Food in brief, all spasmy like

It is Monday morning. Officially spring, the birds are singing, the weather is improving and I am loving the fact that it is light past 7 pm now. This morning, however, I was greeted with a back spasm of horrific proportions. So I'm going to the chiro as soon as I can get an appointment. Nonetheless, I didn't want to leave you hanging, as I've been a little absent since EDtF ended. A new post is in the works, do not fear.

In the meantime...

~ As busy as I've been, I failed to notice until now the shout out that Ashvegas gave me a week ago. Thanks, Ashvegas! Neat.

~ Have you ever heard of fufu flour? Me neither, until this weekend. It is flour made from, among other ingredients, dehydrated tubers of the elephant's ear plant and cassava. Oh, the wonders of a well-traveled kitchen.

~ While I'm at it, here's more news straight from Ashvegas: The space that housed (New) Old Europe is being reborn into a (New) New Orleans inspired bar and eatery called The Sazerac. While I don't care for the cocktail (rye whiskey is not my thing), I love New Orleans and Creole food! Stay tuned...

~ I am working away on my new website. Lots of tweaking yet to be done, but already it looks pretty incredible. I would say that in the next week or so things will be complete. Patience!

Tastes of Asheville: Nona Mia

We arrived just after 7:00 on a Saturday evening. All tables were filled and the restaurant hummed lively. A sweet woman with short dark hair asked for a name, then reassured us that the 2-tops open quickly. There were about 4 parties ahead of us. She handed us two menus and a wine list to look over while we waited. Remembering that this space’s previous incarnation was the Wing-Stop, I was pleased to note that all of the waitstaff were in blacks. A minute later, she reappeared to let us know about a particular bottle of wine that was on special. Would we care to try it?

Why, yes please. A 2007 Tomaresca Neprica, at $18 somewhat lower in price than the bottle we had been considering. (And at a lower markup than I’ve seen around town.) A sip proved delightful, and we accepted her recommendation. She made sure to open the bottle in front of us, pressed stemless glasses into our hands and let us know she’d put our bottle aside until a table came available.

With 12-15 tables in this relatively small space and 3-4 servers, I was surprised that the restaurant was not noisier. I conversed easily with my dining partner without raising my voice.

As we reached the 15 minute mark of our wait, a server came by with a tray of fried ravioli topped with fresh tomatoes. “Compliments of the chef.” Nice. I appreciated that attention was paid to the hungry souls forced to wait. The pace in the kitchen and of the servers was fast, but not frenetic. Another 10 minutes passed and a table opened up. As we sat, our bottle was brought over and our glasses refilled. We ordered the bruschetta as an appetizer. It came out quickly, a plate of grilled flatbread topped with diced tomatoes and onions, drizzled with a rich balsamic vinegar and olive oil.

One curious thing I noticed is that the bread and olive oil that usually comes standard to the table at most Italian restaurants was listed as an appetizer. For ~ $4. Their list of appetizers was tempting enough and their prices so completely reasonable that I wouldn't count it as detracting from the experience. Keep in mind that this is an independently owned restaurant in an out of the way space, filling what I feel is an important niche in Asheville – casual Italian.

We ordered our entrées, zuppa di pesce for my dining partner and chicken scarpiello for me. It took an effort of will not to order the penne alla vodka, temptingly front and center on Nona Mia’s list of specials.

Next time.

The entrées took some time in coming out, but I did not mind at all. For one, I am fairly certain they cook to order and two, on a Saturday night with parties still waiting for tables and more coming through the door, at no point in my experience did I ever feel rushed.

After I finished my second glass of wine, a server we had not interacted with up to this point stopped by and asked if we’d like some water. Yes, absolutely. So used to water being poured as you sit, I had not noticed this was not the case.

Our entrées came out smelling incredible. Warm, savory, tangy. A good amount of food, but not so much that it was piled together atop my plate. This was not a careless presentation. The chicken scarpiello had capers, potatoes, peppers, chicken, sausage, a few sundried tomatoes and artichoke hearts in a thin but tasty sauce accompanied by a wedge of foccacia. The zuppa di pesce had clams and rings of calamari mingling in a spicy broth with three squares of fried pasta. We were asked if we wanted freshly grated Parmesan.

By the way, the answer to this question is always yes.

Our server stopped by to inquire if everything was to our liking, and I responded with an enthusiastic “Excellent, thank you!”

The entrée was almost too much to finish. My partner finished, likely more out of his duty to all things seafood, (being from eastern North Carolina) than there being room in his stomach. I sensibly asked for a take-home container and one was provided.

And then there was the tiramisu.

I never order tiramisu when out to eat. I dislike the standard presentation of a flat cake square dusted with espresso powder, always too soggy on the bottom. It is often too sweet for me and I find other offerings more tempting.

However, my partner insisted. It’s really good, he said. Try it and see. So I did.

The tiramisu came out presented in a tumbler, with three lady fingers spaced around the sides. Homemade whipped cream, not too sweet. The cake at the bottom was perfect, very espresso-y without being soggy and gross. It was delicious, and I would order it again, no question. Consider me converted.

I thought about sharing the total cost of our dining experience, but wouldn’t that be crass? Trust me when I say that for all that we ordered and ate, it was wholly reasonable for a meal out in Asheville. Dinner for two could easily be done for under $40. The most expensive entrée on the menu was the chianti braised lamb shanks, for all of $17. They offer a variety of meat and pasta dishes, ranging from $10-$14.

Go, and enjoy it.

Nona Mia
807 Patton Ave #A
Asheville, NC 28806
828-505-2028

Food in brief, the local edition

Looks like Monday is lending itself well to a brief round-up of what's going on around these parts.

~ Nona Mia has shot to the top of my Asheville Italian list. A full review is coming, but man oh man do they serve delicious food. No website, can't seem to find a menu online, but trust me. They have worked out their kinks since the original review was published.

~ Appalachian Vintner is open for business and humming along. Excellent, thoughtful, well-organized wine selection. You can tell that this place is run by people with a passion, not only for wine but for connecting people to wine. They host an indoor tailgate market every Saturday from 10-3. Website is still in production, but they do have a Facebook page that's getting a lot of love. Go show 'em some.

~ I had the opportunity to meet and speak with David Mason, owner of Black Mountain Chocolate. Super nice guy with an awesome "So how'd you come to Asheville?" story.

~Various discoveries at App Vintner (including some delectable raw honey from Sweet Betty Bee's) led to a Saturday afternoon brunch of scrambled eggs with Spinning Spider Creamery Chevre, grape tomatoes, green onions and cilantro with a side of Trumpeter Malbec Syrah. And pretzels dipped in Lusty Monk mustard. And nun's puffs. Funny, I just noticed the religious theme. Nuns and monks make for a tasty Saturday.

~ EDtF is still in progress. After a brief departure on Saturday (App Vintner + Nona Mia = can you blame me?), Monday marks Day 7. Huzzah!

25 (edible) Things To Try In Asheville

A mashup of the "25 Things" meme floating around Facebook and the 100 Things To Try Before You Die extravaganza, Asheville-style.

(See the 100 item San Fran list here.)

25 (edible) Things to Try in Asheville

Note: This is definitely not meant as a "Best Of." By no means exhaustive OR exclusive, you might turn your nose up at some of these. Better yet, remind me what I left off. I have a feeling this list will grow.

1. Sweet potato fries, Rosetta’s Kitchen
2. A tour and tasting at the Biltmore Winery (on the grounds of the Biltmore Estate)
3. loaf of French Bread (or ANY bread) from City Bakery
4. Shepherd’s pie with a pint of Green Man Porter, Jack of the Wood
5. Duck confit quesadilla and the margarita caliente, Limones
6. Spinach and goat cheese naan, Mela Indian Restaurant
7. On a warm summer evening, dinner on the Sunset Terrace at the Grove Park Inn
8. Three words: Pisgah. Pale. Ale. I’ll say it again: Pisgah Pale Ale.
9. Ecstasy truffles, The Chocolate Fetish
10. Fried green tomatoes with goat cheese grits, Tupelo Honey
11. Calzone, Barley’s Taproom
12. Warm almond croissant, Paris Bakery
13. All of the weekend breakfast specials, Over Easy Cafe
14. The house salad dressing at Marco’s Pizzeria
15. Blueberry streusel muffins, West End Bakery
16. Flirtini, Tressa’s
17. Moussaka, Jerusalem Garden
18. The Usual Burger, Usual Suspects
19. Ginger Florentines, the bakery case at Greenlife Grocery
20. Dinner at Gabrielle’s, Richmond Hill Inn [RIP Richmond Hill Inn, 1889-March 19, 2009]
21. Flavored sipping chocolate, The French Broad Chocolate Lounge
22. Albondigas tapas with a glass of Rioja, Zambra
23. Double mocha, The Dripolator
24. Sunday brunch, The Corner Kitchen
25. Basket of fish ‘n chips, Hannah Flanagan’s