Long before Interstate 565, a two-lane road connected the main stretch between Huntsville and Decatur: Old Highway 20. On a Friday night in the 1960s, drivers might be lucky enough to catch a bit of live entertainment if they passed Greenbrier Restaurant. Bands and other entertainers used to perform — on top of the roof!
Greenbrier started out as a drive-up only restaurant in 1952, so customers ate outside. They became known for having rooftop battle of the bands competitions.
“There’s still people that come in every once in a while that say ‘yeah, I played in a band,” said Jerry Evans, the restaurant’s owner. “Even a comedian I talked to one time said they won $50.”
That’s how many people in the Tennessee Valley came to know Greenbrier, and the rest come for the famous hush puppies.
In 1987, Evans and his mom purchased the restaurant, intent on keeping the beloved county recipes of the former owners.
Although they are perhaps best known for their hush puppies, they serve a wide variety of foods. Evans says their barbecued pork and fried catfish are their most popular dishes, but they serve everything from shrimp to hamburger steaks, and it’s all homemade.
Their corndogs are the only things that come frozen, everything else is hand-prepared including their pork skins and homemade sauces. This food keeps new customers coming in the door and old-timers coming back for more.
“We have a very diverse clientele, always have, but even more so now we still have a lot of the same people that have been coming here since the beginning of time,” Evans said.
Old Greenbrier Restaurant is located at 27028 Old Hwy 20, Madison, AL 35756…