Asheville is a Foodie Town!
Our sellers recently wrote a great write up on places to check out, in Asheville, and the surrounding area.
Asheville is a foodie town famous for its incredible selection of unique restaurants, cafes, and food trucks. At last count, we found 137 eateries in downtown Asheville! The good news for you is that with all the competition, bad restaurants don’t last long. This culinary Darwinism means that if a restaurant has been in business for over a year, it’s probably damn good.
Not only is Asheville a foodtopia, it’s also world-famous for having far more breweries per capita than any other city on the planet (Portland, Oregon claims a similar number of breweries but its population is 7 times larger than Asheville). We have 30 craft breweries in town and another 30 in the surrounding area.
The choices can be bewildering, so here are a few of our favorite locally-owned eateries, breweries and cideries in no particular order. Some of them are world famous (rightfully), while a few are hidden hole-in-the-wall joints frequented by local workers where you can dip yourself a little deeper into North Carolina’s traditional culture.
BREAKFAST: Eat at BISCUITHEAD on Biltmore Ave or SUNNY POINT in West Asheville (or if you don’t want to wait in line, try HOME GROWN on nearby Merrimon Ave).
LUNCH: For a unique and delicious Asheville experience, sit at the lunch counter at the WOOLWORTH’S in downtown, or try WHITE DUCK TACO or 12 BONES BBQ in the River Arts District.
AFTERNOON SNACKS: On sunny afternoons, hang out at the original WEDGE brewery in the River Arts District (they have 2 locations–you want the one at 37 Paynes Way), have a pint of their famous IPA and a snack from the food truck and watch the freight trains go by. If ultra-chill afternoon tea is your thing, get your vibe on at DOBRA TEA downtown. A trip to Asheville also isn’t complete without a visit to the CHOCOLATE FETISH for a truffle (my favorite is the spicy Ancient Pleasure!).
DINNER: (we call it supper around here): Make your way to NINE MILE (seafood/Caribbean) in the artsy Montford neighborhood, TUPELO HONEY (gourmet Southern) in downtown, or VINNIE’S (Italian) on Merrimon Ave.
DESSERT/COCKTAIL: Watch the sunset over Asheville from the hoity-toity GROVE PARK INN and have one of their world-famous $15 mugs of hot chocolate, or if you’re downtown, head to SOVEREIGN REMEDIES for fancy cocktails. If you want legendary homemade ice cream, our favorite parlor is THE HOP on Merrimon Ave.
BREWERIES: For a great brewpub crawl, head to the South Slope (a short walk south of downtown) and check out CATAWBA, BURIAL, TWIN LEAF and GREEN MAN. Also, do not miss the SIERRA NEVADA brewery. No, it’s not a tiny craft brewery, and it’s a bit of a drive, but HOLY COW! It’s the Notre Dame Cathedral of beer. Even if you don’t drink beer, you gotta see this place to believe it. Go right now and click on the link and try to reserve one of their free tours (don’t worry if one is not available–you can still tour the place without a guide).
Also check out ASHEVILLE BREWERY TOURS. We’ve done it several times with friends and you’ll visit some of our best small craft breweries and sample a flight at each one–and they do all the driving!
In the warm months, we belong to an organic farm's CSA program and get fresh-grown produce every week.
Patrick Cumby
PS: take a look at their incredible home - a Parade of Homes double winner
