GET OUT! OUTDOOR TABLES AND FRESH-AIR FOOD
PHOTO BY ALICE OGLESBY
SUNNY POINT CAFÉ
BY K AY WEST With Foodtopia as its nationally recognized brand and the hospitality industry one of the biggest sectors of its local economy, the suspension of indoor dining in Asheville just weeks before peak visitor season in 2020 was a stat-level emergency. The city responded with new policies that enabled restaurants to expand outdoor seating into privately owned parking lots, specified city sidewalks and storefront street parking. Although indoor service has resumed, al fresco dining spaces remain popular because nothing whets the appetite or soothes the soul more than a breath of fresh mountain air. • In the River Arts District, Smoky Park Supper Club offers riverside seating on its lawn and elevated deck — the Adirondack chairs are particularly popular. Chef Michelle Bailey has created a seasonal, regionally sourced menu of wood-fired American cuisine that includes starters, sandwiches, burgers and more. The Smoky Park Burger, which features aged cheddar, charred herb mayonnaise, grilled onions and house pickles on a sesame bun, has a cultlike following. When the pandemic made outdoor seating a necessity, • Asheville’s most personable French chef/restaurateur, Michel Baudouin, wasted no time or sentiment in flipping his beloved petanque court outside East Asheville’s RendezVous into a chic and stylish open-air boite. Large canvas umbrellas shelter tables, cane bistro chairs and heaping cones of his famous frites.
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E AT S & D R I N K S
2021 – 2022
