Fiore's expands Fiore's Ristorante Toscana, Anthony Cerrato's classic Italian restaurant, is opening a second location in Arden at 2310 Hendersonville Road. But don't expect to see a carbon copy of Ceratto's downtown eatery. "It's going to be pretty different, actually," he says of Fiore’s South: Italian Comfort Food. For one, even though the menu will […]
Food fight The WNC Magazine Chefs Challenge series is back with new chefs, new secret ingredients — and a whole new venue. The challenges, to be held at Cucina 24 (24 Wall St. in downtown Asheville), will kick off Monday, March 7, and run through April 25. Last year, all of the action took place […]
A mountain of a burger Adam Richman would be proud of (and maybe a bit intimidated by) the newest menu item at Pack's Tavern. Richman, the star of the Food Network's Man v. Food, spends much of his time cruising around the country taking on food challenges that generally involve consuming stomach-churning portions of food. […]
Fast, friendly … and totally vegetarian Ready for something quick, affordable and still good for you? Capitalizing on the public’s increasing desire for healthy fast food, Nicole Diamantis and her partner Ryan Jeffries are opening Asheville's first vegetarian drive-through. The business, VegHeads Drive-Thru, will open in early March in the old Backyard Burger location at […]
Flying Frog is grounded The Flying Frog, an Asheville institution open since 1996, had its last night of business on Sunday, Jan 16. Both the upstairs bar and the restaurant, located on the corner of Haywood Street and Battery Park Avenue, are shuttered for good. "The decision to close came about based upon the fact […]
The Salsa’s dance? In last week's issue of Xpress, we reported that Salsa's, Hector Diaz's flagship Mexican-Caribbean restaurant, was moving. Not exactly, says Diaz. Though Diaz Properties did recently purchase the building at 23 Broadway St. in downtown Asheville for what Diaz says was an amazing deal (although he did reveal the building has some […]
Viva West Asheville! Sandwich aficionados that have been around town for a bit will likely recall Viva Europa. The convenience store and deli turned out awesome sandwiches from the little building on the corner of Montford and Pearson that now houses Tod's Tasties and To-Gos. When Viva Europa closed, many lamented the loss of the […]
More sandwiches? The Lion's Den sandwich shop recently opened inside the Grove Arcade, offering affordable light-lunch eats right next to the Fresh Quarter produce market. (The Fresh Quarter, by the way, is a great place for affordable light fare as well. The little market offers mostly produce, but also bags of spring mix, Greek yogurt, […]
Holiday bites The Hop Ice Cream Company is making Yule logs for Christmas. The confections are an ice cream take on a classic dessert, and are available for order through Wednesday, Dec. 22. The ice cream shop makes their Yule logs with jelly-roll cake from Creme Patisserie, which they roll with the customer's choice of […]
From the Usual to Avenue M As some of you know, Kathy Taylor and Les Doss sold the beloved Usual Suspects to another couple earlier this year. Taylor and Doss passed on the popular Merrimon Avenue bar and eatery by choice. It was time to step out of the business, they said, to perhaps do […]
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Posana: The team behind Posana Café is as interested in what comes out of the new downtown eatery as what goes into it (in this case, the usual Asheville-sanctioned mix of fair-trade, organic and gluten-free food and drink). Photo by Jonathan Welch “For about two years, we were playing around with the idea of a […]
Philly’s: Buncombe County’s only quasi-Hungarian restaurant—Philly’s, a Black Mountain sub joint with a few choice Hungarian items on offer—is expanding its menu. The restaurant (pictured here), which opened in February, is adding new sandwiches, kids’ meals and a soup of the day to its lineup. Philly’s manager Jesse Hardy predicts that owner Andre Pasztor’s Hungarian […]
Razcal’s: An Oakley area restaurant that few local foodies associate with ambitious cookery is attempting to carve out a serious culinary niche. “We’re going to emphasize in-house smoked meats,” says Razcal’s general manager Erin Walker. “We’ll have our own cured meats, our own andouille.” The kitchen manager overseeing the transition is Max Hussey, selected by […]
Dripolator: The Dripolator will leave its food menus behind when it heads north to its new location next month. “The theme is taking what we do really well, which is espresso, and putting more focus on it,” owner Jay Weatherly says. That means no more tempeh reubens, pesto-egg plates or any other kitchen-made fare, although […]
Scully’s: Paige Scully was among the many Asheville residents frustrated by not having “a great burger place downtown,” but one of the few to do something about it. She recently overhauled the menu at her namesake bar and grill with an eye toward becoming that very place. Scully’s now features 10 burger options, including burgers […]
Red Stag Grill: Adam Hayes, recently of Greensboro’s lauded (and LEED platinum) Print Works Bistro, will serve as executive chef of the Grand Bohemian Hotel’s restaurant in Biltmore Village, slated to open this week. The Red Stag Grill’s dinner menu, posted online at www.bohemianasheville.com, spotlights a wide selection of steaks and a variety of old-world […]
Looking Glass Creamery: With North Carolina’s reputation as a wine-maker region already well-established, Jennifer Perkins is hoping to add cheese to the state’s collective menu. “I would love to see Asheville become the Napa Valley of cheese, with lots of thriving cheese makers specializing in different types of cheeses and dairy products,” enthuses Perkins, who […]
Rocky’s Hot Chicken Shack: The secret to surviving the recession isn’t selling something people want: It’s peddling what they need. Think sex, drugs and blazing-hot chicken. Photo by Jonathan Welch “It’s literally one of those addictive things,” Rocky Lindsley, owner of the brand new Rocky’s Hot Chicken Shack in Arden, says of his signature dish. […]
Sugar Beet Cafe: The hardy sugar beet, a plant known for successfully sprouting in seemingly adverse conditions, lent its name to Sugar Beet Café, a breakfast-and-lunch spot that last month bravely opened in the face of a deteriorating economy. But the recession has proven no match for the casual restaurant’s sandwiches and egg plates, which […]
