A year ago, Qadeem Hassan and Justin Speegle first shared their vision for Ralph’s Listening Room with Birmingham. After a long road of planning, construction, and unexpected hurdles, that vision is finally becoming reality.

More than just a place to enjoy a cocktail, Ralph’s was created around a shared love of music and hospitality. Hassan and Speegle have spent months carefully shaping a space where the soundtrack matters as much as the setting, from the records behind the bar to the cocktails inspired by the music itself. Located on Second Avenue North, Ralph’s Listening Room officially opens to the public Wednesday, July 29, offering Birmingham a new place to gather, sip, and listen—and we’re ready for it.

Turning a vision into reality

For Hassan and Speegle, the journey to opening Ralph’s has been years in the making. What began as a shared love of music, hospitality and creating memorable experiences eventually grew into a vision for a space unlike anything they had built before.

A Tuscaloosa native, Hassan discovered his passion for hospitality behind the bar, developing his craft through years of creating cocktails, building relationships with guests and learning what makes a space feel special. Speegle brought a lifelong connection to music and an ear for sound that became central to Ralph’s identity.

The concept first took shape through a series of pop-ups around Birmingham, where the pair experimented with pairing carefully selected music, cocktails and atmosphere into immersive experiences. Each event became a glimpse of what Ralph’s would eventually become—a space where every element works together to create a feeling.

Music, memory, and connection

The name Ralph’s pays tribute to Speegle’s late father, whose love of music helped inspire the space. Inside the lounge, a photograph of Ralph sits above the room, surrounded by the details that make the space feel personal: rows of vinyl records, bottles of spirits and vintage audio equipment tucked into wooden shelves behind the bar.

Inspired by the Japanese jazz kissa tradition, Ralph’s is built around the idea that music deserves to be experienced intentionally. The soundtrack will change from night to night, moving through genres including jazz, soul, house music, new releases and guest-curated sets.

“Most bars today treat music as background noise,” Hassan previously shared. “But a listening bar is different. It’s about people coming specifically to enjoy and celebrate music.”

The Ralph’s experience

That same attention to detail carries into the cocktail menu, which is organized like a musical collection. The Track List features Ralph’s original seasonal cocktails, B-Sides highlights classic cocktails with unexpected variations, and the Highballs section pays tribute to the Japanese hi-fi bar tradition with creative takes on the classic spirit-and-soda drink.

One of the signature offerings is Hassan’s “Ring My Bell,” a cocktail inspired by the disco classic and made with reposado tequila, Cocchi Americano, yellow bell pepper, lemon, salt and pepper. The drink has earned recognition from both The Local Palate and Garden & Gun.

For Hassan, seeing the space finally come to life after so much time spent preparing for this moment has been difficult to put into words.

“To be in a space you spent countless days and nights in preparing for moments like you see, with a room full of smiles, is bigger than a dream could dream,” Hassan says.

After months of anticipation, Ralph’s Listening Room is finally ready to welcome Birmingham inside—a space designed to slow the pace, turn up the music and give people a place to truly experience both.

Ralph’s Listening Room opens to the public Wednesday, July 29, at 2204 Second Avenue North in Birmingham.