Sometimes it is better to be lucky than good.
I was invited to a wedding in Asheville recently and decided to use the opportunity to visit some family that had moved to that area during the 2020 shutdown. I’ve visited that city many many times, but it had been 3 or so years since I was last able to escape to the mountains.
The lucky part of the visit was the fact that it was determined to be ‘peak leaf season’ when it comes to Fall foliage. The vistas were nothing short of spectacular and as you might imagine, endless.
Of course, this gave me a reason to enjoy some food and drink in the area. Food lovers all over the South know how rich and vibrant Asheville’s food scene is. For a city that size, it is just phenomenal. A quick pocket guide to everything I ate and liked over a VERY quick weekend.
Katie Button’s flagship restaurant is in my top 5 all time spots I’ve eaten in America. Have I enjoyed better food at more than 5 places? Perhaps. But the magic for me here is the combination of decor, vibe, energy and of course food. She calls it ‘a celebration of authentic Spanish cuisine.’ It features an award winning wine list and seeming endless variety of nibbles, bites and larger plates to share with a group. I think we ran through 2/3 of the menu. Simpy outstanding. Beware, I spent 2 plus months trying to grab a Friday night 4 top with no luck. I gladly waited just under an hour on game night for a few seats at the bar. Two others great restaurants that come highly recommended are Limones and Cucina24.
Rankin Vault Cocktail Lounge –
“The Vault” as it is affectionate known to many locals, is and old bank converted to cocktail lounge. Yes, great drink selection and 8 beers on tap, but it’s the cheeseburgers that will keep you coming back again and again and again. Widely regarded as Asheville’s best burger (with awards to go with it), The Vault is a great non-pretentious hang out right in the middle of downtown. I’ve had their award winning cheeseburger several times, this last visit I tried their new smash burger. As good as you might expect. Simply perfect. The are open for lunch, which comes in handy, but they are very strict 21 and up after dark.
Quite possibly the best doughnuts (photo above) I have ever had. The came recommended by may family while I was there as a must try. A mid-Saturday morning visit was met with a crowd standing outside the shop waiting on their boxes of freshly-fried amazingness. That said, I only waited 20 or so minutes for a half dozen, which is respectable on a Saturday morning. When they hand you a pizza-looking box that is actually warm to the touch, you understand why.
Inside were six glorious pillows of joy. Vanilla glazed, Toasted Almond, Cinnamon Sugar. There were a couple more flavors, but this was where it was at for me. I had to resist the temptation of eating 5 of them in the parking lot while they were still warm. Simply wonderful.
This spot came recommended by a Savannah chef as a place he’d been meaning to try but hadn’t gotten there yet. Fair enough, I’ll bite.
It’s the kind of place you regularly wish we had more of in Savannah. Attached to a grocery and meat market you can just smell the authenticity as soon as you walk in. We saw all walks of life in there. From the Spanish speaking families to the young ladies who probably just tossed their empty Starbucks cups into the trash before walking in. You follow? Everyone was in there. The food was very good. A complete display of toppings and salsa off to the side, the tortillas made fresh. It’s out in the burbs, but worth your time.
Breweries
I refer to Asheville as a ‘beer drinkers Disney World.’ There are breweries and tap rooms in seemingly every sliver of space in the city. As such, it is impossible to try them all. So, you hit a few and save a few for next time. Our stops included Dssolver (our favorite), Wicked Weed-very commercial yes, but a beautiful space. Burial Beer Company and New Belgium Brewing. New Belgium is off of downtown, but offers a spectacular setting along the French Broad River a beer-drinking decks overlooking.
Chemist Spirits has a beautiful (and very popular) tasting room with great cocktails as well. Absolutely loved it.
For a view, the AC Hotel in the middle of downtown has a beautiful and very popular rooftop deck with perfect views of the city and the mountains surrounding it.
A lot for 36 hours? We didn’t even scratch the surface.
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