Eating is one of my great worldly pleasures. And dining out in new cities is such a lovely treat – especially when I have people to point me in the right direction. Asheville, NC offered up some tasty venues and if you visit, I will wager that you won’t be disappointed by the food or the hospitality. Folks here seem to take life as it comes, and then go with it and make it their own. I appreciate that whole-heartedly and the food-scene embraces the local and the fresh and is all part of that making-the-most-of-life vibe. And if anything, Asheville also encourages creative business ownership and the restaurants follow this same independent thinking paradigm. Along with a host of microbreweries, restaurants and bars are ubiquitous and none of them served me a bad meal. I had a week to see it all, and there was no way a week would do it. For breakfast, we didn’t get out a whole bunch, but we did try to get into Tupelo Honey Café one day and waited too long to do so. I was starved (never a good thing) and so when faced with a 30 minute wait, off we trotted instead to Early Girl (www.earlygirleatery.com) just around the corner. Everything looked great and I ultimately decided on eggs over easy served on fried grit cakes which were capped with slightly sautéed fresh spinach. The spin on eggs Benedict was served with a rich tomato sauce that I had on the side. How delish. All fresh. And as much as possible, local is the rule here. Hitting Mo Daddy’s on 4/20 was a treat unto itself with everything on the menu knocked to $4.20, an awesome grilled 3-cheese sandwich, jammin’ blue-grass band, and fresh (almost local – South Carolina) strawberries sold by the bucket by an old man on a mission made it memorable. Bar food but with an homage and respect for the food. Chorizo served amazing tamales to start our day, and a brunch that kept me ‘till dinner. Salsa served up fresh and refreshing mojitos in the late afternoon. The service here was a bit abrupt, but sitting outside on stools, enjoying the day, we didn’t much care. 12 Bones on the south side didn’t disappoint with decadent pulled pork, slammin’ jalapeno grits, and corn bread that I swear was baked with nutmeg. Breweries were interesting and entertaining and diverse. I am a malty beer-likin’ woman and cannot always be accommodated in this regard, but most of the time I did ok. Every brewery had its own personality and variety of beers, but my FAVORITE without question was Wedge…. Go there. An industrial artistic oasis along the train tracks and waterfront, their beers change often. I very much enjoyed the artistic welding and the Hemp Ale (www.wedgebrewing.com). Other stand out meals include a night of tapas at Limones with a great ceviche and ambiance to remember for a long time, and fresh pasta and Italian delicacies on offer at Cucina 24.
Probably the best meals of the trip were had in fresh air, on porches, or in dining rooms of friends. From my Philly perspective, spring and summer came early there in Asheville and it was good to be outside cooking on fire regardless of where we were. A stand out fantastic meal was one you can’t buy there on a visit. Easter dinner was prepared and served by friends of friends who I believe I can truly now call my friends after such a short time. Lamb, beef, and pork were all grilled to perfection and served with fresh everything. Gourmet meals among friends make the world a better place.
Asheville has option after option for great food and drink and it takes more than a week to tease it apart. I only scratched the surface. It will be nice to go back and see what the next trip offers, but I am sure of this…. it will be delectable and enjoyable.
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