Asheville Food Guide
Where to eat in Asheville
For a town of Asheville’s size, it clearly punches above its weight when it comes to food. With its diverse array of restaurants, cafes, and eateries, there’s something for everyone. Whether it‘s classic Southern cuisine, organic farm–to–table dishes, or international flavors, Asheville offers up an incredibly varied culinary experience. Its restaurants have been critically acclaimed for their use of locally–sourced ingredients and unique menus, so you can be sure that wherever you dine will be an unforgettable experience. Whatever you’re in the mood for, this guide will point you in the right direction.
Breakfast
Biscuit Head serves up fresh-made, massive biscuits, topped with goodness. They even offer their own gravy flights!
Taco Billy offers the best breakfast tacos in town. We highly recommend the Mama’s Favorite – chorizo, sweet potatoes, and goat cheese in a homemade sweet plantain tortilla – drool.
Hole Doughnuts fries up handmade doughnuts right in front of your eyes. Eat them there to get them at their freshest.
Barbecue
12 Bones has the best pulled pork in town in our opinion, but everything there is made from scratch.
Bear’s Smokehouse is conveniently located on South Slope, so it’s a great place to get a good base layer in the stomach before a day of breweries.
Hispanic
Little Chango is a casual Hispanic kitchen serving up open-faced arepas and numerous sides.
Salsa’s is an Asheville staple that has been around for more than 20 years. They turn fresh local ingredients into elevated Latin dishes, and the servings are huge!
Burgers
The Vault has won ‘Best burger in Asheville’ multiple times, and we cannot disagree. Stick around for a drink too, as The Vault doubles as a great dive bar.
Baby Bull is the casual burger spin-off from Bull and Beggar. These burgers used to be restricted to Mondays at the main restaurant, but when Baby Bull opened, we all won!
Burgerworx offers a different type of burger – the Smash burger. Their menu is small, but they do it all well, and it’s one of the few spots where you can grab a quick bite downtown.
Asian
Chai Pani recently won a James Beard award for Outstanding Restaurant, so it may be a longer wait to get in, but they won the award for a reason.
Heiwa Shokudo is a traditional Japanese restaurant run by a Japanese owner. It’s a small building, so get there early!
Gan Shan, located in West Asheville, serves Asian comfort food, from ramen to rice bowls.
Vegetarian
Plant is an all-vegan restaurant using local organic ingredients and building creative dishes completely from scratch.
Rosetta’s Kitchen is a cozy stop with a casual vibe for vegetarian & vegan comfort foods, with gluten-free options.
Laughing Seed Cafe is a warm cafe & bar serving organic, locally sourced international vegetarian & vegan fare.
Pizza
828 Pizza recently won AVLToday’s crowd-sourced contest for Best Pizza in Asheville. This family has been serving New York-style pizza since 1933!
Asheville Pizza and Brewing is located just down the street from the hostel, and is the only place in town where you can get fresh pizza, their own craft beer, and watch a movie!
Pie.Zaa is located in the heart of South Slope and their massive slices serve as a great base to soak up Asheville’s beer!