I was pleasantly surprised by some of the Biltmore wine. The piedmont(s) of NC and Virginia make perfect sense as wine producing regions and they seem to be getting there based on some limited tastes.

Interesting how little action there is in this thread compared to Charleston, even though, having now been to both, Asheville may not have as extensive a dining seen as Charleston, but it's pretty damn close. One difference is that Asheville's dining scene does not reflect the Southern influence as much as Charleston's.

I'm not a picture/full report kind of guy, but here is some current information based on our visit:

The Admiral: This place is still terrific. Located in a former corner bar, the food is fun, creative and top notch. Think sweetbreads as a take off on chicken wings, with ranch dressing, a siracha sauce, and Texas Pete Jelly cubes (made out of the hot sauce). Or, oysters with an aoli that has fish sauce (Chicago restaurants, please do this)

Curate: A top flight tapas restaurant, easily at the level of Mercat a la Planxa in Chicago.

Nightbell: We didnt' try it, but it's the new restaurant by the Curate chef, who trained in El Buli and with Jose Andres in DC.

Table: A great farm to table restaurant, the bread was some of the best I've ever had.

Rhubarb: We didn't try it, but it looks to be doing very well.

Asheville is 1 hour from Smokey Mountain National Park, has the Biltmore, a funky wharehouse art district, a downtown with everything from art galleries to hippy clothing stores and a top flight dining scene. Highly recommended for your next vacation!

Had a lovely couple of days in Asheville in late June. Highlights, food/bev-wise were:
* A nice late lunch at Salsas, a funky little Mexican/Caribbean spot in the main town area. A nice variety of salsas, good guac and an interesting salmon dish that we shared. All very fresh. The Caribbean influence was fun.
* Terrific food and funky sour brews at Wicked Weed. We didn't get to the Funkatorium (where the sours, etc. are featured) but they had a decent selection of them at the main location. And the food was excellent. We shared Melon Gazpacho, a salad (don't recall what was in it but it was great), Crab Cakes and a delicious fried chicken sandwich with house kimchi and miso mayonnaise.
*Sunny Point Cafe--as good as SteveZ says!!!
*Rhubarb--good--not as good as I was hoping--not sure why--it just left me a little cold. Nothing wrong with it--just maybe our expectations were too high.
*High Five coffee--best coffee of the trip. Met some nice people and an awesome dog

Loved the area--we'll be back for sure!

Man, I should've checked this thread before a couple of recent stints in the area. We wound up at the Biscuit Head near the medical center (417 Biltmore Ave #4F, Asheville, NC 28801). A bit of an odd location but a tasty breakfast. I went with the Fried Green Tomato, it was decadent but delicious.


We also stumbled upon Rocky's after a long day of hiking. We really enjoyed the chicken - I went with medium. We took advantage of a nice daily special on whole rotisserie chickens and picked up two to use during the rest of our trip for sandwiches, etc.


We ate dinner twice at the Sierra Nevada taproom - a great place to visit for anyone who enjoys beer and food. Very picturesque with a lot of activity outside. Tried the lamb belly BLT which was very good. The wings are also excellent - like little lollipops.

any recent intel?

My sons were down there between Xmas and New Year. They loved Buxton Hall BBQ and the brewery next door. They went two nights in a row.

Buxton Hall Barbecue,
32 Banks Ave, Asheville, NC, 28801

Catawba Brewing Company
32 Banks Ave, #105, Asheville, NC 28801-4018

Any updates? I’m here til Friday and will have most evenings free. Prefer places that are easy to do solo, since I’m here for work and don’t have the hubs with me this trip. Thx!

We were there in April. Had a great meal at The Admiral, a little out of the way, but surprisingly good. I had the beef tartare platter. I don't remember what the other three in our party had, but all were impressed.


Mayfels, downtown, also wasn't bad for creole food.

The Admiral
400 Haywood Rd,
Asheville, NC

Mayfels
22 College St
Asheville, NC