admiral

incredible. just left the admiral after one of the most fantastic meals i've ever had. the menu is creative and daring, the location unique, and the atmosphere is welcoming with a true neighborhood feel. i left in utter bliss. i went with a group and sampled most of the small plates menu. not a single thing was less than spectacular. tartare was served with a variety of accompaniments. the cured mackerel was refreshing, served with radishes and citrus. the sweetbreads melted in my mouth followed by salty, crispy pork belly. the final ta-da was maybe the beat dessert i've ever been served. a compressed peach with luxurious pound cake and a whipped chevre silky cream to top it off. the perfect combination of savory and sweet. that's only the food...my cocktail was impressive andservicewas exceptional. if you're in asheville it's a must. complements to the chefs and staff for an unforgettable evening.

lives up to the hype. we were told by so many ppl that this place was great. we have been there twice now and had exceptional food both times. their dishes are inventive and fun, theserviceis great. go for their steak, it's wonderful. it's not a cheap place to eat, but worth trying if you want to treat yourself. menu changes daily but some dishes are always there re-worked.

all about the food!. the admiral's food is the stand out feature, as it should be. however considering the following it may not seem like the food alone is enough, but it is! when you drive up to the admiral it's in a neighborhood that after dark can be a little creepy. you walk in and it looks like a rock-a-billy/grunge type bar/restaurant. then the cocktail/wine list is nowhere near impressive. and theserviceis usually poor or worse. however none of the above matter, because the food is absolutely sensational! every smell, sight, and taste till the last bite is completely 100% outstanding!

the jokes on......me. i recently had dinner at the admiral in west asheville and couldn't help but think that someone was playing a not so elaborate joke on me. the restaurant is simply a stew pot full of contradictions...some of them wonderful...some of them infuriating. i love the idea of serving "gourmet" food in what looks like a dive bar. the ceilings are low, the lighting is low, theserviceis ok, and there is definitely a "hip" vibe. the restaurant is always full of customers but i think this is mainly due to fact that the dining area is small. it always appears full. now for the food. it is expensive and uneven. my dining mate and i each ordered a small plate and a large plate. the quail was delicious, perfectly cooked and flavorful. the muscles were good but nothing special. there are an infinite number of restaurants that serve or have served muscles diablo. the only thing that made these somewhat special was the mound of pesto thrown on the top. my dining mate ordered the skirt steak pho. at $25, we expected something wonderful. the steak was perfectly cooked but unfortunately it was swimming in a flavorless broth with overcooked rice noodles. there were a few condiments on the side but, again at $25, i felt like i was being asked to put this meal together for the kitchen. go to doc cheys, you will get a much better noodle dish for 1/3 the price. we also had the wild mushroom plate: 3 smallish wild mushrooms sitting in a pool of bacon flavored grits. it was tasty but for some reason the mushrooms were tough. i couldn't help but think that they were dried mushrooms that hadn't been soaked long enough. were they actually dried and not fresh? who cares, they were tough and chewy.

theservicewas competent but mechanical. the servers acted as if they had been through this torturous experience a million times and were going through the motions. they had a long night ahead of them and they weren't going to expend a lot of energy in the early part of the evening. when the server asked how everything tasted, my dining partner said that the pho was not very good. the server, who either didn't hear or didn't care, thanked us and brought the check.

i think most people really want to like this restaurant, unfortunately it is too expensive for me to continue to experiment.

amazing fine dining without stuffy atmosphere!. best in asheville, no question.

clean, inventive, and well-balanced menu. great emphasis on local high-end products. bar menu is great.serviceis slow unfortunately, but the amazing food more than makes up for it.

to all those that say the food is too weird or uses funky ingredients... hey, there is an outback steakhouse on tunnel rd, maybe that is more your speed!

best food in area so far.. this is a really interesting place with great food. it may not be for everyone though. first it is a cinder block once gas station in a less fortunate part of town..limited parking etc.
if upscale ambiance is a requirement don't go here. no table cloths, relaxed service, nothing fancy to say the least. but the food is truly exceptional. this is a fairly young chef who is trying some aggressive combinations but with a very classic sense. some plates are a little busy but the flavors work almost every time. the menu changes every few days and your standard computer paper sheet will have a date on it. that is not to say that this place is really seasonal of local or sustainable. they use great products and treat them right. it is more seasonable and local than not but for example they serve a humboldt fog salad when local goat cheeses are abundant, even a very similar one, domestic but not really local.
they are doing a true gastropub menu, some sous vide some maltodexterine powders, some xanthan gun, lecithin thickening, but nothing over the top or pretentious.
i love this place, you don't have to get dressed up to eat great food, the drinks are great, the prices are reasonable to low. but there are some problems. the water is undrinkable, theserviceis ok at best, the food does not come out of the kitchen all at the same time. on one trip we got the soup and salad 10 minutes before the rest of the appetizers. maybe they thought that was what we wanted, if so they need to get someone in there who has more experience, or they could have asked. the fact is the atmosphere is pretty relaxed and that is not always a good thing. but the food more than makes up for any other shortcomings.

admiral employee reviews by frieds1 & tina higgins. to: frieds1 & tina higgins. it is nice to see that people actually read these reviews, but by the looks of the last two it is just the effort of management or employees to jusify the behavior that took place. the whole review sounds like an add, "put on your comfy shoes" "get busy early & stay busy" come on, that sounds like a radio commercial. also for a restaraunt that so is concerned about customerserviceshould know that it starts before the customer enters the building. to not have an employee to answer the phone when it rings in a restaraunt during business hours is absolutely ridicolous, especially when it sounds like you are busy enough to afford one. even if it is to say that i am sorry but we are to busy at this moment to take your order or reservation. so there will be no apology, i understand that you cannot make everyone happy, but don't pretend with fake reviews from people that just joined urbanspoon to rebutle my review.
sincerely, there are plenty of amazing dining options in asheville, the admiral will never be mine.

ps i can be as hungry as i want before i eat.


-----17 jun, 2010-----

avoid at all cost. i was really excited to take a look at the admiral menu, when their website came up. after picking out exactly what i wanted i proceeded to call their number that had a rude message about how they are on the other line right now & to please call back later. so 27 phone calls later & still the same message i gave up. the next day i contacted the restaurant which guaranteed me it wont happen the next nite. there i was again starving listening to my favorite message. after contacting the manager the next day, i was told "we are very busy". so i guess you are to busy for my business. will never call or try to eat at the admiral again. customerserviceis critical in today's economy & admiral doesn't have any!!!!

to ashevillefoodie15:. miss/mrs/sir,

you are so sadly mistaken about the admiral! the staff at the admiral is the most warm, friendly people you will ever meet! the food is phenomenal and quite frankly can hardly be beat by other restaurants in asheville. the menu changes almost daily which in my humble opinion is genius! we eat their 2-3 times a month and absolutely love it!

to blast a restaurant for lack of customerservicewhen you have never set foot in the door is ludicrous and quite frankly significantly lessens the legitimacy of your review! who waits until they are "starving" to call one of the busiest restaurants in asheville to order dinner? when you were told that they are "very busy"…that is an understatement…people are standing in line to eat there! if we all of the sudden have a craving for the admiral and don't have reservations…we go there with the outlook that we may not get to eat there…it just that plain and simple. i am happy to say that we have always found two open seats at the bar…but we would never unfairly accuse them of poor customerservicebecause they couldn't serve us!

the admiral is meant to be an experience…so put on your comfy clothes and grab a seat at the bar (first come, first serve) or call and get a reservation (call several days in advance)! the groovy, lounge like atmosphere will have you relaxed and happy in no time!!! they get busy early and stay busy…thus the inability to get through on the phone.

if you truly mean it when you say that you "will never call or try to eat at the admiral again"…then you are cheating yourself out of a very unique, relaxing experience and the most scrumptious mouth-watering food ever…not to mention the outstanding customer service!

sincerely,
a loyal admiral customer

the admiral review. you really are mistaken with this review. how can you possible judge a place negatively by phone or lack of response? i think you are derelict reviewers if this is how you do business. for goodness sakes, in the time you spent trying to interrupt the excellentserviceby answering your persistent calls, just jump on your scooter and go there and live a little. please! this is one of the best places i've even eaten and the people there are great, even to us "out of towners"! apology required!