist has had only four owners, the latest of whom is Leon Rosato, who bought the place about 21 years ago. Walk into the shop today, and sitting on the stools and at the tables, you’ll find teenagers and college kids, mothers and daughters, grandparents and great-grandparents -- many of whom have been coming here all their lives for chocolate malts, Coke floats and Glichrist’s famous fresh-squeezed limeade, which has been a staple here for as far back as anybody can remember.

Gilchrist is at 2805 Cahaba Road in Mountain Brook, Ala. The phone is 205-871-2181. For more information, go here.

Huggin’ Molly’s in Abbeville

Although it didn’t open until 2006, Huggin’ Molly’s is “frozen in the ‘50s,” a throwback to sock hops, hoop skirts and “Happy Days.” Abbeville native and Great Southern Wood Preserving founder Jimmy Rane’s retro tribute to the old-timey soda fountains of his youth is named for a larger-than-life local legend -- “a giant of a woman, maybe 7-feet tall and as big around as a bale of cotton” -- who, according to Abbeville lore, would chase down children who ventured out after dark and give them a huge hug before screaming in their ear. “Anybody who grew up in Abbeville grew up knowing the legend of Huggin’ Molly,” Rane once told AL.com’s Kelly Kazek. “If your mother or dad didn’t want you to be out after dark, they’d tell you Huggin’ Molly would get you. And you believed it, too.” Located on downtown Abbeville’s Kirkland Street, Huggin’ Molly’s serves milkshakes and malts, sodas and sundaes, build-your-own burgers and hand-cut fries -- as well as the signature Golly Molly, a brownie topped with vanilla ice cream, hot fudge sauce, nuts, whipped cream and a cherry. The hugs are free and friendly, and you needn’t worry about anybody screaming in your ear.

Huggin’ Molly’s is at 129 Kirkland St. in Abbeville, Ala. The phone is 334-585-7000. For more information, go here.

Payne’s Sandwich Shop & Soda Fountain in Scottsboro

A Scottsboro institution, Payne’s has been around since 1869 -- that’s right, eighteen sixty-nine -- when pharmacist W.H. Payne opened his drug store in its original location over by the railroad tracks. Payne’s settled into its current spot across from the Jackson County Courthouse in 1891, and during a renovation in 1939, a grandson, Jim Payne, added what a Scottsboro paper called “the largest soda fountain ever in this county.” Although the pharmacy closed more than 30 years ago, the soda fountain lives on in all its retro glory -- from the vintage advertising signs to the black-and-white checkerboard floor. These days, the mother-daughter tandem of Lisa Garrett and Jessica Walton carry on the Payne’s tradition, serving milkshakes, ice-cream sundaes and smiles to old-timers and newcomers alike.

Payne’s Sandwich Shop & Soda Fountain is 101 East Laurel St. in Scottsboro, Ala. The phone is 256-574-2140.

Stacey’s Olde Tyme Soda Fountain in Foley

Stacey’s Old Tyme Soda Fountain -- formerly and for years better known as Stacey’s Rexall Drugs -- opened in downtown Foley in Baldwin County in 1927, and although the pharmacy moved out in 2020, the soda fountain remains an enticing pit stop for vacationers passing through town on their way to Gulf Shores. Along with ice cream sundaes and banana splits, Stacey’s is famous for its house-made waffle cones and hand-spun milkshakes, including the popular key-lime shake.

Stacey’s Olde Tyme Soda Fountain is at 121 West Laurel Ave. in Foley, Ala. The phone is 251-943-7191. For more information, go here.

Toomer’s Drugs in Auburn

Started by Sheldon Toomer, who played halfback on Auburn University’s first football team and graduated from AU with degrees in agriculture and pharmacy, Toomer’s Drugs is a landmark in the Loveliest Village on the Plains that goes all the way back to 1896. “Shel,” as his friends called him, took out a $500 loan to start the business with his stepfather. At the time, Toomer’s was just “a little beacon of a business on a mostly deserted street,” according to the store’s website. Over the ensuing generations, the intersection of Magnolia Avenue and College Street came to be known as Toomer’s Corner, the place where, on football Saturdays, thirsty Tiger fans gathered to grab a cold lemonade at Toomer’s Drugs before the game and converged to roll the famous Toomer’s Corner oak trees after a big victory. The pharmacy closed several years ago, but the soda fountain remains a popular destination for students and alums. As David Housel, the former Auburn athletics director, once told The Birmingham News: “If you really want to see the Auburn spirit, get a lemonade at Toomer’s.”

Toomer’s Drugs is at 100 North College St. in Auburn, Ala. The phone is 334-887-3488. For more information, go here.

Trowbridge’s in Florence

Trowbridge’s has been a staple in the Shoals since 1918, when Texas dairy farmer Paul Trowbridge moved to Florence and opened Trowbridge’s Creamery, as it was then known, on North Court Street. The shop is not only still in the same location, but it also remains in the same family. Pam Trowbridge, the great-granddaughter of Paul Trowbridge, is the shop’s fourth-generation owner. In addition to the basic vanilla, chocolate and strawberry, Trowbridge’s also serves such specialty ice cream flavors as buttered pecan, black walnut and cookie dough. But its signature flavor -- and the most popular -- is orange-pineapple, which the Alabama Tourism Department has featured on its list of 100 Dishes to Eat in Alabama. Longtime customers had a momentary scare earlier this year when Trowbridge’s ran out of the orange-pineapple ice cream after its supplier stopped making it, but the crisis was quickly averted when a Tennessee creamery stepped in to fill the void.

Trowbridge’s is at 316 North Court St. in Florence, Ala. The phone is 256-764-1503.

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