Finally Finishing Asheville - Tupelo Honey Cafe

I talked a little bit about my trip to Asheville almost a year ago when I blogged about the awesome spice store called, "Spice It Up," in Black Mountain, North Carolina.  Well, I got bogged down by life and I never finished blogging about my fantastic food finds in that area.  I'm going to finish what I started by talking about the best restaurant I ate at while on my vacation in Asheville: Tupelo Honey Cafe.

First, here is a picture of me that I took in a different cafe's restroom during the vacation:
***Trigger Warning-I talk about my weight.  If numbers trigger you, skip this paragraph!***I am now approximately thirty pounds heavier than I was in this picture.  I can't fit into those shorts anymore.  I am not saying this to make you feel sorry for me-gaining weight is not the tragedy I used to think it was.  It just is what it is.  The reason for my gained weight is that I no longer have an extremely active job, where I am on my feet most of the day.  This is good for my pain and stress level.  Also, I am back on Zyprexa, which is a medication that often causes weight gain.  It also helps me remain stable more than any other medication I have tried, so I'm staying on it.  Turns out, I really like being stable!  Sometimes I miss what I looked like before, but when I think of how better I am doing now that I am back on Zyprexa, there is just no comparison.  I'd rather be the weight I am now than be miserable any day.  My therapist is keeping a close watch on my weight and if I gain a significant amount of weight, then she'll talk to my psychiatrist, but so far, I've only gained ten of those thirty pounds since I have been taking the medication and neither of us considers ten pounds to be an extreme.  There was a time-that thankfully is now over-when I would have thought ten pounds was incredibly extreme and I would have acted out in terror.  I am so glad I do not have that messed up mindset anymore.

One night during my wonderful vacation, my friend and I went to the Tupelo Honey Cafe.  We had heard about how good it was from friends and they were right!  Tupelo Honey Cafe is one of the best restaurants I have ever visited!  I absolutely love Southern food and Tupelo Honey does Southern food with a twist.  According to their website, their goal is 

"to deliver the freshest, fullest-flavored fare you’ve ever experienced, so gather your friends and family and come dig in!"

We did! Everything on the menu looked good and I didn't have a clue as to what I should order, but as I contemplating my options, the woman at the table next to us told us that she was having the best veggie burger and the best corn on the cob she had ever had, so that's what I ordered. Thank you, whoever you are-you have good taste!  I also like that Tupelo Honey really tries to use local farms as their suppliers.

"We are proud to support local farms and food purveyors whenever possible, serving the highest quality vegetables, meats and dairy products available." 

Here's my food:

Appetizer: Fried Green Tomatoes » Served over goat cheese grits with fresh basil, plus one pickled okra Phenomenal!  The only place that has grits that compare to how good these were is the Flying Biscuit Cafe in Atlanta.  The fried green tomatoes were perfect.  And if you'll notice, every dish comes with a pickled okra, which I loved.  Even though okra is my favorite vegetable, I had never had it pickled before, but it was very good.  Sour, juicy, and slightly crunchy.  Yum.

Biscuit with Tupelo Honey and Blueberry Jam  What can I say?  I am positive that biscuits with honey and jam are the foodstuffs of angels.  You can buy their honey and jam on their website.

"Grateful Dead Black Bean Burger » Chef Brian may have perfected this during his salad days, following Jerry and the boys on concert tours, but his is no garden-variety veggie burger. Our scratch-made version is one of our most popular items on the menu. Served with lettuce, tomato, onion and homemade pickles, plus a side of Fried Parmesan Corn On The Cob."   The corn on the cob was very sweet, cheesy, crunchy, and buttery-in short, a delight!  The burger was very hearty, with just the right spices.  It was big too, which would be my only complaint.  I stuffed myself that night and I still had about half of the burger left over.  Since I was on vacation, I couldn't take the sandwich home with me.  I was very sad to see my fabulous food go to waste.

I really wish that there was a Tupelo Honey Cafe restaurant in Atlanta!  Oh well, we've got the Flying Biscuit Cafe, which Asheville doesn't have, so I guess it evens out.  In fact, I had some of their stellar shrimp 'n grits just two days ago!  Today I am grateful for life-saving medicine, the ability to accept my body, and for really good food.