New Ownership Transforms Cravings, a Downtown Tuscaloosa Staple

Between the pair, Daniel McCullum and Craig Williams own a significant share of Tuscaloosa’s most popular restaurant and bar destinations. From The Bear Trap on the Strip to the Avenue Pub downtown, odds are you’ve had a cold beer or a juicy burger from one of their many bustling businesses.

In October of last year, the two previously independent business owners took a chance and partnered up to save Cravings, a downtown Tuscaloosa staple, from closing its doors for good when former owner Dan Robinson decided to step away from the shop. Aptly named, Cravings is a specialty grocery store that offers a wide-array of snacks, sodas and beers at prices that are impossible to beat.

“Having this place around for the last five years, I frequented it, and I just didn’t want it to go away,” McCullum said in an interview with the Tuscaloosa Thread.

“Yeah, it was definitely a tough year, but we wanted to see this place survive and continue to thrive downtown,” Williams added.

Under their new ownership, Cravings has transformed from an odds-and-ends bodega-style store into a designer deli and one-stop-shop for any occasion. Friends looking to catch up over a specialty craft-beer, professionals and students searching for a lively but lowkey study space, and locals on the hunt for the best sandwich in town can all find common ground at Cravings.

The revamped menu offers southerners a taste at New York deli sandwiches while still providing crowd favorites like Bagels with lox, cream-cheese and capers or a mouth-watering sausage, egg and cheese breakfast sandwich. Williams and McCullum don’t take all the credit for their successful menu, and still offer original items like Taylor Pork sandwiches and lobster rolls.

“We’ve had a lot of fun just tasting different things and saying, oh! That needs to be on the menu,” McCullum said.

With their new focus on breakfast and deli sandwiches, Cravings now opens at 7 a.m., three hours earlier than it usually did under previous ownership. It remains one of Tuscaloosa's premiere pre-game spots, though, and you can still find ice-cream and alcohol packed into Cravings' wall-length coolers and a wine rack stretching the span of the entryway.

As Druid City locals and experienced entrepreneurs, Williams and McCullum make the perfect team to keep Cravings around for years to come.

You can find the city's most unique store and deli at the corner of University Boulevard and Greensboro Avenue, or follow them on Facebook here.