The Alamite, Tuscaloosa, a Tribute Portfolio Hotel — Hotel in Tuscaloosa

The Alamite's website describes the hotel as an "upscale boutique hotel," but my experience was quite different. When we checked in on a Sunday, the front desk clerk was handling a guest's complaint about not being able to watch a popular NFL game from their room and wanting a refund. I initially thought that request was extreme, but our own experience changed my perspective. The clerk informed us that the hotel restaurant was closed on Sundays and Mondays, valet service was only available on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, but the rooftop bar was serving food.

We dropped off our belongings in our small room and headed to the rooftop, where we found the entire staff seated at the bar, chatting. When we inquired if they were still serving, one of the employees simply looked up to tell us to sit anywhere. This set the tone for an awkward dining experience.

My husband ordered a pizza, while I opted for the sliders. To our disappointment, my plate arrived with two tiny, greasy, and undercooked sliders, accompanied by an overwhelming side of fries. My husband's order wasn't any better; he received a burnt cheese pizza. This further added to our less-than-pleasant experience at a hotel that claimed to be "upscale." The food had an unusual taste, and we witnessed another small group come in, sit down, and then leave without ordering.

It was on Tuesday that we discovered the restaurant was open for breakfast on Monday. Unfortunately, we missed it because we had to self-park, which bypasses the lobby as the elevator goes directly to the garage.

The rooms were clean but had an awkward design, with a small desk/vanity area right outside the bathroom door. This layout caused an issue when my husband was on a Zoom call, and I walked out of the bathroom, inadvertently getting in the camera's view with no way to avoid it. For a hotel claiming to be "upscale," it seriously lacks modern amenities such as valet service and consistent dining options.

Overall, I'd suggest staying at the Embassy Suites for better service, an open restaurant and...

The hotel is very chic and beautifully done with every attention to detail having been made. Perfect location! The roof top “Roll Call” bar was super nice and very nice while looking over the city!

That ALONG with Malek Barber and (the lady that checked us in around 10:30 am on 12/30 last weekend) are the only two good things I can say. She was very welcoming. More about Malek later.

(Might I add Forte confirmed my reservation multiple times.)

But…now let me review Forte. We had a party of 6 reserved for 3 weeks just for the complete Alamite experience. Each couple made a dinner reservation. 1. Emmalines. 2. River. 3. Forte.

The pictures and vibe of Forte won! We checked in and went about our day walking around that area. Around 4 we headed back and had a drink in the downstairs bar. Once we ordered, that bartender quickly informed us that he was closing and would have to go upstairs. So…being confused we do as directed.

Arrive at Roll Call! Malek Barber greets us, accommodates us outside, starts the fire pit after we inquired, Promptly took our complicated drink order without missing a beat!!! AWESOME SERVICE!

We head to get ready for dinner. I was concerned because Forte was empty….. I stopped to confirm our reservation when I’m told that “they fired the entire Forte staff today and you don’t have reservations.” No I’m sorry… No I’ll help you find another dinner reservation….nothing. Just a “too bad” attitude. And, this lady was rude. Like it was our fault.

I ended up bolting to Chuck’s to beg for a table of 6 while the rest of my party got dressed. Thankfully they took us in.

After dinner we got back to the upstairs Roll Call venue.

AGAIN! Malek saved the night and exceeded our expectations!

My advice….make Malek your Manager. He was more impressive than the “Manager” that totally ignored our frustration with ...

I always try to give the best reviews when I go to luxury hotels. My first time experiencing this hotel and I truly believed that I was going to have a great experience. However, that wasn’t the case. I reserved a standard king room in which I could not get. So I settled for the accessible king room in which I accepted because they had a group of guests coming in for an event. I think it might’ve been for a wedding party so I just counted my losses because I didn’t want to ruin someone else stay. But, once I got to my room I found dirty linen/mattress. So now it gets bad because that’s a pet peeve of mine especially in an upscale hotel. Regardless , if I paid third party or not. Now, I am not a happy camper because I have somewhere to be and I only have 40 minutes to be there. After going back and forth with management( Ms. Wiggins), I eventually get the housekeeper manager who did assist me with kindness and got my bed squared away. And offered to take me to the event that I missed due to my husband going while I took care of the room situation. I then go to address the Operation Manager (Ms. Wiggins) who was very nice nasty towards me. After all I had endured she basically dealt with my situation as though I wanted something for free. But, nevertheless I was the one who suffered a great deal and still had not been totally satisfied. But, I digressed to say, I will never come to this hotel again. I will post pictures of the bedding and I ask each guest to make sure you check before you...