OUR LIST

This regional, outdoor themed general store has western North Carolina roots dating to the 1850s. The Hendersonville location, one of a dozen or so in the South, features specialty clothing, outdoor gear, home and hearth accessories and old-fashioned candy sold by the pound from barrels.

Appalachian Pinball Museum

Founded by arcade enthusiast John French, this museum is home to over 80 pinball and electronic games dating back to the 1950's.

Located in downtown Hendersonville, Mezzaluna successfully combines Italian dining and gourmet pizzas baked in Mugnaini wood-fired ovens. There is an extensive wine list and over 50 taps for local and regional craft beers. A sweeping mural of Van Gogh’s “The Starry Night” overlooks the open kitchen, so we enjoyed our amazing pizza and calzones under the stars that night.

HENDOUGH CHICKEN & DONUTS

Tucked just on the outskirts of downtown, HenDough Chicken & Donuts features the most unique menu in Hendersonville. Opened by Biltmore Estate chefs Paul and Sarah Klaassen, HenDough combines two of life’s most famous comfort foods. During Covid, the restaurant’s business flourished, as owners and staff worked hard to provide food and help to the Hendersonville community. They are proud to provide the best made-from-scratch fried chicken biscuit on the planet while supporting local charities, schools and farmers.

Book And Bee Caf And Tea

Nowhere in Hendersonville did we find a cozier spot to enjoy our time than the Book and Bee Café and Tea. Minutes from downtown, this distinctive destination features lunch and tea in an environment based on the love of literature. Each snug room holds only a couple of tables and is individually themed — we ate our lunch in the Tolkien/C.S. Lewis room, which was covered in books and quotes from the famous authors. We were pleasantly surprised to find that, although they highlight tea in their offerings, and in fact serve “high tea” regularly as a part of their menu, most folks make their way to the Book and Bee to simply enjoy dining and tea from their exceptional lunch menu.

WINE, CIDER … AND (LOTS OF) APPLES

In our time in Hendersonville we noticed a theme running through the bars, restaurants and attractions — there are apples everywhere. Apple cider mills dot the landscape, many with onsite destination activities. And not just basic non-alcoholic ciders are created, as most brewpubs and cideries make flavored hard ciders.

Bold Rock Cider

Just outside of Hendersonville sits the Bold Rock Mills River Cidery. Together with its other locations throughout the South, Bold Rock is the nation’s largest craft cidery and produces flavored hard ciders sold in over a dozen states. The Mills River location opened in 2015 and is nestled on North Carolina’s fertile farmland.

On our visit we learned that hard cider is fermented and distilled, never brewed, and watched the entire process through huge windows in the main bar area above the production floor. We each sampled a flight of four hard cider offerings while learning that Bold Rock sources 100% of its apples from local orchards within 35 miles. Throw in a food truck, live entertainment and a dog-friendly attitude, and it was an enjoyable visit.

Jeter Mountain Farm

A few miles outside of town and up a scenic mountain road lies Jeter Mountain Farm. A U-pick farm, cidery and entertainment destination, the property is owned by the Hunsader family, who brought 150 years of farming tradition from Florida, and consists of nearly 400 acres in the scenic Blue Ridge Mountains.

The Hunsaders planted their first orchard trees in 2014 and have since graduated to growing peaches, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries and pumpkins, as well as over 20 varieties of apples that can be picked by guests or used in the cider process. All fruits are on the U-pick program open from mid-July through October.

The scope of the farm is breathtaking. Tractor-pulled wagons take your family throughout the farm where you can hop off at the orchard of your choice and pick to your heart’s content, taking your prized fruits home. Visitors even enjoy wildflower fields, mazes and picnics on the scenic grounds. We eventually graduated to the Cider Barn, sipped a variety of Jeter Mountain Farm’s hard ciders while sampling their in-house smoked barbecue and listening to live music while the kids played on an indoor playground. They also feature a wedding and event center overlooking the orchards. Jeter Mountain Farm is a do-not-miss experience.

Point Lookout Vineyards

We traveled less than 10 miles from Hendersonville to visit scenic Point Lookout Mountain. Owners Mike and Sabrina Jackson visited this former dude ranch, fell in love with its 30-mile panoramic views and created Point Lookout Vineyards atop the southeast slope of the mountain.

Though the land was originally an apple orchard, their vision was to create a winery, planting and growing grapes appropriate to the area. Vines were planted in rows running north and south, allowing a warm morning sun and cool mountain breezes.

Soon after they opened World’s Edge Meadery, perfecting mead from a honey base and fermented fruits including local apples. Mead is one of the oldest alcoholic beverages, offering fermented sweet goodness in what the ancient Greeks called the “Nectar of the Gods.”

We participated in Point Lookout’s sampling program, where each of us chose up to six wines or meads. Staff helped us understand the subtle undertones of each varietal, allowing us to appreciate the flavors and nuances that separate each type.

Best of all we were able to do all of this during their “Sunset Sipping” event, held Wednesdays and Thursdays at sundown, while overlooking the vineyards. Their passion for wines and meads made us appreciate the company slogan — “Sharing wine, sharing life.”

The Hendersonville, North Carolina, experience was the whole package for travelers like us. The next time the mountains are calling, we know just where you should go. FCM

Roundup

Echo Mountain Inn echomountaininn.com, 828-693-9626

DuPont State Recreational Forest dupontstaterecreationalforest.com, 828-877-6527

Mast General Store mastgeneralstore.com, 828-696-1883

Appalachian Pinball Museum appalachianpinballmuseum.com, 828-702-9277

Shine Hendersonville shinehvl.com, 828-692-0062

Mezzaluna Brick Oven Tap House mezzaluna-hendersonville.com, 828-697-6575

HenDough hendough.com, 828-595-2885

Book and Bee Café and Tea thebookandbee.com, 828-845-4242

Bold Rock Cider boldrock.com, 828-595-9940

Jeter Mountain Farm jetermountainfarm.com, 828-513-0404

Point Lookout Vineyards pointlookoutvineyards.com, 828-808-8923