Asheville Restaurants..the good, bad, ugly (Henderson, Hendersonville: price, garden, sushi)

[Ed&Betty]

To perchance lighten on up the AVL nugatory negative's of late....

Unearth some culinary gems & gems of the greasy spoon...

local or visitor...your restaurant experience's...or story's

As I said elsewhere :

For us:

Zen Sushi, Merrimon Ave..Very Good.

Early Girl: Mostly pretty good.

Horizons, at Grove Park....Ugly

[BlkMtnMama]

Hello there! I am new to the forum and thought this would be a fun post to start with.

Some of our family's favorites:
The Mellow Mushroom - for pizzas and such
Marble Slab - for ice cream
The Dripolator - for coffee and other goodies

Being vegetarian, I also love the choices and food at Thai Basil and the Laughing Seed.

Great thread...looking forward to seeing everyone's replies!

[Rysher8]

The Good:

. Tequila's (Mexican; Candler)

. The Lobster Trap (Seafood; Downtown):

The Bad:

. Apollo Flame Bistro (Greek; multiple locations)

The Ugly:

. Flat Rock Grill (American and Seafood; South Asheville)

[jbird22]

My Favorite... Noi's Thai Cuisine (on Merrimon, up from Gusmo's/formerly Boston Pizza and the former location of The Hop) Fantastic Food, wonderful servers, spotless interior. Not fancy, but soooo gooood. (I adore Thai food!)

Pizza? Nick & Nates (Waynesville & Sylva locations)

Brunch? I have enjoyed Mayfel's and Tripp's.

Sandwiches and salads? Coffee Cup Cafe in Clyde (near Haywood Regional M.C.) you can see it from the main road. Great people, spotless place, WONDERFUL fresh-made soups, sandwiches and salads. Chef salad w/ cilantro-lime dressing is my favorite there.

an someone PLEASE tell me if there are any good Chinese restaurants in the Asheville area? Please....DO NOT say "Asiana".. Asiana must be Chinese for "lot of money for little quality"... Personal opinion, of course

Italian (fancy and a little pricey, but not too, too bad) Amici on Hendersonville Road. Good food and a little pampering never hurt anyone... mmmmm.

Has anyone been to Mela or Indian Garden (or both?) is one better than the other? I have Indian food on my list of places to try.

One more that I recently tried and enjoyed. Watched a ball game at "The Original Steakhouse and Sports Bar (also on H'ville Rd.) Food, beer and service was good. View of game: also good.

I look forward to other people's opinions. Good Eating to all of us! It's not even 8:30 AM and I'm HUNGRY!

[Rysher8]

Jbird,

I also like The Original Steakhouse. Not to sound like an advertisement, but you can get a good view of multiple games from any seat. Also, the food's pretty good. As for Chinese, I'm with you. I love Chinese food, and it seems like the Asheville area is totally devoid of the good, cheap Chinese options I got used to in the DC area (I know, I know, so kill me :-) ). Any suggestions on Chinese would be greatly appreciated!

[Ed&Betty]

We've been to Noi's, very different for a Thai place...
maybe its gotten better, I though it was a little to plain and bland.

[jbird22]

Originally Posted by Ed&Betty

We've been to Noi's, very different for a Thai place...
maybe its gotten better, I though it was a little to plain and bland.

They always bring me a bowl of chili pepper sauce. I like to set the spice level.

I think it depends on the dish. I do NOT like their Massaman Curry. I had a place in Atlanta that made it so well, I don't like many others. Noi's Massaman Curry isn't in the top 10 of good Massaman curries I have had.. I am not a fan of Pad Thai, either (too boring). Their Panang and Red curry dishes are good, and their Pad Kee Mau is wonderful. Singha is always ice-cold.

BUT - different tastes suit different people, and I understand that.

[vandemusser]

Has anyone been to Mela or Indian Garden (or both?) is one better than the other? I have Indian food on my list of places to try


I have been to both - they are both quite good (and I have eaten at a lot of Indian restaurants all over the country), but Mela is hands down the best Indian food I have had in the Southeast. I'm not a huge fan of lunch buffets, but Mela's is spectacular. My only warnings are that if you are a carnivore, the lunch buffet may leave you underwhelmed - typically they have one chicken dish on the buffet. However, the vegetarian dishes are so much better that you may not even care. That being said, their dinner menu has plenty of meat dishes. Secondly, they are not afraid of spice. Some of those dishes will knock your socks off with heat. Personally, I think it's refreshing that they don't pull any punches in this area.

Nice interior, good service, inexpensive, and a little loud (they need to some acoustical modifications). But all in all, my favorite place to eat downtown.

[jbird22]

Thanks Vandemusser. Mela it is, then. I'll try I.G. after I try Mela.

[Ed&Betty]

Mela is on the list for us too.

I've been told it's sometimes been hit or miss, but I had one the best steaks I've ever had at 'The Weaverville Milling Company" in ....wait for it.....Weaverville.