Food fight! Did you know that the WNC Magazine Chefs Challenge is still in full swing? The competitions take place every Monday at Cucina 24 on Wall Street in downtown Asheville. In the event, teams from two WNC restaurants go head-to-head over a secret ingredient, a la Iron Chef. The audience gets to be the […]

Finding Solace Bryan Kimmett, formerly of The Swag, an upscale inn located near Waynesville, and one-time employee of the L'Enfant Plaza Hotel in Washington, D.C., has signed a lease on the former Flying Frog Café on the corner of Haywood Street and Battery Park Avenue in downtown Asheville. Kimmett and his wife, Annie, (whose credentials […]

A decade of daily bread Ten years ago, West Asheville was a very different place. While it wasn't exactly a tumbleweed-filled ghost town, there was no U-Joint, Admiral or Desoto. The West End Bakery, however, put down its roots in a spot that would eventually become a social hub for the community — an anchor […]

Bake it Pretty raises money for Japan Bake it Pretty opened in early fall of last year in downtown Asheville. The Wall Street store carries kitschy-cute cake decorating supplies — think whale cookie cutters and little beer stein cupcake toppers. "We used those last year for Oktoberfest cupcakes," says owner Amanda Krueger, holding a handful […]

The Market Place mixes it up The Market Place, a downtown institution for over 30 years, will reopen on Tuesday, April 5, after undergoing a makeover to update both the look and feel of the venue. "Any business goes through evolutions," says chef and owner William Dissen, who took over The Market Place from Mark […]