With a foodie town such as Asheville North Carolina, restaurants and eateries are popping up everywhere. Some are at easy-to-find locations, while others are off the beaten path. Here are some stops we made in the past few weeks:
Salmon at Fig Bistro
Scallops at Edison
Shrimp at Stone Ridge Tavern
Crab Cake, Steak & Chicken at Ruth’s Chris
Chicken Quesadilla at the Cantina at Biltmore
Pizza at Frank’s Roman
Lobster Tacos in Sweet Potato Shells on Black Bean and Corn Salsa, Jicama Slaw and Chimichurri
As a college student, I have to eat on a budget. Well, I have to do pretty much everything on a budget. So, as I was trying to plan an epic Christmas present for my wonderful boyfriend, I realized that the college version of “epic” may just have to be a candy bar and socks. Luckily (or not so much), my boyfriend was in the same situation! After thinking about it for a while, we decided that rather than trying to spend too much money on items that the other may or may not even like, we would just go on a memorable date that we would both enjoy.
Well, I love food. I mean, I really love food. This is one of the many reasons I enjoy living in Asheville; I love trying new foods. Rather than just picking one restaurant out of the hundreds in the city, we decided to try five all in one night. As I said, I wanted to do something epic, and “epic” now meant that I would probably have to be rolled out of the last restaurant.
When planning the date, I wanted to hit some of Asheville’s best names, so naturally I turned to Ask Asheville and planned the adventure. Finally I narrowed my list down to the best diner, taco, sushi, tapas, and desert places in town.
My boyfriend, Jeremy, and I both run track for UNCA, and we headed out on our food excursion right after a workout, voraciously hungry. Our first stop was the Corner Kitchen, voted Diners’ Choice at Opentable.com, located in a quaint old house in the Biltmore Village. Since we didn’t know how much food we were going to eat throughout the whole evening, we decided to just go with one appetizer and, being the seafood fans we are, we went with the lobster tacos. And it was a great choice! The only problem I had with the dish was that I didn’t have 5 more plates of it. The lobster was buttery, melting in my mouth, and the savory slaw brought a little sweetness to the heat of the tacos’ sauce. That one plate assured me that I will have to go back to try the rest of the menu.
Molé Roasted Duck with cranberries, apples, and lettuce
I’ve lived in Asheville for a few years now, and I thought I really knew my way around the city. Apparently, I was wrong. So, rather than driving straight to White Duck Taco – one of Asheville’s best taco eateries – I showed Jeremy all around the dark and quiet night version of the River Arts District. On purpose, obviously, we weren’t lost. But, we got there eventually. And the drive was worth it. I had never made my way to the little restaurant, but as soon as I saw the colorful chalkboard menu I knew I would be coming back multiple times. I love duck, and I love tacos, so the combination of the spicy duck combined with the sweetness of the fruit all wrapped in a tortilla was like a love song in my mouth. I was right about coming back to eat there, by the way. We came back a solid two days later.
Smoked Salmon Sashimi
My knowledge of downtown also is not quite as extensive as I thought, but after a couple wrong turns we made it to Wasabi, voted 2013 Best Sushi of WNC. As I said, I love trying new foods, and sushi is something that I have never really enjoyed before, so I wanted to try one more time. I love sashimi, so I got the smoked salmon so that I’d at least have something I would like.
Spicy salmon inside, peppered white tuna, avocado, crunchies, tobiko, scallions, and wasabi sauce
Naturally, we got the most expensive roll on the menu, but it was well worth it. The salty, crunchy, meaty tastes swirling over my taste buds as I shoved the entire too-large piece of sushi into my mouth each time changed my view on the delicacy. Oh, and did I mention that I actually at the dish with chop sticks? This was probably my biggest accomplishment of the night.
Hot popcorn tossed with shaved asiago and drizzled with white truffle oil
Social Lounge and Tapas is located, luckily, precisely two buildings down from Wasabi on the same street, so we made it there in great time, despite already being full. In need of some snacks, we went for the gourmet popcorn and gorged on the entire buttery plate while chatting and watching a football game.
Golden Crisp Calamari, Onions, Anahiem Peppers and Lemon served with Zesty Plum Tomato Sauce
Apparently, seafood was the theme of the evening, so we got fried calimari also, off of Strada’s menu at the bar. It is hard to go wrong with fried bits of sea creature dipped in a sweet marinara sauce, and this dish did not disappoint.
Creamy Coconut Cake
For our last stop of the night, we opted to go to our favorite dessert place over trying something new. Old Europe has been our spot since that awkward “friends” time before dating, and there are always at least ten desserts that I want to cram on my plate every time we go. One of my goals has been to eat every treat in the glass case, so I tried the creamy coconut cake as this is one of my favorite desserts and I haven’t tried Old Europe’s version yet. The moist cake layered with sweet and creamy coconut icing melted in my mouth so fast that I had to get another dessert.
Chocolate Bourbon Chestnut Cake
As full as I was, I took my Chocolate Bourbon Chestnut Cake home and thoroughly enjoyed it the night before classes started while I mourned the end of break.
An evening spent with my wonderful boyfriend eating Asheville’s finest food and touring the city is a date I will not soon forget. I do believe this will have to be a new Christmas tradition!
-Adrian
When I start to write I want to feel a “yumminess” start to awaken me, trying to coax a story out. I do not sit down with a pen and look at the wall waiting for inspiration. Instead, I breathe in my surroundings, and exhale the thing that tickles me most. When writing about my amazing city, I do it much the same way. If something makes an impression on me, pretty soon, it’s ink spilled all over paper.
This week I could not stop thinking about Vincenzo’s Ristorente and Bistro in downtown Asheville. The first time I ate there was ten years ago when I was only 17. A prom date I soon regretted had taken me there, and at 17 I had no idea the taste of Northern Italy I was about to experience (nor the dose of culture). However, I do remember when I visited the real Italy only a few months later that something in Florence took me back to that pre-prom meal, which was the only good thing my date did that May evening.
I didn’t return for several years until one of girlfriends planned a special bachelorette evening for me the weekend before my wedding. I wish I could remember the name of the server who flattered me when he said every man on Earth would be crying on my wedding day. This is the kind of service women should receive everywhere in town, but I digress. On top of the service, I noticed things I had failed to as a prom-bound teenager, and it was more than just the wine list (which of course is phenomenal). It was the old world charm Asheville is so famous for touting on our rather young side of the pond. Certain parts of this city simply make the best eras stand still, and somehow Vincenzo’s captures more than one of them. First of all, there was the art-deco building that the little trattoria sits in…it was one of the casualties of poverty that left us one of our many pieces of architectural art in town. Moreover, there was a sound pulling me even closer to the jazz age…oh, that may have been the jazz music permeating out of the building. My guess is it was, and it was a smooth, smoky, almost tangible brand of jazz. It was the kind that ushers you right into its arms, clothing you in the cloth of a decade dedicated to music at it’s finest, where instruments and voices where explored and navigated through, only opening doors for what would later become a revolution…yeah I wore it that night, and whatever it was invaded me, and I dug it. Still, it took me a few years to make it back again. It was like the restaurant and I had become long lost lovers, passing in the night only ever so often…but tender are those nights we pass.
My latest venture there was just over a month ago for an old friend’s engagement party. I couldn’t wait. For one, I was still haunted by the ambiance, and two I wanted a reason to wear my new cocktail dress. Really, I wanted to feel fabulous and fussed over. We all did.
This time there was a different feel to restaurant. It was raining outside, and we’d had some unseasonably cool weather for the last few days of August. However, it was summer and still humid. There was a steam floating about the streets, and an eeriness in the air. It was a delicious eeriness however, a cozy one that made me curious.
We sat down at the picturesque table, and I noticed that vibrant drapes that didn’t take me just decades back, but centuries. The décor really looks like the Baroque Era in Europe got in a fight with 1920s America, but it works together harmoniously. I found myself noting ideas for my own writing room. It was yummy.
Still, I felt spooky tonight…maybe because it was later than usual, or maybe because of the cool rain. I didn’t know.
I asked the waiter, “tell me, is there a history to this building?”
“Ohhh yes,” replied the waiter, “it’s said to be haunted. During the Spanish Flu epidemic (in which Asheville lost 25% of the adult population) it was a furniture store that had its basement made into the mortuary when the hospital ran out of room.”
“Yum,” I responded.
I don’t personally believe in ghosts, but now I had a story. Suddenly the spirits in the basement gave this place a heartbeat. The final puzzle piece had come for me: the history. That’s the bone marrow of the things I love. I recommend Vincenzo’s to anyone. It is a great place to eat, drink, socialize, hear music, wear a cocktail dress for sport, and soak in the deliciousness of Asheville at its finest. It’s history, mystery, romance, and wine. It’s the perfect date spot, or place to sit mysteriously in fedora by yourself. Just eat there. Do it as a group, a couple, or individual, but however you do it, give yourself to it completely and become yummy alongside of it.
Photo above: My girlfriends and I standing in front of the mood-lit table and old-fashioned windows just before I ordered the 007-Bombay with a twist. Shaken, not stirred of course.
Eating mussels has not always been my favorite thing to do. I remember when I lived in Brooklyn, I would go to Sheepshead Bay on a seafood excursion and enjoy baby scallops, baked clams and more at Randazzo’s; but never mussels or oysters. Time changed, taste buds wandered a little, and I tried my first plate of mussels ever with a bottle of White Wine at Fiore’s, which is now Strada Italiano. SO GOOOOD! This was about 6 years ago and now I pretty much never miss the opportunity for a delicious dish.
After trying dozens of places in the Asheville area, we now have our preferred locations when we are on the hunt for mussels. Here they are:
1. Strada Italiano – this is the best dish that we have found in the area. Out of the 100 times (at least) that we have ordered mussels here, they have hit a home run just about every time. Once we believe they switched suppliers or chefs because the mussels were twice as big and the broth did not taste the same; but it was back to normal the following week.
2. Bull & Beggar – a new spot in town with a tasty menu and great place right near the Wedge Brewery. Their mussels were delicious and worth the trip to the River Arts District.
3. Bouchon – this has been a mussel hot spot for years. In addition to that, they have All You Can Eat mussels on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.
4. Avenue M – they are located on the northside of town and we have experienced some great mussels at this place. When we lived out that way, we stopped by here at least once a month for a dish of mussels.
5. Junction – we had high expectations when ordering, and they were met with a delicious bowl of mussels that we devoured too quickly!
6. Mezzaluna – this restaurant is located in Hendersonville NC, about 15 minutes south of Asheville, and their mussels are so yum!
It was Biltmore Village Restaurant Week and there were several great places to choose from. Rezaz, The Cantina at Biltmore, Fig Bistro, Ruth’s Chris, Red Stag and Corner Kitchen were all a part of this community event. We eat at all of these places regularly, because as they say.. “there is not a bad place to eat in Biltmore Village,” but we ended up calling Rezaz to see if we could make a last minute reservation. 2 hours later, we were sitting in their beautiful restaurant and eating some amazing cuisine. We bumped into a few owners of other eateries in the Asheville area while we were there, and great times were had!