Greetings Foodtopia fans! One thing that can certainly never be said about our little mountain town is that there’s a lack of delicious places to dine. In fact, more often than not, it’s impossible to nail down just which one of Asheville’s best restaurants to eat at! Thankfully, we’ve got some local experts over at The Local Adventurer who have done their research and bring to us an ultimate Asheville food bucket list! The top 49 places are available below- and the full article can be viewed here.
49 BEST PLACES TO EAT IN ASHEVILLE NC – FOOD BUCKET LIST
- Hole Doughnuts (West Asheville) – Best Dessert in the Country, 2016, by Bon Appetit. Fried to order!
- Bull and Beggar (River Arts District) – Double cheeseburger and raw oysters to die for.
- Over Easy Café (Downtown) – Fluffiest pancakes around, oh my!
- Cúrate (Downtown) – Calamari Sandwich, paper-thin crunchy fried.
- Buxton Hall Barbeque (South Slope) – Best New BBQ Joint, 2016, by Bon Appetit. Try the lightly smoked, then fried chicken sandwich.
- Limones (Downtown) – Three cheese chile rellenos.
- Gan Shan Station (Grove Park) Black bean chicken + housemade pork dumplings.
- Cucina 24 (Downtown) – Wood roasted vegetables. All of the vegetable dishes here are top notch. Also, distinctive cocktails.
- The Admiral (West Asheville) – Amazing thick cut pork chop (order it cooked medium) and scallops.
- Mamacita’s (Downtown) – Carnita taco, simmered with smoky peppers.
- Little Bee Thai (Downtown) – Panang Curry.
- Farm and Sparrow Bakery (sold at All Souls Pizza and seasonal farmers markets) – Wood fired bread, house milled flour, and chocolate croissants.
- All Souls Pizza (River Arts District) – Smoked shrimp pizza with fermented chiles.
- Wild Ginger (South Asheville) – Outstanding chicken pho.
- Mela Indian Restaurant (Downtown) – Saag paneer and kozi milagu chettinad.
- Sunny Point Cafe (West Asheville) – Chipotle grits, maple pepper bacon, everything here is a hit!
- Chai Pani (Downtown) – Okra fries that are habit forming.
- Moe’s BBQ (Biltmore Village) – Smoked chicken wings and griddled cornbread.
- Sovereign Remedies (Downtown) – Pimento cheese puffs, light as air.
- OWL Bakery (West Asheville) – Raisin flax bread, moist and loaded with raisins.
- 12 Bones Smokehouse (River Arts District) – Blueberry Chipotle ribs and collard greens and corn pudding.
- Gypsy Queen Cuisine (West Asheville) – Fried cauliflower with tahini dressing & garlic aioli.
- En La Calle (Downtown) – Small plates, everything on the menu is fantastic! Superb cocktails.
- Smoky Park Supper Club (River Arts District) – Smoked Carolina shrimp, first shipping container restaurant of it’s kind built with 18 containers!
- Belly Up Truck (location changes daily) – Small menu, everything wins, everything made in house.
- Taco Billy (West Asheville) – Unique plantain tortillas, breakfast tacos are the best!
- Green Tea Sushi (West Asheville) – Dancing shrimp roll, Asheville roll.
- Ultimate Ice Cream (Grove Park) – Strawberry and coffee ice cream. These are full of flavor, not overly sweet.
- French Broad Chocolate Lounge (Downtown) – Ganache based drinking chocolate and a dizzying array of truffles, all made from bean to bar or brownie or pot de creme.
- Table (Downtown) – Thick and rich chocolate budino.
- Plant (North Asheville) – Lasagna Cruda, Asheville’s only fully vegan and vegetarian restaurant.
- Zambra (Downtown) – Pan seared local trout, small plates, romantic dining.
- Jerusalem Garden (Downtown) – Baba ganoush, you will lick your plate clean.
- Red Ginger (Downtown) – Pork dumpling in shanghai style, dan dan noodle.
- Grey Eagle Taqueria (River Arts District) – Carnitas arepa with smoky and super tender confit pork and the 39. Fiambre salad.
- Nightbell (Downtown) – Steak tartare ice cream cones, distinctive atmosphere.
- The Montford Rooftop Bar (Downtown) – Hand-formed house tater tots and the Purple Potato Pie cocktail
- The Noodle Shop (Downtown) – Basil eggplant.
- WALK (West Asheville) – Shrimp poboy, bread straight from Gambino’s in Louisiana.
- Bandido’s (West Asheville) – Banh mi trout taco, garlic braised yucca.
- King Daddy’s Chicken and Waffles (West Asheville) – Belgian waffle, simple and perfect.
- El Kimchi (location changes daily) – Spicy korean burrito and bi bam bap are the way to go.
- Marco’s Pizzeria (North Asheville) – Pesto pizza.
- Heiwa Shokudo (Downtown) – Altenderfer roll with tempeh, avocado, and maple almond butter.
- Buffalo Nickel (West Asheville) – Gnocchi with mushrooms and Buffalo Nickel cocktail.
- Rocky’s Hot Chicken Shack (West Asheville) – Best chicken tenders in town.
- Salt and Smoke (South Slope- within Burial Brewery) – Mississippi Roast Sandwich, roll up your sleeves for this one.
- Farm Burger (Downtown) – No. 1 burger and The Superfood Salad. They also have a brewery downstairs.
- Zia Taqueria (West Asheville) – Grilled and baja fish tacos.
If you’re looking for a way to start checking off your own Asheville food bucket list, be sure to join us on one of our walking food tours! Eating Asheville runs tours every day of the week and allows guests to experience many of these tasty establishments all in one afternoon! Tickets book quickly, so be sure to snag your spot today!
You can get more information on our website here, or give us a ring in the office at 828-489-3266 any day of the week!
Cheers Asheville!
