GOOD MORNING, FRIENDS…

Today’s Podcast is episode 221015, parts of which originally aired on WPVM 103.7fm, on September 30th, October 7th & October 14th, 2022, and features an interview with Jennifer Hampton (top) from Asheville Food and Beverage United about the amazing progress they are making in downtown parking for workers, then I talked to David Plyler (middle) from Lusso Realty about their BBQ competition for charity, and at the end played Food Trivia for MANNA Foodbank with Kara Irani (bottom) from MANNA! There was real money on the line, and Kara soaked me for the majority of it!

Today’s Newsletter (below) features brisket, 1/3 a chicken & chocolate skulls. I’m trying to keep these newsletters shorter so that you have time to read them as I step-up the frequency at which they come out. I have a lot of content, but I don’t want it to be a drag to read it all!

DOC BROWN’S BBQ

I went to Doc Brown's BBQ with my friend Frank the other day and it was awesome as always! We both got brisket. Frank got the sandwich, I got the plate. Frank is a super fancy chef (in my opinion) and he agreed with me that the brisket was frickin’ great, and the mac ‘n’ cheese pie was on point! The sweet tater soufflé was excellent too, and I brought some home to have with butter and ice cream. You heard me. Butter & iced cream!!! I always have 100% confidence in The Doctor, and never hesitate to bring even my fanciest chef friends to this top notch barbecue spot, located just outside of The Shire, past Bree, on the other side of the Brandywine River, way out there in West West West Asheville, possibly Candler. ❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️

TALL JOHN’S IN MONTFORD

Last week I went to the soft opening of Tall John's last night and it was excellent! The atmosphere is really nice, the decor, the furniture, the music, the lighting were all great. The kitchen is open so you can see them cook if you sit at the bar, which I did.

I didn’t order my meal, for the soft opening, they were selecting our meals for us, and for me they sent out the Parker house rolls, which are some of my favorite things on earth! They did a wonderful job with their Parker house rolls, which were very soft and buttery and salty, were a little bit grilled, and had some fresh Parmesan cheese grated on top. Next, they sent out their steak tartare, another favorite of mine, and it was also delicious! I ate a ton of it, but it was lot, so I tried not to eat too much of it, because I knew there was an entire entrée coming my way too, and that entrée turned out to be half of a roasted chicken! So, yeah, there was a lot of food, and I brought a bunch of it home.

The chicken was cooked perfectly. It was moist, and came off the bone easily, the skin was crispy, salt ‘n’ peppery & delicious. The chimichurri was a fresh and zingy accoutrement that added a lot of favor. My entree came with some cauliflower (not pictured), that was prepared with anchovy, and while at first I was like, “huh, I don’t know if I’m gonna like that,“ after one bite I was sold! It was really delicious! They also made me a wonderful non-alcoholic Soda Phosphate, that was not too sweet, not too sour, and not too watery! It was really satisfying & tasty. The whole experience was super enjoyable, and of course I saw a ton of people I know, including my colleagues in the food business as well as the media business, so it was a fun night for me personally. I think that Asheville is going to really love this restaurant, and I hope that you will go there when they open up for real on Wednesday, October 19th, and let me know what you think! I hope you like it as much as I did. I’ll be going back to get the steak, and the schnitzel, which both looked amazing! 🔥🔥🔥

prices on this menu were for the soft opening, which was comped by the house. Check their website for current menu & prices.

DESSERT

I popped into The Chocolate Fetish - Asheville! the other day, and they have so much fun stuff right now, including these awesome chocolate skulls, pumpkins & turkeys. This is my fave time of year for so many reasons, not the least of which are foods shaped like skulls. ❤️❤️❤️💀💀💀

MANNA FOODBANK FUNDRAISER

May be an image of text that says 'STU HELM THE FOOD FAN'S ANNUAL MANNA FOODBANK FUNDRAISER DRIVE! ARTWORK HELP MANNA FOODBANK DELIVER THE GOODS! DONATING τO MANNA IS THE MOST THANK YOU! EFFECTIVE WAY TO HELP COMBAT HUNGER & FOOD NSECURITY IN WNC! Kauz Ano NatWolfe Hollenback Û”” Suzanne Fredericks Meunier Anomaly Ka rahTheWaxlorette Malson TLaFau Duermit LoryS Zachary Lazar Katherine MacGregor Nan Villimason Daryl CMarchant Drew Scott ScottFrancisFlaherty SethWalters $3,000 ZERO $2,000 $4,000 5,000! DEADLINE: DECEMBER 31, 2022 $1,465 LEVEL ONE UNLOCKED! WITH$1 WITH$1,000MANNACAPROVIE CANPROVIDE 4,000MEALSTO PEOPLEINNEED!'

One thousand four hundred and sixty five. That's a hell of a big number, Y'all! THANK YOU for all your generous donations to MANNA FoodBank so far, and please keep them coming, because five thousand is an even bigger number, and that's our goal. If we can raise $5,000 by December 31, 2022, we will help MANNA provide 20,000 melas to families who are struggling with food insecurity here in Western North Carolina, where we have some of the highest hunger rates in the entire country. Please use this button to donate today if you can!

Donate ot MANNA Foodbank Now!

Thank you!

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Stu Helm: Food Fan

Good Morning, Friends!