Recommended by the New York Times and first-place winner for Best Indian Restaurant in Western North Carolina in the Mountain Xpress Readers’ Poll every year since we opened in 2005, as well as overall Favorite Restaurant two years in a row.
Restaurants
Home to award-winning chefs and cutting-edge restaurants, Asheville has emerged as one of the best dining locations in the country. Asheville's local culinary scene offers everything from classic steakhouses to underground supper clubs. We have your complete guide to the best Asheville restaurants.
The Montford is a modern, rustic rooftop bar with seasonal craft cocktails and a local-inspired small plate menu. Sip specialty cocktails, craft beers, and wines while soaking in panoramic Blue Ridge Mountain views. We’re proud to source ingredients and craft beer from local artisans, breweries, and farms, supporting our community’s flavors. Breathe in the fresh mountain air at the Montford Rooftop Bar.
Voted best seafood restaurant in Western North Carolina every year since opening in 2005, a visit to Asheville is not complete without a stop at The Lobster Trap. Located in the heart of downtown, we bring you fresh seafood flown in daily, fresh beer from our own Oyster House Brewing Company, and fresh music from local musicians every night. Come experience fun dining where the mountains meet the sea.
The Red Stag Grill emanates Old-World ambience with hand-hewn tables, oak flooring, and intimate lighting. The menu features a masterful blend of chops, game and traditional favorites – all with an emphasis on the freshest local ingredients complimented by an extensive wine list. The restaurant also includes a dramatic lounge for socializing while enjoying brilliantly prepared libations. Located in the Grand Bohemian Hotel.
Whole Foods in downtown Asheville is a full service natural foods store dedicated to bringing you and your family the freshest and healthiest foods and products available. The downtown Asheville located at 70 Merrimon Ave offers grocery delivery, custom cakes, a vast selection of beer and wine, growlers, and plenty of parking!
Luella’s Bar-B-Que is named after Proprietor & Pit Boss Jeff Miller’s daughter Luella “Elly” and his Grandmother Luella. “Grandma Lue” expressed her love by doing all the cooking when the family would get together for Sunday dinner and the holidays. What she handed down was an understanding of how great food is created – honest good cooking, made with a loving hand. Luella’s Bar-B-Que is committed to offering expertly prepared smoked meats and scratch-made sides – Taste The Love. You’ll be treated to warm, friendly and caring staff, who enjoy their work and strive to ensure a truly great experience. CATERING: Beyond the restaurant doors, Luella’s has quickly risen up to become the barbecue caterer of choice in greater Asheville; from casual drop off to dressed up full service events.
Located in the historic Hayes & Hopson building in the heart of Downtown Asheville’s newly renovated Pack Square Park, this locally owned tavern offers outstanding food in a friendly and hospitable atmosphere. Whether taking in our large eclectic menu in the beautifully restored interior, watching your favorite sports on the 10 big screens, enjoying some of Asheville’s greatest musical acts, or enjoying on of the more than 30 brews on tap while relaxing on the parkside patio; at Pack’s Tavern you will experience an atmosphere that is uniquely Asheville.
Opening in early 2024, Soprana is an Appalachia-meets-Alps style rooftop restaurant featuring brick oven pizza and locally sourced ingredients paired with a curation of craft beer, wines, and cocktails. Perched atop the Embassy Suites in downtown Asheville, guests will enjoy sweeping, unobstructed views of the Blue Ridge Mountains in a casual atmosphere worth visiting time and time again. It’s an approachable hangout spot for locals and an inventive, only-in-Asheville setting for visitors.
Vinnie’s features “Old School” neighborhood Italian food reminiscent of Brooklyn, the Bronx and the North End of Boston. Vinnie’s is casual and family friendly. The aromas of home cooked Italian food along with the rhythmic sounds of Martinis being shaken to chilling perfection sets the tone for a night of fun and laughter. The menu runs the gamut with classics like Lobsters Fra Diavalo, Chicken Parmesan, Sausage and Peppers, Veal Marsala and Linguini and Clams, Pizzas and Heros. Family style dining is also available.
One of Asheville’s newest breweries, DSSOLVR has brought life back into a building once home to the Asheville Community Resource Center. Located at at 63 N. Lexington Ave., the craft brewery focuses on collaborating with local and regional artisans to bring you equal amounts of old school and new school. In addition to beer, they also offer a whole smattering of wine, cider, mead, and non-alcoholic beverages.
Fork Lore is a locally-owned independent Asheville restaurant featuring made-from-scratch cuisine. We source from local purveyors whenever we can and are proud to support our area farmers.
Serving lunch and dinner seven days a week, as well as Sunday brunch, Isa’s menu is specialized to celebrate the freshness of Western North Carolina’s seasonal harvest and fresh local produce. Executive Chef Duane Fernandes brings his seasoned culinary finesse to the table preparing cuisine that is ingredient-driven new American with a Mediterranean influence. Located in the heart of downtown Asheville at One Battery Park Avenue in the Haywood Park Hotel and featuring valet parking.
Where the Smokey Mountains meet the British Isles. Handcrafted beers and wine & spirits. One of Asheville’s favorite places to come and relax, listen to music, and enjoy fresh, locally sourced pub fare. Menu offers a broad selection of delicious meals. Located below the Laughing Seed Restaurant at 95 Patton Avenue.
A completely vegetarian restaurant specializing in foods from around theworld. The dishes prepared here celebrate fresh vegetables combined with all natural and predominantly organic ingredients. Quality and creativity have always been the driving forces behind the Laughing Seed’s eclectic international approach to vegetarian dining, and this has led to our popularity with vegetarians and meat-eaters alike. Local products, organic ingredients and a flair for global fusion combine to give our dishes a unique and satisfying character.
Critics from Southern Living to The New York Times are salivating over this new twist on Southern cuisine. Dine inside the charming restaurant or amid the vibrant street life on the sidewalk while enjoying the distinctive beer and wine list. Breakfast entrees always available, and dining until 11 p..m. on weekends. Our goal is to deliver a 10 on our Scale-of-Full-Flavor-Awesomeness, add several heaping helpings of fun, and be true to our internal credo: A Tupelo Honey experience should be a thousand times better than ordinary. A million times more delicious than you imagined. And worth coming back to for seconds, time and time again. South location at 1829 Hendersonville Road, also located downtown at 12 College St.
The Garden Grille and Bar brings a creative twist to Asheville’s bustling food scene, featuring a locally sourced menu that serves up breakfast and a casual dinner, as well as a variety of craft beers, wines, and signature cocktails. Enjoy freshly prepared breakfast and dinner in a relaxed indoor setting or on our expansive outdoor patio. At dinner the varied menu features soups – sandwiches – salads – pastas – and chef specialties. Full bar service is available. A children’s menu is available. The restaurant is open daily 6am-10am for breakfast and 5pm-9pm for dinner.
Perched atop the new Hilton Garden Inn Asheville Downtown, enjoy Asheville’s largest terrace-wide rooftop bar. We take “beer garden” to an elevated level. Our hand-crafted cocktails and locally-sourced beers can be enjoyed on our rooftop, all of which are served with a side of spectacular mountain views. Warm yourself by the outdoor fire pit or indulge in the indoor ambiance inspired by America’s industrial roots. Wherever you choose to relax, we guarantee you’ll feel right at home from the very first sip.
Introducing a new culinary experience in downtown Asheville…oneFIFTYone Boutique Bar & Kitchen…modern, eclectic, serving local fare in a sophisticated bar atmosphere. Located in the lobby of Hotel Indigo, oneFIFTYone invites Hotel Indigo guests, and Asheville residents, to come enjoy the experience. In the morning, oneFIFTYone serves fresh brewed coffee from Dynamite Roasting Co. in Black Mountain, NC plus a full, cooked-to-order breakfast menu, a variety of freshly baked pastries, organic juices, and vitamin water. For lunch, sample one of the made-from-scratch soups, specialty salads, wraps or paninis. Evening delights include gourmet “small plates” and flatbreads, nightly entrée specials, mouth-watering desserts, plus exquisite martinis, hand-selected wines and brews. OneFIFTYone is committed to using fresh, organic and seasonal ingredients that support local farms and businesses in the Asheville, NC region.
Noble Cider in downtown Asheville features a full bar program with specialty cider cocktails, flights of brandies and calvados, and Noble craft cider and mead products on tap. The restaurant offers globally inspired small plates and large platters designed for sharing. Expect an innovative menu with a range of flavors made from premium and locally purveyed ingredients prepared using slow-food cooking, a low-waste focus, and sustainably-driven techniques.
Whether you are in the mood for one of the best steaks in Asheville, or its Wednesday Wing Night, we have the feast that you are looking for. Our grass-fed beef, pasture raised pork and local mountain trout are perfectly seasoned and seared over hickory wood. Local craft beer from 5 different breweries on tap, signature cocktails, oak aged wines and many choices of liquor for the discerning palate. The locals refer to us as “Asheville’s hidden gem”. What are you waiting for?
Bar Hours 4:30pm-11:00pm | Restaurant Hours 5:00pm-10:00pm
Conveniently Located inside the Holiday Inn Asheville-Biltmore East
Authentic Japanese cuisine, great specials and lunch combinations, andfeatures full dinner menu. Open daily seven days a week. Sunday throughThursday 11:30AM-10:00PM, and Friday and Saturday 11:30AM-10:30PM. Dinein or take out. 640 Merrimon Ave., second floor, suite #205, Asheville,NC.