Asheville, how I love thee....

Sunday, Brian, Logan, Darby(the dog), and I went to Asheville for a couple of nights. I've been to Asheville a few times, mostly to go to the Biltmore house, which is awesome but I wanted to explore the city itself. Also, they have quite a few vegetarian/vegan restaurants that I wanted to check out. We stayed at the Cabins of Asheville. We've rented a cabin before but it was in Gatlinburg and they've always been nice. These cabins were nice but they were smaller than I expected. I wasn't too sure about it when we pulled up but it was a really cozy, cute place. They had the hot tub ready for us and a gas fireplace that looked like a wood stove. Score points for the owners!

That afternoon, we headed to Rosetta's Kitchen. They specialize in vegetarian/vegan comfort-type food. I have to say it was a bit overwhelming to be in a restaurant where you could order anything off the menu! Yay! Brian ordered the Veggie Burger and I ordered the Nacho Plate, hoping to try their vegan queso. No luck, they were out. I really wanted nachos so I went with the black beans and pico, nothing incredibly special but it was good and hit the spot since I was starving. I tried a bite of Brian's burger and it was good. Nice and thick, too not like the little flat ones you get at most places. I'm pretty sure it was handmade with potatoes or beans, maybe even both. Check out their website http://www.rosettaskitchen.com/ and you can read all about their menu and what goes into everything. The atmosphere reminded me of a place I'd probably frequent in college. Funny little side note, as we were driving back into Asheville from the cabin I saw a sign for the Blue Ridge Roller Girls and they happened to have a bout the day before we got there at the Asheville Civic Center. I would've dragged Brian and Lo if we'd been there that day!

The weather wasn't that great, it was too cool to walk around downtown so we headed back to the cabin for a while. Darby was not handling being in a strange place very well. He wasn't terrified but he didn't really want to eat and would follow us around everywhere we went. So he was happy when we came back and didn't leave him to some horrible fate! After we went out to eat, just a quick trip to Fatz Cafe, we went home and called it a night. Logan didn't seem to mind sleeping in a different place but we made sure to bring some comforts from home.

Monday we checked out the Sunny Point Cafe. That was another neat little place, with a cool atmosphere. Not a big place, maybe 10 or 12 tables but there were quite a few people there. This wasn't a solely veg restaurant but they had a lot of options for them. I ordered the Orange Scented Cornmeal Cakes with a side of Tofu Bacon. So yummy! The orange flavor was a nice touch and not overpowering. The tofu bacon was super good and I'll have to figure out what they marinated the tofu in to get that flavor. I really enjoyed this place and they serve breakfast all day, which also scores major points in my book. After we filled up, we ventured to the Grove Arcade. No, not an arcade with games. It is a historical building that now houses various shops, restaurants, offices and even apartments. We went to a shop that sold knit goods and yarn called Asheville Home Crafts. I found a cute, crocheted hat for Logan and a knit hat for myself. While we were checking out, the lady informed us that a 94 year old woman crocheted Lo's new hat. And that she also volunteers at the old folks home! lol! How amazing is that?! She's probably older than most of them, too.







After walking around there a bit we decided to go for a drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway. As we went further up the parkway, we were driving through clouds. The temperature dropped to 32 degrees and we were a little concerned with the sign that said "Watch for sudden icing." Once we emerged from the cloud bank, it was cool to check out the houses. The views were awesome, you could see all of Asheville. That night we ate at The Laughing Seed Cafe, a vegetarian restaurant. This was hands down my favorite place. The place was packed on a Monday night. The menu had a great selection of appetizers, salads, sandwiches and entrees. Again, a little overwhelmed with all the choices. We started with an appetizer of Sundried Tomato Hummus with naan points. Really G-O-O-D. I ordered the Harmony Bowl for my dinner and Brian ordered the pasta of the day. My dish was a big bowl layered with brown rice, black beans, seasonal vegetables, grilled tofu and I added a sea vegetable salad and sliced avacado. It comes with a yummy ginger dressing. This was so good and filling. My tummy was happy! I tried a bite of Brian's dish which was like a baked pasta dish with tofu ricotta, mushrooms, seitan and a bunch of other deliciousness. I couldn't believe how good it was! He really enjoyed it as well. Despite being full, I couldn't go away without trying a desert(well, to go). I tried the Vegan Dark Chocolate Raspberry cake. So good! I went to bed quite satisfied that night.

http://www.laughingseed.com/

Tuesday we had to leave but we decided to head back into town one last time. We took Darby to Three Dog Bakery for a treat. He wouldn't take anything from the owner(still a little nervous about staying at a strange place) but he came home with a few goodies. All the ingredients are listed on the trays of treats, so you know what you're getting and they're all natural. It really looked like a little bakery! We also stopped by the Mast General Store. I bought a few little kitchen doo-dads and some bulk candy. They have so much candy and a lot of old school stuff that's hard to find. I had to leave before it got ridiculous! I think we quite possibly spent more on the candy than anything else. We decided that we would come back when it was warmer and walk around downtown. There were so many cool shops that I wanted to check out but not bad enough to brave the chilly wind, being nestled between the moutains, it can really whip through there. I'm looking forward to a return trip and maybe a visit to the Biltmore House since Brian has never been.