The podcast above mostly features me listing a lot of things, and my co-host Chef Tom from Twisted Laurel Downtown Asheville indulging me in that.
Podcast Contents
00:00 - 03:23 INTRO: Butter, Wine, Salt & Pepper
03:24 - 18:50 FEB FOOD HOLIDAYS: From Tater Tot Day to Edamame Day
18:51 - 34:10 STOOBIES: From Burgers to Kwek Kwek
34:20 - 40:27 THE BIG LIST: 34 Restaurants in 31 Days
40:30 - 41:15 MANNA SPOT: Please Donate to MANNA Foodbank Here.
41:20 - 50:04 THE PIZZA GUY: “Le Bougois Champagnon” from Asheville Pizza South
50:05 - 35:09 OUTRO: A Serious Topic & Good Bye
TIENDA LOS NENE: My friend Lucho was telling me about some great tacos that he had the other day, and when I asked, "Were they cheap?" He said, "No, but I know where to get some cheap tacos!" So we jumped into his car and drove to Tienda Los Nenes, which is an awesome bakery, grocery store, butcher, shop, and taqueria! I got two tacos, and I was stuffed! And Lucho was right, they were cheap.
I ordered a cheek taco, and an el pastor taco, and both were excellent! The cheek was very moist, and flavorful, and the el pastor was exactly what you might expect, and I loved it! I'll definitely be going back to get more tacos, I want to try the beef and chicken, and I also wanna try a lot of the baked goods and do some grocery shopping! Thanks, Lucho, and thanks Tienda los Nenes! 🙏🌮❤️
You can check out Lucho at AshevilleMultiCultural.com
ALTAMONT DEI & GRILL: It's nice to have friends! My friends from Altamont Deli & Grill invited me to come try their burger of the week, and my good friend Will aka Henco Billy helped me eat it! You see I had some big dinner plans for later, so I didn't want to eat a whole burger all by myself, so my buddy Will picked me up at 11 AM, we went to the Montford location, we shared a burger, and it was frickin' awesome!
It had bacon, barbecue sauce, pimento cheese, and a big ol' super crispy onion ring, all on a City Bakery roll! This burger is available through the weekend, and if it's popular, they might add it to the regular menu!
I really like the food at Altamont! Thanks, Friends! 🙏❤️🍔
BOTANIST & BARREL: One of my favorite bites recently was this vegan snack platter from Botanist & Barrel Tasting Bar + Bottle Shop Asheville! It had Castelvertrano olives, carrot "lox," toasty baguette rounds, some super delish vegan cheese from Darë Vegan Cheese, and the super-star on the plate, sweet, hot, house made "cowboy candy," jalapeño wheels.
I ate this entire plate, and was full but not too full! I loved it! I also enjoyed a soda collab between Botanist and Devil's Foot Beverage Co. Good times, great food, keeping' it local! ❤️❤️❤️
ANDALE WAY: My mom and I had lunch at one of our favorite places in Asheville the other day, Andale WAY Mexican Grill! The food there is awesome and the people are super nice! My mom got her #1 item on their menu, The Popeye Pollo, or chicken with spinach. She raves about it and gets all excited whenever it hits the table. 🙂
I ordered the taco and enchilada lunch combo, and CRUSHED every molecule of food on the plate.
My whole family loves Andale WAY, including my young nephew who goes with his roommates on occasions, and my sister and bro-in-law who go on the regs on Friday nights. It's a great restaurant and we all recommend it!
Please recommend a family favorite of yours for me to try!
UKIAH JAPANESE SMOKEHOUSE: One random Tuesday I stopped into Ukiah Japanese Smokehouse on my way home form workto try their "Tuesday Test Kitchen Tasting Menu," where they try out a new dish, and if the custies love it, it might end up on the regular menu. Last week's tasting menu included four of their regular menu items, two test items, and dessert. (I think I got that right). The grilled shishito peppers, veggie gyoza, wedge salad, and crispy rock shrimp were all great, and are among my favorites.
The local fire roasted Sunburst Trout Farms trout with buttermilk dashi, beech mushroom and herbs was to die for! I ate every scrap and even turned the bowl up so I could drink directly from it! The little surprise was a tasty roasted cauliflower bite that might end up on the menu in a larger format, and the dessert was coconut ice cream with coconut cake. Gah. This whole meal was excellent! And as you can imagine, very filling for one person! I love Ukiah! ❤️
RITE RITE CAFE: I stopped into the new Rite Rite cafe on Wall Street and had a very nice cappuccino. This cafe used to be called Trade & Lore. It's the same great coffee, and it seems like a lot of the same people, and it definitely has the same mellow bohemian vibe that I always loved about T&L.
I’m glad you’re here, Rite Rite, thanks!
ASHEVILLE FOOD TOURS: Please sign-up to take a food tour with me! I lead tours for Asheville Food Tours on Sundays, Tuesdays & Wednesdays, and I am available for private tours on Mondays and Thursdays. I’d love to see ya!
"Stu had such a great variety of food tastings set up for us and also included some history of Asheville. He was very kind and willing to answer questions you might have. I am so glad that we took this tour and even more glad that we took it at the beginning of our trip as it helped us to be more familiar with the town and the food options available throughout our stay." - Janelle C.
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Episode 140: Who Doesn't Love Lists?