Asheville Part I

In a desperate attempt to get out of the Atlanta heat and end my summer well, I dragged the boyfriend to Asheville with me. He was a big skeptic having not been before, but for me Asheville, well really Hendersonville, will always be my home away from home. I was a 6-year camper in those beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains and it had been way too long since I had visited. Since there isn't much to do in Hendo, as the camp staff members like to kindly refer to it as, and Asheville has always been a place of fun and good memories for me during and post-camp, it was the biggest thing to do on my first Atlanta summer bucket list. I may have also known that Asheville has turned into quite the foodie town. It became apparent very quickly that the 2 days and 2 nights was not going to be enough to cover all of the restaurants I wanted to go to, but the boyfriend and I came up with best itinerary that I think we could have based on the knowledge we had gathered from all over the internet.

Our first stop Friday night was The Admiral, which we heard was unbelievable and extremely hard to get into. We luckily got a 9:30 reservation for the night of our arrival. The restaurant had a feel that I had never experienced before and something that would be awesome in Atlanta. The dining room could probably only seat 75 people max, maybe not even, but there was also a large porch. I'm not sure if food service is available on the porch, though. It was dimly lit and had a very underground, timeless, and unpretentious vibe. The best part was how quiet it was in comparison to Atlanta restaurants such as No. 246 and Two Urban Licks, yet it still had similar elements to those places, such as tables without tablecloths, everything made of raw wood or metal, and an open kitchen. Because of how dim it was, I got too embarrassed to start snapping my flash everywhere to show you the look of the restaurant.

My first course was the NC shrimp with chili-garlic, cilantro, and lime (sorry for the fuzzy picture), and the french fries which were supposed to be underneath it all, but being the nice girlfriend I am to the nut-allergic boyfriend, we got the peanut oil-fried french fries on the side. Both the shrimp and the fries were truly out of the world. The shrimp was cooked perfectly and had a touch of a spicy note from the chili. The fries were reminiscent of Houston's fries, but crunchier. To me, that was perfect because I've always had a big thing for Houston's fries.

Next up were the seared diver scallops with heirloom tomato, locally foraged bolete mushroom, (supposed to be) creamless cream corn, basil, and watermelon. By the time I placed my order the kitchen had just run out of the creamless cream corn, so they substituted it for true creamless corn. I often order scallop dishes at restaurants these days, but I have to say that this was the best I've ever had. Well, maybe it ties with Two Urban Licks - I do love those scallops and cheese grits. The watermelon, tomato, and scallops combination provided texture and sweetness like I've never had in a scallop dish. They were truly unbelievable. Boyfriend got the Springer Mountain chicken breast with farro piccolo, roasted patty pan squash, tomato jam, and a pecorino romano foam, and I have to say it was the most flavorful chicken I have ever had.

We finished with chai creme brûlée with dried cherries. Previously I had only had bites here and there of creme brûlée and am now officially a convert. We devoured the dessert in probably a minute.

Moral of the story: Go to The Admiral.

Saturday morning we woke up early to go the farmers' market at UNC Asheville. There were probably two dozen or so local vendors selling bread, pastries, fruit and veggies, meat, fish, jams - everything you can imagine. All of the samples offered were delicious, but there was one gem that came highly recommended to me: Imladris Farm jams. I've never been a big jelly/jam fan, but Asheville turned another new leaf for me. This stuff is delicious. In addition to the jams, they were sampling blueberry ice cream made from the jam. It was heavenly. If you ever go to Asheville, you can find the Imladris Farm jams and other products in many different stores in the downtown area.

Stay tuned for more on my Asheville trip including the food tour we went on, Curate Tapas Bar, and Tupelo Honey Cafe.

Braves

(Osteria del) Figo

Since I first had Figo during my freshman year at Emory, I knew that the local Italian chain was so much more than your typical chain restaurant. Despite its several locations, Figo never felt like you were going to eat at a chain like Chili's or Friday's or whatever may float your boat (or rather make you sink while trying to digest that food). The high quality food for great prices at Figo has never once let me down.

What did let me down, though, was the closing of the Virginia-Highlands location around a year ago. Living in the Emory area, that was the most convenient location for me. I now travel to either Edgewood or even the Westside to Osteria del Figo to get my weekly or bi-weekly pasta fix, even though the closest location to me is a toss up between Decatur and Edgewood. What really has me traveling to the Westside, besides its artsy feel, is the recent addition of Osteria del Figo's meatball bar. You may know that I don't eat red meat or pork, which oftentimes leads me to slim pickings at many restaurants here in Atlanta. These restrictions gave me only one choice (which I don't have a problem with) at the meatball bar: the chicken meatball.

Chicken meatballs with rigatoni and arrabiata sauce

This simple ball of chicken and artichoke gave me the protein I wanted in my pasta and didn't make me feel left out in the meat department like I often do when dining out. The ball itself was a little dry but nonetheless delicious. Adding them to the pasta and sauce was the smart thing to do to add some moisture (the balls come individually so that you can have it on the side or add them to a dish). Since the meatball concept is new to the Westside, and all of Figo, I imagine that over time they will be perfected. Not that it stopped me from ordered them for a second time within a week of first trying them!

Time to Get Social

While you're curious, take a look at my blog post for Everywhere, the social media company I am interning for this summer. There are also other great posts from my coworkers about getting involved in social media.

Ria's Bluebird

Looking for a different place to brunch at than the usual Belly General Store or Rise 'n' Dine (although I do love both of those places), I decided to check out Ria's Bluebird. I had heard the name and seen it on lists here and there, but I really didn't know anything about it. I looked up their menu online and decided that I must try the pancakes that were dubbed the "world's best" by the New York Times. I was ready to go there just by the look of the rustic website, let alone the menu.

Driving up to the hole in the wall joint that is located in Grant Park right across the street from Oakland Cemetery, I was relieved to see that Ria's Bluebird was like no other place I had been to in Atlanta thus far in my 3 years being here: it was genuinely an old place that wasn't made to look old and rustic and industrial like so many restaurants are today in Atlanta.

Coffee bar/cashier/bar dining

Having got there at 1:30, there was no wait as I'm sure there is much of the morning. A tip for those of you going to try it: if you do have to wait, they make you stand outside, or so the signs say. After being seating I ordered a cappuccino. As the foam went down some and I could actually get to the coffee, I realized that I was drinking the best coffee I had ever had.

Trying to be a little bit on the healthy side I ordered the oatmeal with bananas added. And I split a short-shack with the caramelized bananas. Yes I know, not so healthy, but at least I shared! If the NY Times named them the "world's best pancakes", I had no choice but to get them. 

Oatmeal with sliced banana

As if you need to be told

The oatmeal, made from their homemade granola, was delicious. It was full of nuts, dried fruit, and my added banana. Just that bowl alone was more than I could eat in one sitting, let alone adding the pancakes to that it. I intended to take about half of the oatmeal home with me but then left it at the cashier's counter. I was more than disappointed when I realized this about an hour later. (Is that not the worst feeling?)

The pancakes. They were amazing. Perfectly fluffy and sweet like you want them. Then you add the bananas. The caramelized bananas really put the cakes over the edge. I wish I had been able to more than the few bites I was able to stuff down. I will definitely be back for more, and you should absolutely go to try to them. In all honestly, I think that the environment of the restaurant had a lot to do with how good the pancakes were. When you go you'll understand.

I look forward to many more meals at Ria's and to trying their sister restaurant, Sauced.