The Best Restaurants in Asheville

The award-winning Dining Room is George Vanderbilt’s dining concept nestled in the Biltmore Estate. The French-American restaurant boasts an ambient, inviting atmosphere, featuring white tablecloths, breathtaking vistas, and gracious service. The Dining Room offers an inventive seasonal menu helmed by chef Sean Eckman, including a three, five, or seven-course prix-fixe collection. The area utilizes sustainable agriculture in helping the local community, where the kitchen produce comes from. The dining room menu does not end with quality dishes; it extends to a list of cocktails, beer, and wines.

Asheville Proper is a 2020 debutant nestled in the heart of downtown Asheville, which is helmed by chefs Owen and Mindi McGlynn. The restaurant offers an inventive take on the exemplary American steakhouse with a local reflection. The art décor style building housing the restaurant is home to hundreds of galleries, giving it a feel of an attractive art center. Also, the restaurant has a lounge serving cocktails, wines, and beer to complement its inventive dishes.

Vidl Cultura is chef Jacob Sessom’s brainchild; the restaurant is established in the Coxe Asheville neighborhood and began operations in late 2020. Cultura hosts a Vidl pop-up during the spring and early summer to exhibit delightful fun and expressive wines. Cultura's most popular cocktails and full bar service will be available at the Vidl pop-up, as well as small plates including some of Cultura's most popular dishes, ranging from their draft list of sour selections to the main menu. Cultura meals focus on American contemporary cuisine covering dinner, lunch, late night, and drinks.

Chef Hugo Ramirez together with his wife Amy Cavanaugh started Limones Restaurant in 2004 in downtown Asheville. Limones Restaurant offers a creative combination of Mexican and Californian food, as well as unique bar selections, all while being served by a friendly and professional staff. The restaurant’s refurbished interior decor symbolizes Hugo’s love for his Mexican heritage, featuring Mexican items, including comals hanging on the walls alongside beautiful masks and vibrant murals. Also, the restaurant features a full-service bar serving cocktails, wines, and beers to complement the inventive dishes.

The Lobster Trap, located in the heart of Ashville, offers the finest seafood in the city. The restaurant's menu offers fresh inventive seafood sustainably-sourced by reputable domestic vendors and prepared to highlight the exquisite tastes and textures of fresh seafood. The 2005 debutant provides a relaxed, friendly ambiance with a potpourri of aquatic influences, adorned with warm hues and wood furnishings that evokes the vibe of dining on a ship. Moreover, local performers grace the restaurant with live entertainment every night, which includes crafted Oyster House beers, creative cocktails, curated seafood-friendly wines, and Southern hospitality. The Lobster Trap boasts a fair share of recognition and accolades, including bagging the best seafood restaurant in WNC every year since debuting and featuring in various “best of” lists.

Since opening in 2000, Tupelo Honey has been serving inventive Southern dishes right at the heart of downtown Ashville. The restaurant is Steve Frabitore’s dining concept, who took over from the original owners in 2008, and has subsequently turned the renowned establishment into a staple empire in downtown Ashville. Tupelo Honey’s recipes are crafted from scratch, inspired by fresh, locally-sourced ingredients to bring forth the finest of each season. Also, the restaurant provides an upscale yet friendly atmosphere, with outstanding interior décor to create a remarkable dining experience. The features of the restaurant’s décor include handcrafted plates by local artisans, military base emblems covering the walls, genuine jars of tupelo honey, beehives, and beautiful versions of the honeycomb pattern interlaced throughout the restaurant.

Ukiah is a one-of-a-kind concept conceived by a circle of friends. Derek Allen and Kevin Wojtowicz of Asheville contacted restaurateur Michael Sponaugle and envisioned to open a Japanese restaurant in downtown Ashville. The trio were pleased to debut their innovative dining concept in mid-2021 to the Asheville neighborhood in collaboration with other culinary talent such as award-winning chef Michael Lewis, Steven Haigh, and Lizzy Maynes. To create unique delicacies, the Japanese Smokehouse blends Asian ingredients and flavors with American Barbeque techniques. Also, the restaurant boasts an elegant, welcoming atmosphere, featuring an exhibition kitchen and a spacious central bar, adorned with a fusion of industrial finish, natural wood furnishings, and indigo hues. To complement the chef-inspired Japanese cuisine, Ukiah provides a vast drink menu, with beers, cocktails, and wines.

Brio, which translates to “full of life,” is a renowned Tuscan-influenced restaurant providing rich northern Italian cuisine. The restaurant features a diverse menu with various specialties to savor such as high-grade steaks, tender chops, and fresh seafood, made-to-order pasta, and flatbreads baked in classic Italian wood-burning oven. Brio Italian Grille also serves vegetarian and gluten-free options. Moreover, the restaurant features a wide selection of luxury Italian wines served by the glass and curated cocktails to complements its inventive dishes. Brio offers a warm, inviting atmosphere with exceptional interior décor, including beautiful interior elements such as ancient cedar flooring, creative hand-crafted Italian mosaics, Arabescato marble imported from Italy, and wrought-iron chandeliers. Brio Italian Grill's chef-inspired food, sophisticated ambience, and world-class service delivers a unique dining experience, prompting the delights of a typical Tuscan country villa to the heart of downtown Asheville.

Brasilia Churrasco Steakhouse opened its doors in downtown Asheville, creating a buzz with food critics and supporters swarming in to savor the restaurant’s cuisine. The restaurant is Shutao Wang’s dining concept dedicated to providing Brazilian flavors in the city. Brasilia Churrasco Steakhouse boasts a vast, diverse menu with various inventive meat cuts aged to tenderness. However, meat lovers will relish the parade of succulent meats presented on skewers by gauchos in a chic yet friendly atmosphere. To compliment the restaurant’s creative meals, Brasilia Churrasco Steakhouse features a full bar which provides Biltmore Wines, Brazilian beers, and curated cocktails. Diners can try out the bar’s best-seller drinks such as Caipirinha, a classic Brazilian cocktail crafted with cachaca.

Benne on Eagle, a 2018 debutant, is nestled in The Block, a historic African American neighborhood in downtown Asheville. The emphasis on the neighborhood's rich heritage is evident on Benne on Eagle's vast menu helmed by award-winning chef John Fleer, which includes several Appalachian soul food selections. All dishes at the restaurant are prepared using high-quality, fresh ingredients often locally sourced. Complementing the savory cuisine in Benne on Eagle is an outstanding cocktail selection with several sweet concoctions. Moreover, the restaurant boasts a warm, ambient atmosphere with the interior décor paying homage to the establishment’s history, featuring a lofty ceiling, exposed brick walls, and an open kitchen.