I can't say enough good things about the service at Pack's Tavern. As a long time restaurant owner, I am very difficult to impress when it comes to service, and Asheville has a well deserved reputation for poor service by many well known restaurants. I attend the Vibrant Asheville Business Networking events each month, and the servers are efficient, and know the bar and food menus well enough to make appropriate suggestions to a diverse group of people. They accommodate difficult situations with grace and good spirits, (you try combining 5 different tabs, subtracting a gift certificate, and keeping your composure). Pack's Tavern is the go to place for large groups and downtown events.
Review Source:Beer was cold and inexpensive. Â Waiter was fabulous but not obnoxious. Â Ordered the famous fish and chips. Â Fish was delicious, fresh, hot and deep fried in beer. Â Chips were just ordinary french fries...the kind you can get at burger king. Â Have yet to find a chef here that knows how to make authentic British chips. Â Would have been 5 stars with decent chips.
Review Source:Very average. We were disappointed in Pack's.
The pluses were a good beer list and friendly service at the bar.
We both ordered burgers- I went with the Mt Mitchell and my husband the bacon cheddar. Both were pretty pricey for burgers- mine was close to $15 and hubby's over $10. Â They were fine, but not "the best burger in town" as our bartender had claimed- personally I thought Juicy Lucy's were wayyyyy better.
Anyhow, not bad, not great- very very average.
I recently had the pleasure to go to Packs while in Asheville for a concert. I was impressed with the waiter I had who was very proper, professional and they were quick.
My guest had the famous fish and chips and loved them. I had the Maui Burger, Â and let me tell you, it was juicy and absolutely just what my taste buds wanted. I'd order another in a heartbeat with no hesitation on my part, the fries though? pretty sure I buy better ones frozen at the grocery store which is why i'm knocking a star off. Otherwise i'd go to packs and I without a doubt want to try other items from the menu.
Really liked Pack's. Â Negatives: service at the bar was bad. Â Two bartenders were staring at the computer cash register for like 10 minutes like it was in Chinese while lots of thirsty people were trying to spend money.
Positives: Once at a table everything was good.  Food and beer selection were great. Service was very good and the food nicely priced (cheap but good).  Music ( 2 guitar dudes) were pretty good and we had  a great time.  Would go again when in Asheville.
We have been here a couple of times - I have to say this visit was pretty bad. Don't get me wrong - service was fine, the martini and beer were delicious. It was the food that fell well short --------------------
Started with the Jamaican Jerk wings - they came out smothered in grease with no "Jerk" taste at all. I asked our waitress and her comment was "yep, that's our Jamaican Jerk - not very hot are they?" Â So we pushed those aside and enjoyed the drinks. Her salmon and grits came to the table - again floating in a buttery grease. Salmon was done nicely, but the grits were terrible. I had the ribs - portion was good, but again, pretty fatty.
We have had lunch here a number of times and the fish and chips are outstanding. I don't think we will indulge the dinner menu again --------------
What a giant waste of good space. Pack's COULD have been a really cool, non-douchey sports bar to watch football in on Sundays, but all promises of that are destroyed by a few major problems:
1. The bar is enormous, yet they have a mere seven TVs. SEVEN. Fine during the World Series, I guess, but how about football, dummies???
2. Management clearly doesn't follow football as they opt to show exciting games like Chargers/Jets instead of the Texans/Vikings game at the end of the 2012 season, when all eyes are on Adrian Peterson closing in on the rushing record and Houston's playing the best football in the league. I'm not an avid fan of either of those teams - go Pats - so just to be clear, this isn't me being bitter that they wouldn't show my game.
3. If you ask to turn one of the TVs that not a single person is watching to the Texans/Vikes game so 3 of people in your 5-person party don't have to leave to find a new bar, a snotty manager will lie to your face and say "all the TVs are accounted for." Then when you politely ask who's watching that TV, she'll point to a group of 25 people who clearly came here for brunch after church and tell you that "they are." Then she'll tell you that they "usually get a few Packers fans on Sundays," which is great and all, but she literally had 3 Texans fans who were ALREADY THERE who walked out because of the alleged dozens of Cheeseheads who were sure to be coming later.
The sole reason for even considering Pack's is Kristy the waitress, who's my new favorite person. Hopefully she'll go elsewhere so we can follow her around like groupies.
Liked the decor and our bartender gave great service. Really liked the old feel of the place and was blown away by its size! Lots of energy.
That said, food was as I expected, bar type food, premade hamburger patties. Fish and chips was OK. On a previous visit, my husband had ordered a Chix Caesar Salad. Nothing remarkable about it. Our server steared us away from the crab cakes, since we're from Maryland. He didn't want to disappoint. They aren't touting fresh and local farm raised anythng, I don't think. The folks here don't seem to have much passion for food. Lacks that.
Great place to watch a football game or stop for a glass of wine. Would probably eat elsewhere though.
Pack's Tavern is a wonderful gem adjacent to Pack Square in downtown Asheville. Â The decor gives it an old-timey feel with old photos and there are several bicycles hanging from the ceiling. Â
There are two dining areas here. One adjacent tot he bar and one down a few steps behind the bar. Â It looks like there's a 2nd floor as well but I couldn't see what was up there. Â The mixture of wood and brick in the restaurant makes this place feel very warm.
The beer selection is as diverse as the general menu. Â I ordered off of the lunch menu with a half BLT sandwich and cup of clam chowder.
The clam chowder was amazing. Â With many clam chowders, you are left wondering if you ordered potato soup with clam flavor but not here. Â There were clams present and large chunks of them. Â The chowder also had it's own peppery flavor so additional pepper was unnecessary. Â It had a wonderful cream texture and flavor.
The BLT was interesting because instead of regular tomatoes, they used fried green tomatoes. Â The think I didn't like with this sandwich was the extra greasy bread and the shredded lettuce. Â Lettuce leaves would have worked better. Â
Overall a great experience. Â I will have to remember this place when I visit Asheville again.
The place continues to be more and more impressive as we go. Â Our second time back was this previous weekend with a larger party of people and our service was awesome and STAT. Â He was getting us drink refills and pretty much the kitchen sink before we knew we needed it. Â Our burgers, fish n' chips, crab cakes and tomato soup all made the grade and was just excellent! Â The remoulade sauce for the crab cakes had bite size pieces of cornichon's in it and it was the best I'd ever tasted. Â Great combo!!! Â Garlic mashed potatoes, yes please! Â The tomato and cucumber salad, certainly!
My boyfriend who lived in England prior to the states said that the fish n' chips was about the closest that he has had in the area...it was certainly a wow moment for all involved.
Also, the beer list is fantastic...seasonal pumpkin beers are simply to die for! Â Huzzah for Pack's Tavern!
So a neighbor of mind really likes this place, so we decided to have a beer and some of their "famous" fish and chips, which by the way is actually noted on their menu as the most popular item.
The place is quiet large and touts that traditional old school look and feel even down to the old truck that is sometimes parked outside.
The bar staff (we ate at the bar) was engaging and good with service.
With plenty of TVs this is a place to definitely take in a game and a beer.
The fish and chips came out and though I don't eat any fried food these days, it was very good.
All and all a great place and the only thing I wish I had experienced was the big patio in the back of the building. Â Great place to check out.
Fun bar in a terrific location in downtown Asheville. Â Enormous restaurant and bar inside with a nice outside patio. Â Checked out the patio of Pack's Tavern to enjoy some of Shindig on the Green, it's like having VIP seating! Enjoyed their cheese fries - fries are clearly frozen, but the applewood bacon was a nice touch - it was served with some sort of gravy that was a bit odd. Â Washed them down with a flirty cocktail, The Frenchman. Â Service was attentive and quick. Â A cool place to grab a bite or a drink if you're in downtown Asheville.
Review Source:What a treat to eat here during the BelleCher festival in Asheville. Â Figuring on long lines we ate early and were seated right away. Â After a tour of the place I can imagine how busy it can be-it's a big place! Â The sourdough mini bread loafs were the ticket we needed after a long drive. Â Nicely salted, soft and warm they were scarfed up and a second basket ordered. Â Our table of 4 each enjoyed and completely finished our meals desserts included! Â Great patio seating! Â Can't wait to go back!
Review Source:Returned here after a very long time..memories of previous visit were good so tried it again. Fish & Chips were very tasty, cooked perfectly and slaw was very nice....portion size seemed smaller than I remembered but still adequate. Wife had a very large, well appointed chef salad ( some very tasty ham & turkey) but the gorgonzola dressing seemed a little light on gorgonzola flavour but still tasty.
  Drinks ( Margarita and Orange Crush) were very nice and low priced at $5 & $4 a mug...but in comparison I was a little surprised to see beer prices at $4.50 and up.
  Service was good but our server lacked personality.
We were at the park next door, and got hungry. Â My 18m son had the chicken strips with sweet potato fries, but only ate the fries- all of the fries. Â My husband ordered a spinach salad with apples and liked it, but wished it had more spinach. Â I had the Greek salad, and although I have never had a greek salad without feta (weird that it did not come with feta right?!?) it was delish, refreshing, and perfect with an excessive amount of yummy olives. Â Oh and there was nothing wrong with the chicken strips, my odd child just filled up on my olives instead.
Child friendly, great family bathroom with a changing table.
Later that day, we realized that this was the exact restaurant that we would be attending a rehersal dinner that evening.  They served completely different food than what we had ordered earlier.  This dinner is the reason they got 5 stars from me.  They had a slider station that was yum, super cute and tasty mini ceasar salads in parm cups, chicken fingers, and one of the best pasta stations I have had. They make  each bowl individually with whatever ingredients you request.  I had bacon, avacado, red peppers, peas, and white american cheese.  The open bar with wonderfully mixed cosmos did not hurt my rating.  :)
Stopped by on a Saturday for dinner, had about a 45 minute wait but that wasn't bad seeing that it was prime dinner time. They seemed to have a waitress that serviced the bar area as well as the waiting area. That was pretty convenient if you wanted a drink while you waited.  The menu in my opinion isn't huge but over all a decent selection. The prices are well pricey but I would expect that from a restaurant downtown Asheville. Once we actually set down the service was pretty good , food was good, deserts did not look appetizing at all. The waiter brought out a tray and we all decided that we didn't want anything... my dad commented that  desserts must not be their thing.
Review Source:So we've visited this bar 3 more times since my last 5 star review. Things went downhill since our first time there. I'd be happy to never return to this place but my husband and his coworkers like to come here after work.
2nd visit:
We came in and said it would be a 30 minute wait. So we waited...and waited...and waited. Finally, after 1.5 hours and bugging our hostess she sat us at one of the ten empty tables. I asked her why she wasn't seating people at the empty tables and she said that the kitchen is behind. Totally understandable but we told her several times before that we only wanted to sit down, drink and watch the game. If we weren't watching the game during our 1.5 hour wait we probably would have walked out.
3rd visit:
We were sat promptly but our waitress was very odd. She wouldn't make eye contact and had very little interaction with us. We all got the burgers. My husband and I didn't really care for them, thought they were dry and lacking some flavor. The other couple we were with said they were just okay.
4th visit:
My husband and I wanted to sit on the patio because it was a beautiful day. Apparently, our hostess sat us at the wrong table because we saw the manager yelling at her about where we were seated. Yelling at employees, whether it's in front of people or in private, is in poor taste.
Our waitress wasn't particularly friendly. I ordered the blt which was good and he ordered the patty melt or maybe the philly, I can't remember. Either way, he said the meat was tough. We also ordered mixed drinks which were very good.
Once we ate our food the waitress immediately brought us the check. It was a beautiful day and we told her we'd like to sit on the patio and enjoy a couple more drinks. I also joked about my husband being a heavy tipper once he gets a few drinks in him. She didn't think that was funny I guess. She seemed to have a problem with us staying so I told her if we needed to close out with her, we could and we would just order from the bar. She didn't like that idea either. She said she would continue to take care of us but after 20 mins of having an empty drink we decided to take our business elsewhere. We had to flag down another server to get our check.
Rarely give out 5 stars so you know the Filet Mignon is good here!
This place looks like an old cotton mill with very large airy rooms with tall ceilings! Â Lots of wood, large bar area with several beers on tap. Â I know from other reviews they have called the service less than stellar, I for one, didn't experience that. Â
I came here on a Sunday when they were doing a designated menu for brunch, however, I just didn't want breakfast type food. Â Don't get me wrong, I love some good breakfast, but I just wasn't in the mood for it today.... Â (Although it looked delicious)
I ordered a fielt mignon at 11:45am. Â Why?? Â I don't know.... Â But I sure am glad I did. Â It was cooked to perfection and so juicy and tasty. Â Just mouth watering and succulent.
I also has the sourdough break sticks for an appetizer which I don't think I would order again as they were just too salty for me. Â If you like salty and I know some people do, try them. Â They have a great taste just too salty for my pallet.
Anyway, I cant say enough about the steak here. Â Will definitely return. Â
I wish they would move that old truck from that parking space to allow for 1 extra space in front of their restaurant. Â Just kiidding......It looks so cool sitting there and adds to the theme and ambiance of the restaurant.
Two words: Acoustic Treatment! Everything in the place is hard and reflective which means sound bounces around forever and you have to try to hear and talk over all that reflected sound and it becomes even more difficult if you have any kind of amplified entertainment. I'm at the age when I don't want to talk loud or even scream when communicating and I don't want to hear other people scream to communicate. Love the patio and food, though!
Review Source:If you are planning to try something appetizing or want more than average service, this is not the place. Overall the ambiance was appropriate for a tavern and would be a great place to go for a drink. However, let's just say the menu descriptions do not live up to the kitchen staff's abilities. I felt like I was on an episode of bar rescue where they stare at the food and make the face that says I wouldn't eat this if I wasn't getting paid to do so.
For a more detailed review of our exact order with pictures visit:
<a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fthecampbellseatmorethansoup.blogspot.com&s=9a03111e7f780e1fd71fb6d099db3a42f95cecbe3ed8d36da0828b653f0c824a" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://thecampbellseatmo…</a>
Great location, great building/decor, great beer selection, great vibe ... BUT... I had some mixed feelings about my first visit to Pack's Tavern. I'd  like to go back to try it again sometime and see if I feel different.
My son had a Mt. Mitchell Burger, which I have to say was pretty darn good. Their burgers are fresh and they will cook them rare if you like. The Mt. Mitchell comes with a fried green tomato, jalapeños, cheese and a fried egg on top. It is almost too big to eat. I had the special of the day, which was a blackened sirloin Caesar salad. While it wasn't bad tasting, it was not very blackened and it was swimming in way too much salad dressing. We had their bread sticks which came with an amazing mustard sauce, but they were a bit too salty. Frankly, everything was a bit too salty.
The place is definitely noisy by design, but something really loud was going on upstairs. It sounded like they were bowling above our heads. It was odd. There was a singer/guitarist playing live music, but the acoustics weren't great and the noises above made it hard to enjoy the music.
Last thing, I was there on a Thursday night and they close at 11pm. We had someone join us at ~10:40pm and the server said that the kitchen was closing and wouldn't take his order. He didn't actually check with the kitchen though, so who knows.
I had the bbq combo ... and I ate the entire thing. All by myself. Half a rack of ribs and a quarter chicken along with my side. I may have been extra hungry due to the 2 beers I had at Thirsty Monk before here. Â =)
They have a good beer selection and lots of tv's to take in whatever sport tickles your fancy. Â I had a Ninja porter which was quite tasty with my bbq. We had a big group and no problem making a reservation that afternoon. Seems like a cool spot and somewhere I'd probably frequent if I lived near here!
I was more of the fan of the venue and the beer options than the food. We were in town for a conference and we were after a place where we could watch football games and drink beer -- as you do on a fall Sunday.
There was plenty of seating, the tvs were plentiful, and that was just fine with us. I had a Southern Fried Salad and it was pretty good, but we were really more interested in the Bell's IPA and Dogfish Head on tap. Overall a great place to wile away an Asheville football-watching afternoon.
Decided to come here for dinner after seeing the big back patio(which was good for the 3yo). They had a decent beer list. Started with the shrimp and scallop cheese dip which turned out to be kind of gross.
But the Cajun trout entree and the Thai salmon salad(which had no thai flavors) redeemed themselves. Friendly service and the price was right.
Went here at the suggestion of my sibling (whom I was in town visiting).
As others have mentioned, good beer selection.
Food is ok. Â Service was ok. Â A basic all around A-OK place.
Parking is easy in the lot behind the bldg. Â I suspect during the business day, the courthouse and Police depts (on either side of Pack's) could cause a parking issue.
Sat out on the patio. Â They could use a bug lamp or two.
As of July 1st, 2010, NO SMOKING, even on the patio!
Went to Pack's Tavern on a Thursday night, but it was the Dining Out for Life night so it was absolutely packed. Â Had only been open a couple of weeks, so they're plenty staffed for the occasion. Â Waited 23 minutes to get a table for two. Â They have the pager system that they claim will work as far away as the park across the street.
We sat in the "South Bar" area, which is kind of misnamed because there isn't a bar down there, only the main bar in the other room. Â I ordered a Reuben sandwich, which came with fries (or sweet potato fries, which I got) for $8.99. Â No exaggeration, the best Reuben and sweet potato fries I've ever had. Â I also ordered a sweet tea, but it was too sweet for me (which is saying something), so I went with Diet Pepsi for round two. Â
My wife ordered the Chipotle Ranch Burger, which I'm told was just incredible as well. Â All of the burgers are in the $7-9 range, except their signature burger, the Mt. Mitchell which goes for $11, but is loaded with stuff.
In addition to burgers, they have a variety of other classic Pub type dishes like Fish and Chips and stuff like that. Â A few salads and some pricier entrees like salmon, etc. Â Mostly burgers and sandwiches, though, and modestly priced. Â
They have a full bar, and a couple dozen beers on tap. Â Looked like you could get a pint for around $4 depending on what kind. Â
Parking-wise, there is a small lot on Marjorie Street, just south of the establishment, that is free to park in after 17:00 (5:00 pm). Â Apart from that, standard downtown parking applies.
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