Seasonal Food - Regional Focus
Cabo's Burritos opened about a month ago in the space formerly occupied by The Caribbean at 1971 Asheville Hwy, Hendersonville, NC. You can miss it if you don't know where to look. Cabo's is near The Ugly Mug, on the other side of Asheville Hwy, across from Ingles Market. Look for this sign: Here's a shot of the front: See the yellow sign on the right? It's pointing to more parking in a large rear lot. A good thing, because the three or four spots in front fill up … [Read more...]
Pop's Diner is iconic landmark, Carolina Diner reborn. Sitting at the convergence of five streets known to locals as "5 Points", Pop's is named in honor of owner Kim's father. Closed for only a short time, the diner underwent a pretty comprehensive remodel; new sign outside (see above), painted exterior topped with pink neon, new floor, new light fixtures, new tables & seating, new window treatments, new dishes, new menu and a jukebox! The picture above was taken just … [Read more...]
Warren Spahr pushed me over the edge. That's right, he posted a "must go to the new Horse Shoe Cafe" message on my Facebook Wall along with tantalizing Intel. I'd been reluctant - there are so many places on my "short list" already. Thank you, Warren! PIC and I had breakfast at Horse Shoe Cafe this morning. We'll be regulars. Lee R. Sedon calls himself "Head Cook/Owner", which is refreshingly humble considering his past credits. He did his culinary externship at the Biltmore House. … [Read more...]
Famous Louise's Rock House was the obvious place to stop for lunch after hiking Linville Falls trails. Why is the Rock House famous? Formerly known as the Linville Falls Tavern, the Rock House sits at the intersection of highways 221 & 183 and was built by Lenoir Franklin, photographer and stonemason. As the Linville Falls area developed over the years, county lines were drawn ignoring the Rock House. Today, it sits right where three different counties (Burke, McDowell, and Avery) … [Read more...]
I was having one of those days. The kind where I'd agreed to meet a friend for lunch and then went to the wrong restaurant. After a quick call asking her where she was, I headed over to the right restaurant - on the other side of town. Ugh! Luckily it was a perfect day for al fresco dining so we chose a table out on Sol Y Luna's fabulous, tree-shaded, umbrella festooned deck. This is the same Laurel Park space most recently occupied by Ling's Bistro. Just after we sat down, bean dip … [Read more...]
Usually I save hot dog consumption for ball games, but a group of us decided to see if we could find (and agree on) the best hot dog in the Asheville/Hendersonville area. We're not talking about all-beef, bratwurst, or any kind of specialty dog - just your basic hot dog. The only criteria for contestants is that the restaurant have the word "Dog" in its name somewhere. These posts will be short and sweet: basic comments, who won and why. First up, Hot Dog World vs Dog … [Read more...]
Marion, NC is about an hour drive from the Asheville area - perfect for a day trip. And Sis gets all the credit for the itinerary this time. We began at Carson House. Built in 1793, this home began as one big room downstairs, on the left side of the house as it's pictured below, and another one above. It expanded with an expanding family and made it through northern troop occupation during the Civil War without being burned, although all the original furniture was. Our tour was led by … [Read more...]
I've been scrambling lately, trying to keep up with all the amazing things going on in the Carolina food world as well as organizing the April 5-6 Hendersonville-Flat Rock Small Plate Crawl. So this is going to be a quick one about a place you really should know about: Bruce's Fabulous Foods in Marion, NC. We three caballeros (myself and two sisters) stopped at Bruce's for lunch a couple weeks ago. The front of the building is nothing special. In fact, driving down Marion's main drag, you could … [Read more...]
There's no gambling involved - you can expect consistently good food and friendly staff every time you go to Thai Spice. Because it opened to very mixed reviews - it's authentic, it's not authentic, it's not spicy enough, it's just right - I've taken my time, making half a dozen visits before writing this review. In the interest of full disclosure, I'd like to say here and now that I'm in no way an expert on Thai cuisine and that this review is written from the perspective … [Read more...]
PIC and I had a blast at Vue Wine Bar and Restaurant's Wine Dinner last Wednesday, December 1st. I say we had a blast because it was an experience filled with very good food, very good wine and very good people. And by people, I mean other diners as well as Vue staff. Vue has changed. New owner, new Executive Chef, new staff, new menu, new pricing, new attitude. Before going farther, be warned that this review is "image heavy". Some may not be the best shots due to very low … [Read more...]
