Decent beers and pretty good food, but nothing memorable for the higher than average price point. As a visitor I wouldn't recommend LAB as a place to go more than once, though it is a great centrally located bar with spacious tables so it's a nice spot to meet up with people at.
Despite living 6 hours away, I've gone a few times when I've been in town and nothing has really blown me away. Most all of their beers on tap are hoppy ones and that's just not my thing.
Their music is also a little louder than I like music in a restaurant to be when I'm out with a group and we've got a lot of people trying to talk across a long table (note that I am a little more sensitive to background music being too loud as I personally find it kinda distracting). That said, I do enjoy the music selection at LAB. Every time I've gone to Asheville to see a show I come back wishing I could see the Yeah Yeah Yeahs too cause LAB never fails at putting their tunes in my head.
We were able to buy six beers, an appetizer, and two dinners (not entrees), for under $60. Considering the local ingredients, and that this is fresh beer, brewed in house, that's a great price. We tried 4 different beers between the two of us and we liked all of them. The Amber IPA was definitely our favorite and had 8% ABU. We also split the pulled pork nachos which were delicious and something new for us. Very generous servings, I was almost full before I even got my meal. I then had the arugula portabella salad. The mushrooms were marinated and tasted great, and the entire presentation of each of our plates looked like a high end restaurant in Boston, but for way less money. I didn't get to try his burger, but the fries were nice and crunchy and he said he liked it.
We were also able to secure seats at the window bar since it was a weeknight so it was great for people watching and fresh air. Our server was attentive but not overbearing, and allowed us to take our time and relax. Overall this place was great.
Went there a month ago and we had a friendly helpful server, the prezels and cheese sauce were great, and the fries..perfection. Last week I went back and it couldn't have been more different. It was 3 in the afternoon and the lunch specials were still up so I tried ordering one of them and was told they were no longer available and they just hadn't got around to erasing the board. Ok, I' ll have the pretzels and sandwich with fries like I had before. The pretzels came out and the cheese sauce was the consistency of water and tasted awful. You could tell they had run out and were trying to make do with the bottom of the pot by thinning it out. We told our waitress about it and she said she would speak to the kitchen. 35 minutes later we had new cheese sauce for our now cold pretzels. They did do the right thing by taking the pretzels off the bill without our asking. The sandwich and fries...meh.The fries were soggy and they were pretty skimpy with the sandwich filling. Â I was pretty disappointed after having such a good experience my first visit there.
Review Source:My first visit here in June was great. The fresh baked pretzels with cheese sauce and hot mustard were superb. The drunken chicken sandwich had the best whiskey glazed bacon in my life. The fries were also very good, and I can be a french fry snob. Our server that day was also very friendly.
My most recent visit however, was almost the complete opposte. The pretzels were pretty much the same, but the cheese sauce was just milky salty water with a very unappetizing glop of cheese goo at the bottom. After bringing it to our servers attention, she made a quick apology and said she'd get more. 35 minutes later - once the pretzels were cold and picked over - we received a half-portion of normal cheese sauce.
I had tried to order the pizza lunch special on the board but was told they actually didn't have it anymore, so I had the chicken sandwich again. Bacon was still good, but the filling seemed smaller while the bread seemed bigger. Ended up leaving most of the hoagie behind. Fries were just OK. Service was much much slower and not as friendly. A bit sad because I loved it the first time around.
Disappointed. Had a young out of town guest and thought we'd have dinner here. It's hip, right? We've had good food in the past. Great people watching.
First, our server, Xtine, was sortof officious and not very personable. Saturday night is pretty busy there but we were eating early so she couldn't have been THAT busy. How about .... "Hey, how are you folks doing? Been here before? Where are you from? Nice weather we're having, huh?", you know some inane banter. NOT! I think this irritated me most since there are so many fine waiters and waitresses in Asheville who would enjoy and appreciate working at a restaurant as busy as LAB. Â
Pretzel was great but the cheese sauce was really runny. Can't ruin mustard fortunately. Â Food was very mediocre overall. Burger was too well done. Fries were awful. Ravioli with lobster (frozen) and peas had a tastless cream sauce. Pieces of garlic bread were swimming in the sauce. Didn't expect much lobster for the price and didn't get it but there's no excuse for the sauce. French Dip's beef was reported to be fatty. Â
We try to like LAB. As I said, great place in downtown for people watching and they usually have innovative menu choices. Items just don't seem very well executed.
Much has changed here in the last year or so. Not sure I like the direction they're heading in.
LaB is a great location and good open-air atmosphere. Flight of beers (6 samples) is only $7. That's where the positive things ended for us... For a town known for great beer and food, we were very unimpressed.. Fried green tomatoes' batter was not good; Cuban pork nachos were just alright (has whole cloves of garlic in it so be careful...yeow!) our food came out wrong but by time our server checked back with us (10+ minutes later) we didn't care anymore. They were playing random blah 90s R&B songs (anyone remember K-cee and jojo??), didn't feel very Ashvillian. Many other breweries and restaurants in Asheville that are much better worth your time and $$.
Review Source:Enjoyed a delightful afternoon lunch at the Lexington Avenue Brewery (LAB). Â Was on a couples getaway with my wife and we sat in the open air seating at the front of the restaurant. Â Great place to people watch and spend a casual afternoon. Â I had the French Dip. Â It was wonderful choice, and large fresh made hoagie role with the thinly sliced beef piled high. Â I highly recommend this place and look forward to coming back.
Review Source:-We stopped in here after our second trip to Wicked Weed. This place is HUGE! Giant restaurant in front, nice hallway where you can see the brewery itself, huge very nice bathrooms and then the back room has live music set up with an additional bar. I bet at night this place is fantastic.
-I only tried the IPA here, their beer list was very minimal.
-For a merchandise guy they didn't have too much but a few tshirts and pint glass..and NO coasters.
-Our bartender was very friendly and it was a nice experience.
this place is consistently good and consistently packed, Â Hope you like what beers they currently have on tap brewed in house because those are the only beers there. Â However there is usually about 6 -7 and generally has something for everyone. Â Food is super delicious. Â Try the local cheese plate FOR REAL
Review Source:This place is delicious. Â It has a relaxed atmosphere, good views of people walking by, and delicious beer. Â I had the sides sampler - vegetable quinoa, vegetable kabob, and garlic green beans - and loved them. Â I ordered fries and didn't eat them because I found them too skinny and the waitress comped them. Â I also ordered a sampler and found that they didn't have one that I was hoping for and was given an extra sample of the one I was interested in. Â The beer is tasty. Â The best I had was the Spring Ale - very hoppy. Â My second favorite was the IPA. Â The porter is good but it is sweet. Â A wonderful experience!
Review Source:Part of me always hates how 'bro-y' the atmosphere can be. But I love the cocktails and the food. Once again, decent vegan options. It's a great place to go with company that insists on eating meat and those with restricted diets.
The food is local and fresh. It is up to par on the rest of Asheville's food scene. Best bar food that I've had in town.
First and LAST visit to LAB. It took 45 minutes for us to get our food, which was cold. They brought us two different tables orders and we had little ones with us who each time thought "finally our food is here!" only to be disappointed.
Burger came with no bun (seriously) and no cheese and they said we requested and ordered that way. Â Kids pizza sauce spicy. Food was mediocre and service was really poor.
Four tries to get us a check. Ladies next to us from WV and they too agreed LAB isn't all what it's cracked up to be. Skip this joint.
Up until now I have been mostly satisfied with LAB. I come here from time to time when I feel the need to indulge my red meat cravings, and I support them specifically because they raise their own meats. I will only eat red meat that is local, and even then on rare (no pun intended, ha) occasions.
On this particular day I stopped in to get a Reuben. It came out and looked HUGE. The bread looked to be clearly of artisanal nature and freshly grilled. When I took the first bite I was pleased all except for the slightly grainy harshness of the bread and mostly the quite disproportionate amount of corned beef to bread. This only increased as I got more into it.
As it turns out, my initial bite was just in the right spot, as that corner was the only spot that had any meat on it. by the time I got less than halfway through, I had already burned through all the meat and was just left with some somewhat coarse, and now somewhat soggy and bland, bread.
What appeared to be a giant sandwich and well deserving of a small fall off of the meat wagon, became more of a giant disappointment. I am huge on eating everything on my plate, but I was just lost at the rest of the meal. I will come back but upon my return, I will stick with the French Dip.
I've been to LAB a couple times and enjoyed it each time. Â It's really loud and vibrant. Â The beer is good and the food is too. Â It's seat yourself seating so be ready to be pushy to get a table when it's crowded. Â That's the part I don't love. Â If I didn't have to fight for my own table I would give it 5 stars.
Review Source:Brought the in-laws here. They are decidedly unfamiliar with the gasto-pub concept, but were quickly won over. The food specials were tasty and locally sourced. The pulled beef barbecue sandwich was a big hit. I had the nachos, which were excellent with their house hot sauce. There were five beers on tap. We tried a flight. The brown porter and nitro stout were particular standouts. All in all a
very pleasant experience in a town where you can't throw a brick without hitting two or three excellent restaurants.
I'm really conflicted about this place. I think it has a really cool atmosphere that accommodates large groups, along with a fairly creative menu, but after eating and drinking there, I wasn't wowed.
When I was in town for Moogfest, my boyfriend and I ordered the Duck Leg Confit and the Pomegranate Pork Tenderloin which, despite being flavorful, were both overcooked. The Beef Sliders were great. LAB isn't terrible by any means, and we were there on a busy night, but I guess I expected more from a city that is known for its food and beer.
That reminds me, the beer blows. I'm willing to pardon the overcooked food since it is Lexington Avenue BREWERY, and the beer should be what really stands out. However, i've been to LAB for drinks several times and have tried nearly every beer on the menu. Every beer i've tried has sorely lacked in complexity and flavor. Luckily, they offer a nice selection of liquor.
Not really impressed. I ordered the Turkey Sandwich (w/o onion). Â Needless to say it had onion. The cream cheese was clumped in one place and the bread was extremely over toasted (more like a cracker). The bacon and turkey were very tough. It was cold as well. That being said... My wife loved her dinner. She had the scallop appetizer and the potato, leak, fennel soup. She enjoyed the meal. My daughter had chicken fingers and fries. The standard fries were too spicy, we had to order some plain. The best way to describe the service is "sparse". I will give it another shot though. The beer was fine. Â
Overall, I would say the presentation far exceeds the flavor and quality of the food.
We really liked this place. I found Asheville to be a little strange, in the fact that we wanted a bloody mary before noon and had a hard time finding a "pub" that was even open! Everything opened so late. So....we stumbled upon LAB and it was great.
The decor is cool and fun. The service was fun. It was a vibrant scene.
We ordered drinks and a few appetizers and would definitely go back.
Came here with about a dozen people. We asked for separate checks, noting that there is an increased automatic gratuity for doing so, no big deal.
Our checks come out and the waitress announces that because about half of our meals are roughly the same dollar amount, she has put them all on one bill because it is easier for her.... WTF? When one of my friends looked at the bill and saw nothing was even broken down by person she asked "How do we know how much each of us owes?" the waitress snapped back with "Calculators! Calculators!" It was obviously she just wanted her 20% automatic gratuity and didn't care to do even the most basic work to earn it.
The food was very good but her rude attitude left an extremely sour taste in our collective mouths. Especially since we were outright PAYING for the convenience of having split checks.
Thanks for nothing, Courtney. One of the worst waitresses I have ever experienced in my life, and that is putting it lightly.
Neat stop on our brewery tour of Asheville. The place was pretty hopping when we kinda cool. They had LED lights on all the beer tanks and the (huge!) bar looked like it was made out of a giant tree. Loved the patio, but of course it was already packed. As we were just stopping in for a brew, we didn't try the food, but some nearby patrons did and it looked delicious.
Beer-wise, I wasn't blown away by the current selections on tap and the prices were pretty standard. Don't get me wrong, the beer was good, just not "Wow!" good. If you're checking out micro-breweries in Asheville, don't forget to grab a brew at the LAB!
We stopped in here to try out some of the local beer while in town. We headed in at about 2:00pm and the place was pretty hopping. The patio seats were all taken but we did manage to find some sitting room at the bar. I was hoping that they offered a tour of the brewery but since that wasn't an option we just settled for some beers.
I really liked the interior of the place, with the exposed brick walls. The taproom could be partially seen and there were interesting lighting effects which drew your eye to it. They offered six or seven of their own beers, as well as other booze. I ordered a glass of their Oktoberfest and the miss' had a glass of their raspberry porter. The Oktoberfest was pretty good, but not the best I've had. It was smooth and tasty, and I enjoyed it. The raspberry porter had a very slight fruity aftertaste to it, so the raspberry didn't jump out as much as other ones we've had. I will say that the beers were priced right, at $3.75 a glass.
It was decent local beer, but not the best I've had. I really dug the ambiance of the place but wasn't totally sold on it. With all the other breweries/brew pubs in the area I'll check out some others before coming back here.
The beer was really tasty...when I finally got it.
I am not sure if I walked in, and had an aura of not from being around town, or what, but I was most certainly ignored for twenty minutes at the bar. I had never been here before, and never saw the bartender in my entire life. Oh well.
Oh, and the beer was cheap. But the wait pissed me off. Bartender def lost some business from me that night!
I had originally planned on hitting this spot up on Saturday night to see Woody Wood, but being tuckered out from the days drive we happened to walk up on it Sunday afternoon while shopping so I made it a point to stop in just to see what it was all about. Honestly, glad I did.
Great atmosphere, fantastic food and good music with a wonderful in home brew selection. Â ; )
What a wonderful experience. Â I was in town visiting friends and they wanted me to experience Asheville beers. Â We headed here because not only are they a brewery but they also serve food. Â
The atmosphere is interesting. Â There's a space closer to the street where you can sit and watch the street and sidewalk traffic. Â Inside further there are regular-sized tables, a few pub tables and a uniquely shaped bar. Â The restaurant is quite dark and it was a bit loud.
I started out with their Black IPA which was decent but I really enjoyed their regular IPA which is one of the better IPA's I have had.
The food is amazing here. Â I had the meatball sub and it is probably the best meatball sub I ever had. Â Huge flavorful meatballs, spicy sweet and spicy sauce topped with roasted garlic and arugula. Â And the bread tasted homemade. Â My friends both had the French dip which had a huge portion of beef with an equally huge portion of jus. Â Both came with thickly cut French fries.
The only thinks I could find fault with is our server. Â I just felt like we were just another table for her and she really was only there for the money. Â The person cleaning the tables had more personality. Â But still they get 5 stars for beer and food.
Lab, as it's known to the locals, is another one of Asheville's beer gems. We stopped by for a quick drink, after eating lunch somewhere else and ended up staying past our one pint each, to share a flight. Â They brew their Octoberfest all year and although I didn't find it radiating Fall, it was tasty. Â I had a pint of the Ale, which was very good and the hubs went with the dark IPA, which was also good. Â My favorite after trying the flight was definitely the chocolate. Â If you like much lighter varieties, then the Whitey is smooth, crisp and easy to drink.
We didn't have anything to eat, but saw several dishes come out from the kitchen and everything looked and smelled great! Â We grabbed two seats at the bar, but if you're lucky enough to find a couple of open seats up front, they (like many places in Asheville), have garage doors up on nice days, for that "open air" atmosphere that reminds me of being on an island. Â A definite must!
Stumbled in here on a recent trip to "The Mountains." Â My only regret is that we did not have more time to stay in Asheville, and in particular, at the LAB. Â Enjoyed a couple of fantastic Apps -- the Fish and Chips (fried White Anchovies and Potato Chips) and the Tuna...I forget what it was called but it was special. Seared Tuna done just right (i.e. Rare!) with a curry seasoning on the outside, served on a bed of delicious pickled vegetables (carrots, onions, cabbage) and topped with a scoop of a spicy sorbet. Â Yes: that's right, a scoop of sorbet with a large tasty cracker stuck in it. Â
With the way that the Seared Tuna appetizer has found it's way to almost every menu in America, it was great to see it done with a unique and different twist. Â Thoroughly enjoyed it with my Black IPA. Â
It has been noted by previous reviewers, but there is no hostess system here, and the seat yourself kind of thing I'm sure makes some patrons nervous. Â I will say it did seem like the wait staff was very good at welcoming people as they came in the door, and attending them when they chose (or commandeered) a table. Â
My solution is always head to open seats at the bar. Â You are guaranteed a seat, attentive service, and friendly conversation from strangers, if that's what you are in to.
I will have to go back and try more on my next jaunt down that way!
This microbrewery has some fantastic beer. Â And the prices are incredible. Â They had a live band play during the dinner crowd. Â I definitely started getting into the hipster vibe with some chill music, beer and plenty of people wearing flannel.
The LAB's burger was delicious. Â The Caesar salad had a lot of garlic so the rest of the night was spent trying to cover that up. Â The service was good and the ability to seat yourself was great as we found a great table near the band.
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