Carolyn Bolivar Hameen

Carolyn Bolivar Hameen (born January 17, 1949) is an author and former restaurateur.

Bolivar Hameen was raised in West Princeton and later Fairfield.

Bolivar Hameen married widower Ezekiel Hameen in 2006. Together they opened Z's Restaurant at 104 17th Street North in August 2008. At the time, Bolivar Hameen was a counselor for Jefferson County Schools. When Z's expanded with a banquet room, which became known as "Carolyn's Event Room", she became the hostess for the room and would decorate it according to the customer's taste.

The couple was forced to close Z's during the 2020 Coronavirus pandemic. Bolivar convinced Hameen to continue baking his famed vanilla-flavored, navy bean pies.

Bolivar Hameen is also a writer and historian. She published Swing Lowe: A Family’s Dedication To Preserving Music in The Magic City, a biography about prominent musician and jazz historian, J. L. Lowe, his family, and the founding of the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame, in 2013. She also wrote a play called Acting Out, which was produced at the Carver Theater.

References

• O'Quinn, Kristina (January 1, 2018) "Small Business Monday – spotlight on Z’s Restaurant." Bham Now
• Stuart, Shauna (May 2, 2020) "‘It’s a tough business’; Z’s Restaurant closes in Birmingham, but legacy lives on." The Birmingham News
• Ho, Justin (Jan 20, 2021) "After closing their doors, restaurant owners ask, 'What's next?'" Marketplace.