Published December 21, 2024

My best friend and I took a September girls’ weekend to Asheville, North Carolina. Asheville is known for its arts district, food scene, and the Blue Ridge Mountains. We had an amazing long weekend and I was excited to write a series about Asheville and recap our travel adventures and foodie spots.

The next Saturday, Hurricane Helene hit.

Videos circulated the news and social media of the devastation brought by Hurricane Helene, not just to cities in North Carolina, but 5 other states.

The small businesses and beautiful downtown we visited was underwater. Bridges and highways were washed away, the Blue Ridge Parkway was closed, and many families were stranded without access to food, water, electricity, or medical supplies.

I was shocked — what happened to our wonderful hosts who we stayed with during our trip? What about the restaurants and local shops we visited? Would they ever recover?

Now, nearly three months later, I am seeing positive news for local businesses. The Asheville Regional Airport (AVL) has reopened. The famous Biltmore Estate is open for Christmas as of November. Some of the restaurants we visited have been rebuilt and are open in a limited capacity.

While Asheville and many towns, especially families in rural areas, will continue to have a long road to recovery, I wanted to share how much I loved Asheville, in the hopes of continuing to raise awareness and support their recovery efforts.

5 Asheville Highlights for Foodies

While we visited nearly every shop in downtown Asheville, I want to share the top 5 food highlights from our trip. These include restaurants we visited for lunch and dinner, food-related businesses, and coffee shops.

5. Strada Italiano

Our first dinner in Asheville was downtown at Strada Italiano. For a Thursday evening, the restaurant was packed, and since we didn’t have a reservation, we opted to eat at the bar.

We expected to sit at the bar in the main dining room, but instead, we were led through an archway to a narrow room with another bar and bar-top tables. I enjoyed the aesthetic of this room more than the main dining room.

A two-sided laminated menu offered house-made pastas, signature pastas, traditional entrees, appetizers, salads, and desserts. Strada highlighted their gluten free and vegan options with little icons next to each dish.

We started with the focaccia and a French onion soup (without the cheese). We both ordered the trottole bolognese ($26.00) for our entrees. It had trottole pasta, ground veal, beef, and pork, sautéed mushrooms, veal demi-glace, three wine blend, and plum tomato sauce. 

Our meal was hearty and welcomed after our day of travels and getting settled in. The portion was generous and I barely finished my bowl, considering how much protein was in the sauce.

We didn’t try dessert, but I thought the atmosphere in this smaller bar and dining room was well worth the visit. The dishes were homemade and hearty and made for a good start to our trip.

4. Asheville Bee Charmer

We spent a full day exploring the shops on Broadway Street, including a visit to the Asheville Bee Charmer.

As a gardener who knows the importance of pollinators, I was excited to visit Asheville Bee Charmer. The store had gorgeous bottles of honey in various flavors as well as home goods and skincare products made of beeswax.

Asheville Bee Charmer also offers small samples of their honey so you can test the flavors before buying the larger jars! I thought that was a great idea, considering some of their infused flavors were spicy.

3. Twisted Laurel

We ate outside on the Twisted Laurel’s patio overlooking the intersection and park of South Spruce Street and College Street. The outdoor tables were filled with bachelorette parties in matching pink t-shirts and couples with their dogs whom were given fresh bowls of water from the waitresses.

This lunch was one of my favorite meals from our trip. I ordered the Philly Steak Sub which had ribeye, onions, peppers, mushrooms, mayo, and mozzarella with curly thick cut fries. My friend ordered their smash burger which was a double burger with pickles, special sauce, and the same curly fries.

Twisted Laurel was one of my favorite meals from our trip and I would absolutely revisit to explore even more of their menu.

2. The Times Bar & Coffee Shop

As book and coffee lovers, the vintage vibes of The Times Bar & Coffee Shop made it a highlight for our trip.

I loved the building’s architecture with its ornate windows looking onto the street, checkered tile floors, and tall ceilings. Crystal chandeliers hung over the counter and bar and heavy fabric chairs lined the bar. Small two-top tables held couples and one person working on a laptop. Above our two-top table was the neon metal sign for “The Times.”

I ordered an iced latte from their non-alcoholic drink menu. We were surprised to see that folks at the bar and small tables along the sidewalk were already enjoying alcoholic drinks in the middle of the afternoon.

Both of our drinks were delicious and The Times had a great atmosphere for hanging out in a quiet setting with a beautiful interior.

1. Bebettes | A New Orleans Coffeehouse, Asheville 

I started my last day in Asheville with breakfast from Bebettes. Unfortunately, as I write this post and add the map, it appears that both of the Bebettes Google locations are closed. I hope that this is temporary and that they open again soon.

Bebettes is a narrow restaurant with most of the space as the open-concept kitchen. Booth seating lines the opposite wall of the kitchen with small circular tables for one person. I browsed their laminated menu and placed my order. Once it was packaged and ready, I decided to sit outside at the mint-colored chairs facing the road.

I ordered a large drip coffee and the basic beignet sandwich, which was egg, cheddar cheese, and bacon on a beignet. I was surprised to see it came with a side of chopped fruit, including an apple, grapes, and orange segments.

The beignet was gloriously light and the bacon was thick cut and crispy. I enjoyed the fruit as a palate cleanser. The coffee was dark and strong and perfect for the brisk morning weather. Considering there were no other breakfast spots open this early in the morning, I found most other tourists wandering the street ended up getting breakfast from Bebettes and claiming one of the outdoor tables to enjoy their food.

Overall, it was a great visit to Asheville and I was glad to wrap up my trip with a warm breakfast from Bebettes. I hope they reopen either of their locations in the future, as I would love to try their dessert beignets.

Do you have a favorite Asheville restaurant?

Leave a comment below with your thoughts! If you’re looking for more food recommendations, check out my list of travel posts and restaurant reviews here.