Recently Chris and I were in the towns of Hendersonville and Brevard, North Carolina and we found ourselves dining at some fine places.  Mighty fine.  We always like to go for the local cuisine when we are in an area and take tips from the locals on the good spots to stop.  On this trip we were able to find a few fabulous places to dine and since I always take pictures of my food I decided today would be a food picture post.  I have Chris pretty well trained to position his plate before he takes that first bite.

Be warned:  Delightful food pictures ahead.  I can not and will not be held responsible for any food cravings you may experience after viewing these pictures. As always if you want to see a picture in a larger format just click on it.  

First up we stopped at Moose Cafe in Hendersonville.  It was located close to our hotel and was on the local listing of places to try so when I read “comfort food” I was all in.  We found the parking lot full but we were seated immediately at a table in their country themed restaurant.  Of course there were plenty of moose items around which made me think of my friend Amy from our Greenville, Ohio days.  Isn’t it funny how often things that people love or collect are associated with that person later on in life?

We were immediately served a complimentary plate of biscuits and applesauce which we spread liberally on the huge flakey biscuits.  Welcome to the South, my friends. 

The menu was packed with great selections and it was difficult to decide but once we did were completely and totally happy with our choices.  A bonus was the reasonable prices that accompanied the selections.
Now I can hear some of you saying “What is chow chow?”  Simply put it is a delightful accompaniment to pinto beans and other things in the South and is basically a relish.  I searched for some recipes and found this one at Southern Plate that has a back story along with what I believe is a pretty authentic recipe so hop on over here to read and come right back when you are finished.

Next up is breakfast at Fireside Restaurant and Pancake Inn in Hendersonville, North Carolina.  Chris loves a hearty breakfast when there is a long day ahead and Fireside rose to the challenge.  Chris chose corned beef hash and it was served a little differently than I have ever seen it served before with sliced instead of chopped but he assured me it was wonderful.I loved their simple system of flagging down the waitress in a busy place and our service was speedy and reliable.  This successful family business opened the second location where we dined and the facility was a converted greenhouse. Chris absolutely loved the aquaponics and thinks that that would be a great thing for us to try someday.A stop in downtown Hendersonville after a morning of shopping found us looking for some tasty Thai food at Lime Leaf Thai Fusion.  The weather had turned a bit steamy and we were parched and thankfully our waiter was at the ready refilling our water glasses constantly.  I love that type of service.  Not only was the menu varied and plentiful we found our choices to be delicious as well. Our final restaurant selection for the weekend was a fabulous place in Brevard where I know we will be dining again. Chris found Jaime’s Creole Brasserie on Yelp and even without reservations we were seated quickly in the outdoor but sheltered dining area.  I loved the space and by the time we dined the hot sun of the day was a memory and the pleasant atmosphere was just what we were craving.  I love dining outside and this space was perfect—outside yet covered and sheltered.

The menu was amazing and we were transported to New Orleans for some magical food. The food is locally sourced when possible and fresh. The table was set with cracklings and even though I am not a huge fan of them I did manage to eat quite a few because they were so light and flavorful. High five to my Iowa pork farmers.  

We both got amazing food and ate every morsel.  Shopping makes a person hungry, I’m telling you.

Wood Fired Oysters

BBQ Shrimp

Mountain Trout

We don’t always get dessert and usually if we do we share one but this night we went all out and each got our own. Chris chose Bananas Foster and I chose the Beignets with a delightful chocolate ganache.  Before you get too worried about me I did not eat them all.  But they are much better served fresh and warm.  Much better.

So after looking at all of my lovely food pictures are you ready for a visit to Western North Carolina?