For my wife and I this was a walk in due to the restaurant we picked had an hour wait. We asked to sit outside and promptly seated. Our order was taken very quickly and that's when things began going south. The weather started to threaten but we figured we had time to eat and get out before the rain came. Except our food never came out. It started raining and they seated inside but still no food. The manager came out and finally told us that the Hamburger I order was over cooked and had them recook it. My wife order soup, which was excellent and a side of Mac and Cheese. My hamburger was great. Unfortunately the Mac and Cheese was cold. We sent it back and told the waitress to just take it off the bill. At that I was fine with paying for the hamburger and soup, both were great. The manager came  to our table and told us he was comping the entire meal. He felt terrible about our wait. He then proceeded to hand us a gift card to come back and try them again. This was not necessary but shows the commitment of this restaurant. I would recommend giving Carmel's a try.
Review Source:First time there, and I enjoyed it, but it didn't knock my socks off. I had the catfish reuben (I think it was a special). It didn't have much cole slaw at all (they use slaw instead of sauerkraut) and only a tiny dollop of tarter sauce. The batter on the fish wasn't anything to rave about. Very mild. It was cooked well and was flaky and crunchy. It just wasn't all that.
My friend has a salad that looked lovely and was large, for the price. In retrospect, I wish I'd tried one of their signature dishes. I'll give them another shot before rendering a final decision.
Stopped by for dinner back in November. I don't remember hearing anything about it, must be fairly new. We were seated right away on a Saturday night. The food is just okay. I had a flatbread pizza that was nothing special. The drinks were just okay as well. Service was good. With so many yummy places in Asheville, I doubt we'll be back.
Review Source:Well I came here with my parents and it was just ok. The service at the bar was absolutely terrible. I had a question and it took them 10 minutes to recognize that I was standing there and help me. It was crazy packed so we took our beers outside to wait for a table. The outside of the restaurant was pretty dirty, dog food all over the ground and napkins everywhere. Once we got seated though, our server was incredible. He was a lot of fun and made sure we were taken care of. I had the buffalo chicken pizza which was decent. Not bad for Carmel's not being a pizza joint.
Review Source:Visited Carmel's for the first time this past Sunday.(1/13/2012) They have brunch options along with other menu items on Sunday. Very much enjoyed the Tomato Goat Cheese Bisque and the Stone Ground Grits! This would be a place to go back and visit again. The service was good. Woman forgot something but apologized and took 2 drinks off our ticket without even asking.
Review Source:We stopped and had dinner here on our last night in Asheville. Beat from a long day at the Biltmore and not expecting much for dinner we were very pleased with Carmels. We sat outside and had a wonderful waiter..I think named David? We got the bbq pizza and I got the crabcakes which were delicious! We would love to come back and eat here again if we're back in asheville
Review Source:Went to Carmel's over this past weekend, and cannot say a single good thing about it. The service was awful, and our food was bland and cold. Not sure if we just hit it on an off day, but it took over 45 minutes to get our meals... and then to get meals that weren't even good was really disappointing. Would stay clear of this place, if I ever return to Asheville.
Review Source:The food was solid, but not great. The service was fine. But never in my life have I been to a restaurant where there were so many insects flying around. One died in a glass of water at our table. At least two others landed on our food. It was disgusting. We mentioned the issue to our waiter who explained that the issue is not uncommon when they leave the door open all day, which begs the question why would you ever keep the door open all day if that's the case. I would suggest this restaurant to the board of health before I recommended it to a friend.
Review Source:Gotta love beer flights! Â Good beers, thin crust grilled pizza, salads, seafood and meat entrees. Â They also do brunch.
For lunch, I got a signature pizza, candied tomato, brie & spinach. Â It was very good. Â Dad created his own with mushroom & spinach. Â Mom had a Caesar salad. Â Nothing fancy, but we enjoyed it and finished it all.
Dad got Bud Light, God knows why anyone would ever drink that let alone somewhere with excellent local beers, but the bill for all that (beer flight was 5 your-choice 6-oz cups) was about $43 (plus tip). Â
You can sit outdoors, which I would have preferred, but my parents didn't wanna wait 15 minutes so we ate inside. Â The ambiance was a little boring and it was loud.
Mediocre at best. Â Stopped in for lunch because it looked so inviting as we walked past. Â Since it was a little chilly for us, we decided to sit at the bar. Â It took at least 10 minutes for the bartender to even acknowledge our presence - it's not that big of a bar. Â A quick "I'll be with you in a minute" would've sufficed. Â We ordered a fried green tomato sandwich which was much more greasy than I expected, and a spinach salad that was described as having candied nuts, blueberry Stilton, and reduced balsamic dresssing. Â There were maybe 3 nuts, 6 crumbs of cheese, and 12 drops of balsamic reduction. Â Bland and tasteless...
Review Source:Wasn't really a fan of this place. Â Everything was so salty and the New York strip steak that I ordered came out slathered in steak sauce. Â Ironically, the cheese grits that went along with it were not salted very much at all. Â
What we really loved about this place was that the server was very cool with our orders, providing a veggie platter for us not on the menu to accommodate for the vegetarian at the table. Â The server was also pretty nice and had a slew of suggestions about live music and places to hit that evening. Â
So no, not a fan of the food, I should say, not a fan of that meal, but cool staff
Pizza and Blood Mary were good. Had the Pulled Pork pizza and it was fantastic. Service was tepid. Asked to be seated outside at one of NUMEROUS open tables and was told there would a 15 min wait; inside was crowded and stuffy. Waiter forgot my wine order. Great food cannot overcome lackluster service.
Review Source:The food here was delicious!! Everyone in our party of 8 was satisfied with their meal.
I loved the portobella melt I ordered (although I couldn't really taste all of the toppings--the Brie and peppers were overpowered by the vinegar sauce on the mushrooms). They offered great vegetarian options and the sweet potato fries were awesome!
Dinner special: "Nut encrusted trout" which is code for left over granola cereal from breakfast wrapped around room temperature fish. This dish had so much promise but it was soggy, oddly sweet and it had a bitter after taste. I had to send it back.
The manager was very apologetic and offered to get me something else but the entire situation was so awkward I declined. I've seen the movie Waiting a few too many times so I'm sadly aware of what happens to returned food.
My boyfriend loved his angus burger and I dined on the 3 blue cheese stuffed olives the waitress snuck me and I drank an entire bottle of wine. Romantic dinner fail.
My husband and I chose this restaurant for our dinner rehearsal and their service was great! Â When we called to make a reservation, we were told that we could only chose 5 items off the menu for our guests but that night the waiter told us that we could also order appetizers and their specials. Â Of all the appetizers that we ordered, my favorite was the pimento cheese. Â I have never been particularly fond of pimento cheese but this one had a great consistency and the flavors simply melted in your mouth. Â I ordered a lobster ravioli (their special that night) that was good. Â The honey mustard BBQ sauce on the Carolina BBQ chicken pizza, that my husband ordered, really made the pizza stand out. Â We are definitely going back and trying more items.
Review Source:I just joined Yelp to review this restaurant. The FGT blew my mind. The sweet tater fries on the side were the icing. AMAZING. I am not vegetarian but felt drawn to the FGT and I wish I could have another one...every day for the rest of my life.
My man had the meatloaf sandwich and said it was great. Our 5 year old had the grilled cheese & said it was the best of his life, but he may have been influenced by how much I was into my sandwich.
We ate on the patio at lunch time and they were super sweet about our dogs hanging with us. There was a separate area for folks with dogs, and they brought us bowls of water. So nice!
I love Carmel's! It's a great spot to stop in and have a cocktail, people watch or bring a date. Great wine selection and the trout is AMAZING! It's a really good spot for brunch on Sunday's and I've never had to wait like all of the other brunch places. The pimento cheese omelete is delicious, and the french toast is the best I've ever had. Great bloody mary's too.
Review Source:We'd been to this restaurant back in 2007, and liked it a lot, so it was logical stop for our first night in town. The food was delicious, but the waiter forgot to bring the glass of wine I ordered with my dinner, and didn't remember until I was almost done. And after we're finished, I HATE to wait around and then have to ASK the bus staff for the check. We were dining late, so it wasn't that the restaurant was that busy. Seriously, the food rates a 4-5, but the service was a bit of a downer.
Review Source:They (my dining companions) said, "Look at all the old people. We are like the youngest people eating here by like 30 years!" I said, "they've lived a long time, they've had a life time to know good food."
Walk into Carmel's Restaurant and Bar and the smell of delicious food envelops you, we all said Mmmm in unison. I knew this smell - I love this smell and promptly said, "that's a burger, Kobe beef to be exact." Et voila there was a Kobe Beef burger on the menu - I ordered it sans bacon. Â It was divine! Probably the best burger I've had in ages! Â I sampled the duck and the salmon but I was too enamored with my burger to properly take in their taste. Â
I also had the Pomegrante martini and the Rangapor martini - both effortlessly delicious. Fried calamari as an appetizer - it was so so, but when is it ever fabulous you know...?
Â
I was in culinary heaven here and the service was excellent. I definitely want to come back!
Unh uh. My S.O. and myself were extremely dissatisfied with our meal here. We like to think of ourselves as expert foodies in the making. One thing's for sure, we know what we like and we know good, fresh delicious food when we consume it. This, my fellow Yelpers, was NOT one of those meals.
Ugh, where do I begin. We're kind of wimpy cause we're from Arizona so we decided to dine indoors since it was nearing temps in the high 50's (brrr). Our Host was cordial , came with snicker-inducing small talk and gave us a great window seat.
Our waiter, Shannon (a dude), greeted us shortly after. As I perused the menu, I asked if there might be a merlot available? He said, "yes, a house merlot" and I decided on a Full Moon beer.
So off he went to retrieve that. We decided, as we always do, to pick two meals that sounded delectable to us both and split each. I ordered the "ST. LOUIS BBQ RIBS: Maple-Chipotle glazed, Crispy Spoon Bread, Apple-Blue Cheese Slaw" for  $17. He, the "SALMON: Blackened Farm raised Salmon, Preserved Lemon Grit Cake, Crispy Asparagus, Blackberry-Lime Coulis" for  $20. Sounds divine, don't it?
OMG, what a rip. The ribs were hella fatty and blaise - tasting. The Salmon came dang near rare in the middle. WTF? How could that be when it's BLACKENED for Christmas' Sake?
I sent it back to have it cooked a bit longer (sans sista' attitude). Shannon did not apologize. The guy who brought it back to us from the kitchen, didn't either. "Re-order?" he mumbled, as he placed the more thoroughly cooked piece of salmon on our table and quickly left.
Seriously, I know this is the East but  where the frick was my southern hospitality, bitches?
The entire meal (well both meals) were extremely mediocre, especially for the price. We both left with belly aches (seriously) from the greasy meal(s). Sometimes you give a place another chance because it's possible you just picked an off meal but in this case, two lame meals constitutes a boycott of the place going forward for us.
Too bad too, cause they have the sexiest real estate and atmosphere in beautiful Asheville.
During a recent trip to Asheville I enjoyed a lovely dinner at Carmel's with my boyfriend. Â We started with two local beers-- a porter and a white ale. Â Our server, Lori, was very knowledgeable about the beers and the menu, and had a great laid back personality. Â
After a few sips of beer, our appetizer of calamari with red cabbage and banana peppers arrived. I'm not typically a fan of banana peppers, but these, combined with a sweet and tangy dipping sauce with a hint of spice and citrus gave the calamari a delicious and very unique flavor. Â If I had looked away I think that my boyfriend might have downed the sauce like a shot. Â
For dinner we both had the meatloaf-- mine with mashed sweet potatoes with chipotle, and his with traditional mashed Yukon gold potatoes. Â The sweet potatoes were originally intended to go with a pork tenderloin dish, but I was intrigued and the staff was very accommodating to my special request. Â The sweet potatoes were delicious- sweet and smoky with a bit of spice. Â In retrospect, though, I would have stuck with the Yukon gold potatoes since they were a better compliment with the meatloaf's sauce. Â
For dessert I had a massive warm fudge brownie topped with ice cream, and my boyfriend had creme brulee. Â
We had a great meal at Carmel's, and will definitely stop by again when we're back in NC.
We ate here on a Saturday afternoon after striking out at two other restaurants which had one hour waits. Â We were seated immediately. Â The atmosphere is very nice. Â I had the salmon burger which was really good and the sweet potato fries were the best I've ever had.
My kids had a grilled cheese sandwich and pasta and both were also very good. Â The food here isn't exceptional but it's definitely worth a visit.
This restaurant has a kids menu so I'm not sure why people say it's not kid friendly. Â The decor is nice but it isn't fancy. Â I took my 5yo and 8yo and we were comfortable.
Excellent mussels, served in a delicious white wine sauce with grilled olive bread for dipping. Clean and elegant atmosphere with great outdoor seating.
Convenient location in downtown Asheville, at the lovely Grove Arcade, a historic building that also houses locally-owned businesses such as art galleries and small grocery stores. The hearty shrimp and delicate pasta were fresh and made with attention to detail. Service was friendly and prompt.
Bonus points: informative website with detailed menu listings and updated weekly specials!
PS: Check out the photos!
We drove up to Asheville from Atlanta to celebrate our 1st anniversary. Â We came upon Carmel's kind of by chance - but also kind of planned. Â I had found a review somewhere saying that it was dog-friendly. Â And since we had our hairy kids with us - we needed to find a place where we could sit outside with them.
Carmel's is located on a prime corner in Asheville right outside the Grove Arcade. Â We were drawn to it because of the ample outside seating. Â We went during the middle of the afternoon - so we could only order from the cocktail menu - but we found that was perfect for what we were in the mood for. Â So we got the cheese plate - which was awesome - and a spicy buffalo chicken pizza - also great! Â
They have a great selection of beers and are always featuring 10 seasonal ones on draft. Â I tried an Apricot beer (Pyramid - I think!) and it was wonderful!
So a great way to start our weekend in Asheville!
The 5 best restaurants in the 2015 Denver Restaurant Week
3,611 Views | Category: Denver
The complete list of 2015 Denver Restaurant Week businesses
1,972 Views | Category: Denver
The tourists' guide to Portillos: 5 must have dishes
3,318 Views | Category: Chicago
Pho = Pronounced "fuh" not "foe" for pho-king sake
2,915 Views | Category: Denver
Indulgery selected to exhibit at Collision Conference
2,987 Views | Category: Press Releases
Not Logged In
BUSINESSES
Local Businesses
Near Me
My Favorites
SOCIAL
Blog & News
MY ACCOUNT
Login
Register
Contact Us
Add Your Business
