Several of our conference group wandered a few blocks to enjoy a wonderful seafood dinner at Matt the Thresher. The atmosphere has a bit of early 20th century flair; the service was wonderfully gracious and enjoyable.
The meal started with delicious Irish bread. This style of bread is very moist but with a texture closer to cornbread. The flavor was very wheaty and earthy.
My sole was outstanding. It gave a seafood flavor that reminded me, for some reason, of excellent clams. It was pan fried, then finished in the oven. The vegetables underneath---asparagus, etc.---were excellent.
I also enjoyed a side of lightly creamed spinach.
We had to try dessert, of course. This is my chocolate and blue cheese fondant. I'm not sure where the fondant came in but the blue cheese played very nicely with the ice cream and made a good contrast to the chocolate.
Luella's is a nouvelle BBQ outfit on the north side of Asheville. It is nestled among the trees in a lovely neighborhood. The restaurant has lots of windows for inside seating and plenty of outside seating. Service was courteous and amazingly fast. This is a combination plate with pork and brisket. Both were very moist and tender. For the pork, I tried both the mild and hot vinegar sauces. To my surprise, I preferred the milder one because it didn't assert itself too much. I enjoyed the spicy tomato sauce for my brisket. The hushpuppies were very good. The fried okra was fresh out of the fryer and excellent. The slaw was of the vinegary variety, which I usually enjoy, but this version is heavy on the white stuff and didn't have quite enough variety in tastes for me.





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