About Asheville

I would like to think I have a leg (albeit a short one) to stand on when talking about Lebanese food. I grew up outside of Detroit, which is home to the largest Lebanese population in the country. It was commonplace for us to regularly eat shawarma, falafel, and more fresh, warm pita than any one person should eat.  Fast-forward to my 20s in South Carolina, and I realized that there was close to nothing in the way of Mediterranean or Middle Eastern food. Southern food had its place, but I would get homesick for the food I was used to in Detroit, and I’d make sure any return trip home…

In what I assume was a bit of a cosmic joke, I spent a week in Asheville when I was a young and chipper 20-year-old. It was mere months before I could legally partake in the (then very young) brewery scene or wander into a bar with my college roommate, who was also hanging out for the week here.  But we discovered, just blocks away from our hostel, the perfect spot for people who couldn’t legally drink but who wanted to have a destination in the evening: the French Broad Chocolate Lounge. There was something so special about walking into the sweet, crowded little shop and breathing in the wildly delicious…

The warmth gets you when you first step into Twisted Laurel – this is the quintessential lunch and dinner spot, equally comfortable giving you a quick sandwich meal as they are plating up a gourmet salmon for you to feast upon on a special occasion.  It used to be my in-laws’ go-to spot for a chill but fun New Year’s Eve, and as the new year approaches (as I start this review, anyway), I am thinking a lot about tradition, about how the areas in and around Asheville are always in cycles of welcoming the new and commemorating the old – Twisted Laurel is a great example of a venture…

The prevalence of fast food, even in Asheville, can be tempting for anyone who has a busy day and not a lot of time to plan what they want to eat. Having a go-to order at one of your local fast-food places may be the difference between fitting in soccer practice, homework, and nutrition before bed!  However, for me, the fast-food options near me tend to have low appeal for nutrition, and I end up being annoyed at myself that I didn’t bother to spend the extra few bucks and get takeout from a local place. It’s a value here in Asheville – if I can manage to eat local…

The moment you realize why Biscuit Head has such a cult following is different depending on who you are. For some, it’s just walking up to a breakfast joint on a random weekday and seeing a line out the door, since that does seem to indicate an intense following. For others, it’s that first bite of an exquisite biscuit sandwich or other flavorful entree. For me, though, it was the jam bar. For the uninitiated, rather than just popping a tasty-but-standard packet of jam on the side of your biscuit, at Biscuit Head, they go all out with a buffet-style array of jams that are house-made and not always standard…

When I moved to Asheville, the rumors about Chai Pani were intense – they’d just won that James Beard Award, and a seat in their first-come, first-served dining room or patio was the most coveted spot in town for a meal.  I’d known about the restaurant and its adorable storefront on Battery Park Avenue for years, having been visiting town to see family for ages, but it seemed like this humble, tasty shop had become an overnight hit among the best of the best in restaurants. I didn’t intend to visit the first time I went. Instead, I happened to be walking down the street at the right time on…