As restaurants and event spaces in Asheville have begun to reopen for on-site service, “dining out” has taken on new meaning. With many people still cautious about sitting inside a confined space, restaurants that have wide-open outdoor spaces are finding ways to use those areas wisely as they welcome back staff and customers safely. “We […]
The Westgate store is the first of eight Earth Fare supermarkets to reopen.
Launched in mid-May, the program is a $50 million commitment to help local independent restaurants open and get back to work.
In many Western North Carolina schools, cafeteria kitchens have never been busier as districts stepped up to continue providing meals to students through the end of the calendar year, then transitioned to summer feeding programs tweaked to meet current needs.
When restaurant dining rooms closed, some local chefs found a new way and personal way to share their love of cooking.
The digital cookbook raises money to support hospitality workers while keeping people connected to their favorite restaurants through recipes that allow them to recreate menu items in their home kitchens.
When N.C. Gov. Roy Cooper closed restaurant dining rooms in mid-March, the Kickback AVL website became “a madhouse,” says owner Jennie Townsend.
The county, North Carolina’s seventh-most populous, was fifth on the state’s list of counties by number of pandemic-related first-time unemployment insurance claimants in April. Of those claims, 21.7% were from workers in the leisure and hospitality industries, while 15.6% were from the trade, transportation and utilities sector.
Dazed and confused might best describe the reaction from local restaurateurs to Phase 2 of the state’s COVID-19 reopening plan, with side orders of determination and ingenuity.
Bread maker Eli Je Bailey debuted his business, Hominy Farm, at the River Arts District Farmers Market in February.
Jargon and Biscuit Head are navigating the restaurant shut-down by trying new concepts.
“A lot of my work right now is in helping people organize themselves and understand how they might create collaborative means of accessing meat,” says author, butcher, chef and instructor Meredith Leigh.
The impacts of COVID-19 on demand, supply and distribution for local hunger relief organizations were immediate and profound, thrusting MANNA FoodBank and its smaller partner agencies into a triage response.
As retailers face potential shortages of large-scale commodity meats, Asheville consumers look to local farms and butchers.
“It was an extremely tough decision,” says Chow Chow board of directors president Katie Button. “We’re determined to be back better than ever next year.”
“I think it’s hard for people who are used to doing it for a living, where you have to be fast,” says Sand Hill Kitchen owner and chef Jamie Wade. “I’ve really had to work on my patience, but we have a lot of time on our hands.
The more collaborations, the better for everyone,” says The Hop co-owner Greg Garrison.
“The face shields are a necessity for people putting their lives on the line,” says Refined Designs Chocolate owner Timothy Maguire. “The chocolates are a morale booster, and we’re happy to do what we can.”
Initially seen as a lifesaver, the Paycheck Protection Program has instead become a lead weight around the necks of many independent restaurants.
For 18 years, the Western North Carolina Aids Project has counted on the generosity of local, independent restaurants to fuel its annual fundraiser. With those restaurants struggling to stay afloat, WNCAP is hoping to return their kindness with a COVID-19 twist on Dining Out for Life. “Typically, the event model is based on participating restaurants […]
The owners of WNC’s independent restaurants have faced the complex question of whether to shutter entirely or devise a transition to takeout.