Veggin out: Feeling a little too meaty? Then mark your calendar: On Monday, March 20, vegetarians across the country will be celebrating the 22nd annual Great American Meatout, which bills itself as the “world’s largest grassroots diet-education campaign.” Locally, the Asheville Vegetarians club is urging community members to “usher in spring with a health meat-free […]

Flavor: MexicanAmbiance: Casual and funService: Cheerful, slightly spacey When I was barely into my twenties, my then-boyfriend – a decided tequila aficionado – and a group of our friends would occasionally step out for what we affectionately referred to as “schwag Mexican night.” These events were hosted by a shifting rotation of taco huts serving […]

Going smokeless: Step into the Asheville Pizza and Brewing Company on Merrimon Avenue and take a deep breath: The ever-popular “brew and view” has gone smoke-free, even at the bar area (of course, you can still pop outside for drag or two). Pickin’ and ‘cue: Barbecue and bluegrass will make an appetizing combination this Saturday, […]

Flavor: French comfort foodAmbiance: Cozy and casually refinedService: Knowledgeable and friendly, with occasional attention lapses A framed print on the wall across from my table read, “Redécouvrez l’ambience de brasserie authentique” (Rediscover the ambience of authentic pubs). Below this phrase was a wistful picture of a few friends presumably enjoying the ambience of their outdoor […]

Got pork?: For four years running, Warren Wilson College has helped Western North Carolina bring home the bacon. According to a news release from the college, the students raise hogs in a “humane outdoor environment without the use of any hormones or antibiotics” and feed them with grains that the students grow themselves. While raising […]

Flavor: Barbecue and comfort foodAmbiance: Casual to the point of being laid backService: Friendly My love for all things porcine started at a tender age. I remember being on road trips with my family as a child. As soon as we’d hit the countryside, my father’s eyes would glaze over, and suddenly my mother and […]

Dining for Pets: Don’t you just love these events that allow you to splurge on yourself and do some good at the same time? On Tuesday, Feb. 28, many area restaurants and businesses will share a portion of the day’s proceeds with the Animal Compassion Network to help fund spay-and-neuter programs, as well as to […]

Flavor: JapaneseAmbiance: Soothing, well-decoratedService: Good Seeking some fresh flavors, I packed my Picky Companion into the car and headed south to the Brevard area. Our destination was Sora, a new Japanese restaurant in a somewhat unlikely location – a strip mall flanking a Wal-Mart. If you can ignore the strip-mall environment, the exterior of the […]

Through the grapevine: The Purple Onion Cafe and Coffeehouse is going down under on Wednesday, Feb. 22, with a wine-tasting featuring eight Aussie vinos and a smorgasbord of hors d’oeuvres. Tryon Distributing’s Richard McKinney will be on hand to provide commentary on the wines. The event starts at 6:30 p.m. and costs $28 per person. […]

Flavor: Seasonal AmericanAmbiance: Upscale urbanService: Very good and knowledgeable What do you get when you combine urban style and sensibilities with a down-to-earth yet sophisticated approach to both food and service? You get a restaurant like Table, the gifted brainchild of husband-and-wife team Jacob and Julia Sessoms, with expert help from co-chef Matthew Dawes, co-manager […]

A very foodie Valentine’s: Unless he or she is on a diet, chances are your sweetie wants to be taken out to dinner for Valentine’s Day. Moonlit horseback rides are cool, too, but the dinner thing’s a bit easier (and warmer). This year, choice options abound: Zambra, which some consider the most romantic dining spot […]

I was in pre-vacation food quandary. This is the dilemma that arises in the time between the dutiful consumption of all of the perishables in the house – to avoid a foul-smelling homecoming – and the start of the trip. To buy more groceries would be wasteful, and most of the money had either been […]

Cook my Valentine: OK, lovers. You really want to make someone swoon this year? Here’s your ticket: Enroll in the Valentine’s chocolate cooking demonstration and class at Blue Ridge Food Ventures in Candler, and learn how to make your sweetie such delectable confections as truffles, chocolate Madeleine cookies, and chocolate-dipped strawberries (which are harder to […]

The waiter may tell you that the house specialty is the veal saltimbocca, or perhaps the Zeoli raviolis, stuffed with goat cheese and red peppers, but what Pomodoros serves up best is comfort – provided you’re comfortable with loosening your belt at the table. The restaurant is the brainchild of proprietor Tommy Tsiros, son of […]

New year, new eats: Want a bellyful to celebrate the Jan. 29 Chinese New Year’s celebration? Then look no further than Asheville’s Westgate Shopping Center, where Oriental Pavilion recently opened. The OP does Chinese and Japanese cuisines on a grand scale, with one of those quintessentially Asian menus listing scores of variations at accessible prices. […]

Flavor: Japanese, with an emphasis on freshnessAmbiance: Attentive and friendlyService: Cozy or tight, depending on your perspective The job of a restaurant reviewer has its merits, to be sure. But anonymity – something that the job requires at times – can be a difficult thing to preserve in a city the size of Asheville. I’ve […]

Honor roll: Chalk up another win for A-B Tech’s top-notch culinary students. On Jan. 7, a six-member team from the college’s culinary program won first place at the American Culinary Federation’s state-wide Junior Hot Food Competition in Charlotte. The fact that A-B Tech students have won eight out of the past nine competitions didn’t dim […]

How much do Americans like the fruit of the vine? A 2005 Gallup poll indicated that wine is in fact this country’s favorite alcoholic beverage: 39 percent of the people polled said that they preferred wine over beer and liquor – a 6 percent jump over the previous year. There are myriad reasons for the […]

Healing foods: If we are indeed what we eat, Dr. Michael T. Murray, a leading authority on natural medicine, wants us to be the healthiest our diet can make us. The author of several books, Murray’s latest, The Encyclopedia of Healing Foods, bills itself as “the most comprehensive, user friendly A to Z guide on […]

“This is not your typical cooking class,” says Barbara Swell, the kitchen pixie who’s just poured us each a cup of tea and tied on a brightly patterned vintage apron. “It’s more like being in Grandma’s kitchen,” she continues, and so begins “Lost Art of Pie,” part of a series of cooking classes Swell conducts […]

Docked by the Bay: According a press release from the Asheville Independent Restaurant Association (AIRA), Coral Bay Seafood Restaurant on Tunnel Road closed one week before Christmas without providing warning or severance pay for employees. The AIRA condemned the move in a Dec. 26 press release. “Everyone deserves an appropriate notice so they can better […]