Small Bites: Area food news in quick bites

Gift of crepe: Twisted Crepe is opening its doors to the homeless of Asheville for Thanksgiving Day, providing lunch from 11 a.m. until to 1 p.m. Photo by Bill Rhodes

New bar opens this winter

Ready for a new, unpretentious watering hole with plenty of space to roam? Prepare for The Tiger Mountain Thirst Parlour, opening at 103 Broadway in February.

The new venture, to be opened by Sean Bickford (one of this year's favorite bartenders as voted by Xpress readers in the Best of WNC poll) and Jamie Hepler (of local band Soft Opening and former bartender at the now-defunct New French Bar), will encompass 3,600 feet in two stories. One floor will be outfitted with a stage.

"It's going to be a simple thing, really," says Bickford. "It will evolve as we're actually in the spot working on it." Renovations, he says, have yet to begin. "Basically, we just want a bar without any scene — just a place unfettered with any sort of concept."

There will be good drinks, says Bickford, and they'll be cheap. Expect unusual boutique bourbons, for example. "There will be good liquors that also happen to be really cheap. We'll be doing a lot of our mixers, grenadine and we might even make our own tonic water — but there's not going to be a single drink in there that has more than two or three ingredients."

"It will be simple and weird with good music," says Bickford. Weird how? "In a lot of our design elements, we ask ourselves, 'Would David Lynch like this bar?'"

Creperie does good for the holidays


Twisted Crepe
is opening its doors to the homeless of Asheville for Thanksgiving Day, providing lunch from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m.

The restaurant will offer a special Thanksgiving themed crepe, a few traditional sides, plus cookies for dessert. The creperie will also offer gift bags, and is looking for help from the community.

Items needed for the gift bags include:
100 toothbrushes
100 tubes of toothpaste
100 bars of soap
100 bottles shampoos and conditioner
100 bottles of water
100 cans of soup

Any help donating items for the bags, money for the lunch, or volunteering time on Thanksgiving is appreciated. To get involved, e-mail qusos@yahoo.com. For more information about the Twisted Crepe, visit http://crepesofasheville.com, or call 505-3855. The Twisted Crepe is located at 62 Haywood Street in downtown Asheville.

Fig brings holiday cheer to veterans

Fig Bistro has a history of opening its doors for the holidays, in part because so few others in town offer the service for people that might not have families to dine with. And Traci and Treavis Taylor, the owners of the cozy but sophisticated Biltmore Village eatery, have a history of warm hospitality, making Fig a good place to come in from the cold.

On Thursday, Nov. 24, the Taylors will open Fig’s doors to veterans and their families for a free Thanksgiving meal, to be served from 11 a.m. until 5 p.m. The offerings will include traditional Thanksgiving fare, including turkey, green beans, salad, dessert — all the fixings.

The meal, says Traci, offers her a chance to give thanks to veterans for their service. “I thought of what they give to our country, and I wanted to give back,” she says. The Taylors may make this a new tradition at Fig, she says.

Seatings are on the hour, and reservations are required due to limited space. They can be made by calling 273-5209.

Fig is located at 18 Brooke Street in Ste. 101. For more information, visit http://www.figbistro.com

SHARE

Thanks for reading through to the end…

We share your inclination to get the whole story. For the past 25 years, Xpress has been committed to in-depth, balanced reporting about the greater Asheville area. We want everyone to have access to our stories. That’s a big part of why we've never charged for the paper or put up a paywall.

We’re pretty sure that you know journalism faces big challenges these days. Advertising no longer pays the whole cost. Media outlets around the country are asking their readers to chip in. Xpress needs help, too. We hope you’ll consider signing up to be a member of Xpress. For as little as $5 a month — the cost of a craft beer or kombucha — you can help keep local journalism strong. It only takes a moment.

About Webmaster
Mountain Xpress Webmaster Follow me @MXWebTeam

Before you comment

The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.

Leave a Reply

To leave a reply you may Login with your Mountain Xpress account, connect socially or enter your name and e-mail. Your e-mail address will not be published. All fields are required.