admiral

excellent!!!! and it is the best thing next to.... having been on the road for a month, and sampled really great food in va, dc, nyc, and other cities....this is going down as the meal to beat on this trip.
had read some of the critical reviews here and elsewhere, so we weren't expecting the perfect experience we received.
two "tastes" or "small plates" are plenty per person. we were so delighted with our four that we pushed it and ordered the tartare which left us way too sated to sample their otherwise appealing desserts.
our service was as excellent as the food, inobtrusive but willing to volunteer helpful suggestions. there was a gap between our originally ordered four and the tartare, but great opportunities for observing the scene made the time pass quickly. tables are spread out enough to make for easy conversation without inadvertently eavesdropping on your neighbors.

tried to make reservations on a holiday weekend but it was totally booked. we tried anyway, hoping to atleast get a seat at the bar. our party was sat at a fabulous table after only 20 minutes. food and service were amazing, totally lived up to our expectations!

poor food, service likewise. thursday night, 7/25/13. prompt service with water and appetizers. octopus/quail egg dish included several items; all tasted the same (fried). waited one hour (>60 minutes) thereafter for entrees. my wife and i had "heritage farms pork chop" with etc. had great difficulty in cutting pork chops with steak knives provided. meat was flavorless. did not have the time and courage for dessert.

bartender/mixologist, russ...outstanding! stopped in for a quick bite, it rarely disappoints. we had three small plates to share between the two of us. it was plenty except that it is all so delicious, you hate for it to stop coming. service there is always comfortable and prompt, hospitality southern. crazy frustrating to get reservations unless you think about it a week out, but sitting at the bar suits us. sooo, we try to visit even without the elusive reservation. it is always worth it and the service at the bar makes up for the 'dinner on a barstool'. yummy!

way to slow! good food, but not worth the wait.

disappointing. service was great. some elements of the meal were amazing, such as the perfectly cooked halibut, but i question why someone would proceed to drench the halibut in fish sauce. seriously overpowered the perfect halibut, leaving an unpleasant fermented aftertaste that lingered even after several sips of water. the duck prosciutto is a great concept. failed in execution. it was a globby, salty mess that overpowered the delicate spring greens and the amazing caraway-tahini vinaigrette. there were elements of genius and elements of "what were you thinking" throughout the meal. the complete meal was a let down, especially given the hype.

i am happy but sad to see the consistency with the reviews. i agree, the food is creative and delicious. i have seriously eaten everything on the menu but unfortunately my last visit to the admiral ruined my taste buds forever.
like i said i have eaten everything on the menu so you can imagine how many times i have visited. my boyfriend and i ordered about three plates each; taking our time and enjoying every single bite. the time came for dessert. the server approached us with the dessert menu and said, "if you order dessert you will need to hurry it up. we have people waiting to sit here." sure, sure, just like myself i waited a long time to get the reservation, i totally get it. in turn, there were other tables and bar seats available for us to sit, especially since we just dropped $250 bucks. i was very appalled and disappointed. we nicely asked for the check and headed downtown to french broad chocolate lounge for dessert.
i hope the owner will take these reviews seriously and make some changes.
i will miss going to the admiral.

this hurts to write this. i want to start off by saying i have visited the admiral several times and the food is amazing. i am definitely on a budget, considering my job but when i can afford it this would be the place i want to eat. i know reservations are hard to come by so generally i will sit at the bar. this review has nothing to do with the food, the food is excellent, creative and fresh. chef moss is a genius in my opinion. there is one particular bar tender, who i am not going to mention by name but he/or she is pretty awful. i have gone several times and have the same experience with the same person. the bar tender acts like you should be feeling entitled to eat there and that good service isn't a necessity. yes, i understand that i don't spend 150.00 by my self but just because i'm not ordering tons of food doesn't mean i shouldn't receive fair service. i have worked in customer service, sales and the restaurant field all of my life. don't you understand that you work on tips and only make 2.13/hour in nc? you would think that people would want to or be happy to serve you. needless to say, it's always a cold experience and i feel like i am inconveniencing that person by ordering. i still tip 25 percent regardless because hey, we can all have rough days right? i have a reservation for when my dad comes in a few weeks and i will be eating at a table to avoid the discomfort. i have spoken to several co workers, friends etc...and they have had the same experience. this restaurant is awesome guys don't let bad service ruin your experience!!

heritage farms chop. black beans, avocado/key lime crema
goat cheese, radish, pickled onion

everything was wonderful. best restaurant ever.

great and unique dishes. went on a busy night (seems like that might be just about every night?) and waited for 45 mins for a seat at the bar. note to self: reservations are needed if you don't want to wait.

tried the steak tartar small plate (hubby liked it, not my thing), sweetbreads (interesting but don't know if i would get again), quail (yes the best thing we had) and a large plate of buttermilk chicken (good but not omg great). there were two of us and this was more than enough food, we ended up taking half the chicken plate home.

would recommend going because 1) their plates are unique and i haven't found similar things elsewhere 2) the quail! 3) their cocktails were really good too

it was good..but not mindblowing. we made reservations for 3, arrived early and they were very nice and got us in anyways. we ordered the baby argula salad, pork belly, flat iron steak, fried rabbit, sweetbreads and for dinner we ordered the scallops and pork chop. the salad was great, the pork belly was my favorite by far as the outside was crisp and so rarely do many chefs do that. the steak was average at best. the potatoes that came with it were slightly undercooked. the fried rabbit was great as were the sweetbreads. my husbands scallops were perfectly cooked and seasoned so that the natural flavor came through. my pork chop was extra thick but cooked great. i honestly liked the goat cheese risotto better than the pork. if we lived in the area, we might try it again but since we are visiting from out of town we will skip it.

...now you have received your highest honor, my mom says your mussels are better than olive garden.

not what's it's cracked up to be. my husband and i are asheville natives. the admiral came highly recommended from several friends as one of the best, newer restaurants on the scene. we made reservations for our 24th anniversary. were we ever disappointed.

let me say that the service was impeccable. the gentleman who waited on us was personable and professional. however, if i am going to pay $24 to $30 for a large entree, i expect to not leave hungry. my husband ordered the swordfish. i ordered scallops. i gingerly ate my entree in about 3 minutes or less. there was little more on it than an appetizer portion of seafood. moreover, my scallops were overly salted - something that is a no-no for delicate seafood. my husband's swordfish came in a slightly larger portion, but he, too, left hungry. his swordfish was nearly cold ... certainly nothing outstanding.

may i say that the malbec and the wedge wheat beer were very good!

the entrees came with nothing - no salad, no bread, nada. the admiral should at least offer a small side salad and a nice crusty european bread to accompany these outrageously priced dishes.

again, do not misinterpret me. we eat at a lot of different restaurants - different styles, different tastes, different price ranges. therefore, we understand that good food comes with a price tag. however, when it comes to value = price? the admiral lacks severely.

the admiral has become an asheville hot spot over the last few years creating quite a stir in the local foodie scene.   the culinary team is led by chef elliott moss who has connections to chef sean brock from charleston.   moss doesn’t rest on anyone’s laurels with the food he creates at his restaurant.   the menu changes daily, offering a variety of local fare as well as bringing in ingredients that are well known to epicureans across the nation. a sample menu follows below to show the style food that chef moss and his team prefer to tackle.   with food at this level, it’s all about the details that the chef adds to the dish and the preparations that he takes to make it perfect.   moss’ talent continues to become more refined while keeping the ability to think outside the traditional culinary box.   innovation and creativity seems to be his trademark.   the result is the flavor profiles of each course wow his clientele. chef elliott moss the restaurant is in west asheville on haywood

oh my!


-----07 jul, 2012-----

simply the best!