Where to stop for lunch when driving through Asheville

[hapaleeretired]

Leave the Interstate in Newport and follow US70/25. Lunch along the French Broad River. It's beautiful. Or, stop in Hot Springs. Nice little town. You loose very little time using this route instead of the interstate unless you get behind a truck. The seven lights thru Newport will make you doubt the wisdom of this advice but once you get out of town you'll love it.

[Cofga]

Originally Posted by pegotty

We'll be driving from Raleigh to Houston in June and are planning a stop for lunch in Asheville. We will have 2 adults, 4 elementary aged kids and a large dog with us. I'd like to stop someplace where we could stretch our legs and have a picnic lunch. Maybe a nice park or something. It would be nice if it was near I-40.

OK pegotty, obviously folks have different interpretations of just what you want so let's get a little clarification here. Just how far and how long are you willing to drive for this little picnic and are you willing to take alternate routes through the countryside instead of following I40 all the way?