Just a bit more than a week before Valentine's Day, Florence Main Street hosted our 4th Annual Chocolate Crawl! This year was just as great as the rest with delicious chocolate treats that were to die for and new businesses to visit as well as our returning favorites!Tickets this year sold out 3 days before the event and even though it was cold out, we had a great crowd! We saw so many new faces and heard a lot of positive feedback from the patrons. Many of them said it was the best year yet!On top of that, ticket holders enjoyed 15% off their purchases as well as a chocolate treat at participating businesses. Grier Insurance even gave away dinner for 2 at Ricatoni's to one lucky winner!
This year's chocolate treat winner was Cloth & Stone with their Chocolate Wine Cake! Great job to the Cloth & Stone team, we heard crawlers raving about that treat and the store it was in all day.A very close second was Miss Beth's Tailoring and Alterations with their Oreo Bon Bons! Miss Beth’s was a first time participant in the crawl this year and nearly clenched the victory, so congratulations to all involved; everyone seemed very impressed. 
A few honorable mentions this year were North Alabama Chiropractic's Chocolate Covered Bacon, Jack O' Lantern Farm's Mocha Turnovers, and Printers and Stationer's Mini Cannoli's, but there were many more amazing treats as well that were very well made and well received. We can’t thank the participants enough. The bar had already been set high by the previous years and the ball was still knocked out of the park by each and every one of you! If you missed out this year, don't worry; there's always next year! If you love bacon, be on the lookout for our Bacon Fest in June that will include our annual Bacon Crawl!
Dining Downtown - Ricatoni's Italian Grill
By Stephen Edmonds
Florence is a small, but busy college town with many choice places to eat that I believe do not get the recognition they deserve, so I wanted to take a minute of my time to write about my experience with one of our favorite restaurants. This past week, Florence experienced a rare amount of snowfall keeping my wife and I cooped up for a few days on end, so when we were finally able to emerge from our hole and stretch our legs the first thing we wanted to do was enjoy a meal at one of our favorite local downtown spots: Ricatoni’s. 
This is one of our favorite places to go for quite a few reasons. First and foremost, before the great food is even brought into consideration, their atmosphere is so pleasant and relaxed. Employees interact with each other in such a way that encourages guests to loosen up and enjoy their time in the establishment. The décor adds to the previously mentioned atmosphere in a very subliminal way, making anyone who steps in the door to dine more at ease and more susceptible to a good time. Even their menus seem to draw you further into the atmosphere. 
In my personal opinion, a business’s food is their strongest weapon for convincing customers to return, and in Ricatoni’s case this is doubly true. From a purely statistical standpoint, the portions are perfect and their food tastes like it should cost more than the affordable prices they have on their menu, and buying good food at affordable prices will make any restaurant goer feel like they are scoring a great deal. From a personal opinion standpoint, their entrees, appetizers, and desserts are appealing, fun, and they taste great. 
I feel like a blog post review of a restaurant needs to have at least some valid criticism, but after racking my brain and thinking about all my past experiences in this establishment (all the way back through high school!) I can’t find a single instance where I was anything less than satisfied. The track record of this restaurant speaks for itself; the food is great, the mood is great, and more than anything else, Ricatoni’s is a consistent dining experience that delivers time after time.
Starting off the Year with Florence Main Street
Do you have any new goals for 2018? If so, downtown Florence Alabama has what you need to chase those goals! Whether you aspire to be stronger, faster, healthier, dress better, or anything in between, the city of Florence has a local business to help you reach those goals. If you want to take your body to a new level physically, you’ll want to check Florence’s great fitness and health businesses. These are great options to have whether you need training and individual attention from an experienced instructor at the Fit Facility, OR, if you’ve already got a workout regiment and need a clean community environment to execute it in like The Basement Gym. For those of us who aspire to learn while they work out, Contender Boxing and Grit Fitness have boxing, yoga, and cycling classes that help us get into shape while learning new techniques! Add that on top of our Jack-o’-Lantern Farm and Valley Health Foods businesses that can help anyone make sure that their diet healthily compliments their lifestyle, and there’s no way that getting healthier will stay on the list of unchecked resolutions. As far as fresh and stylish clothing go, Florence AL has got you covered there as well. Whether you find your ideal style in Coco’s Boutique, Karen’s Corner, Harper Clothing Co., or Jar & Co. it is all a part of what the brilliant shop owners of Florence have to offer. Find an amazing piece of clothing that’s just barely out of your size range? Take it to Miss Beth’s Tailoring and Alterations and have it sized up or down to suit your needs. If more exotic clothes catch your eye, head over to The Eclectic for interesting and rare finds! With all of these businesses ready and standing by to help put you in your ideal clothes and help in any way they can, becoming a savvy, experienced, and thrifty shopper is easy.These are just some of the ways our thriving town can help you with your New Year’s resolutions. Since there’s no way anyone can cover every advantage to shopping in Downtown Florence on one simple blog post, I’ll stop here; but if anyone has any questions about businesses and services offered in the downtown area, feel free to call us at 256-760-9648 OR contact any businesses directly on their Facebook accounts! We all look forward to another great year of serving you.
Sweet Home FloAla: TVA Trails
For as long as I can remember, my family has always loved being outside. Thankfully, Florence and the Shoals area have no shortage of hiking trails and paths for adventurers with all levels of experience. Last spring, I went with my family to the Rockpile Recreation Area to enjoy the sun and the river.
One of the coolest parts of the trail was passing under the Singing River Bridge that connects Lauderdale and Colbert Counties. However, there’s also a beautiful waterfall and view of Wilson Dam, a plethora of challenging trails, and picnic areas and playgrounds for families with younger kids or those just looking to experience some of the natural beauty that the Shoals area has to offer.
Sweet Home FloAla
Hey there!My name is Emily Strickland, and I’m a guest blogger and communications intern for Florence Main Street. I am entering my Junior year at the University of Alabama pursuing a degree in Journalism with a double minor in Economics and General Business.In my time at UA, I’ve completely fallen in love with Tuscaloosa and all it has to offer. However, I’ve also learned that nothing can make one appreciate her hometown more than spending some time away.That’s why I was so excited to have the opportunity to work with Main Street promoting the city I love. I’ve lived in the Shoals area my whole life and jump at any chance I get to sing its praises. Throughout my internship, I’ll be keeping up a series called “Sweet Home FloAla,” highlighting all of the parts of Florence and the Shoals that I love the most.My hope is that readers would fall in love with this area just as much as I have. Thanks for reading!Emily