admiral

the admiral lives up to the reputation.. this restaurant is going for it. dining alone (i'm traveling) gives you more time to observe. this smallish restaurant has hype with references from anthony bourdain and lots of ashevillians (ashevillites?). this is dining with a capital d but is still staffed with down to earth yet professional servers.
drinks- the cocktail list is well versed with eclectic choices and the staff works hard on each and every one of those drinks, as i witnessed. the dark and stormy (a rum based moscow mule variation) was great, with house made ginger ale, not ginger beer, and garnished with large chunks of gingered candy.ashevilleis a beer city and the staff was proud to serve wedge brewery beer on tap. wine drinkers will be satisfied, as well-nice list.
the menu included off-beat choices like frog legs and steak tartare but i opted for the roasted bone marrow and seasonally available soft shell crab. anashevilleacquaintance had highly recommended the tartare and i visited the admiral intending to have it, but my attention was drawn to soft shell crab. as i sat at the bar, i'm pretty sure the young lady sitting next to me at the bar tried very hard to keep her back to me as i consumed the bone marrow, escargot appetizer. the gigantic half cow bone was roasted and served with a few escargots, and deep fried nettle leaf and a red pepper pesto. i think the red pepper pesto was more presentation than taste but that's a minor comment as this dish completely fed my inner carnevor. the soft shell crab was fried and served on top of rice noodles and scallions in a savory sauce.
i didn't have desert but they looked good.

kelly denson view all posts by kelly denson kellys website related posts: review: barley's taproom & pizzeria -ashevillebarley's taproom & pizzeria inashevilleis a renovated 1920′s... review: sweet & savory - wilmington every time that i go to wilmington, i tend to... review: streets deli - chapel hill imagine one of our beautiful, picture-perfect carolina spring evenings. the... related posts brought to you by yet another related posts plugin . --> tagged as:asheville, beef tartate , cheese plate , farro verde , hickory nut gap farm ,

who is the admiral?   because i want to personally thank him/her for a fabulous dinner.  all joking  aside, this meal shared with friends was a real treat.  our group ordered an assortment of appetizers that included a tasty cheese plate with peach chutney, compressed watermelon with feta and peanuts, and two, yes two servings, of the pork belly with fried green tomatoes and red pepper coulis.  this was definitely  the star attraction of the night.  it was a wise move to order two servings to allow everyone in our party to have 2 or 3 bites each of this savory and tasty appetizer.  the "small plates" we ordered and shared included saffron gnocchi with lobster and shaved truffles and flat iron steak (perfectly seared) with fingerling potatoes and a mushroom reduction. the portions are small, but big on taste, quality and flavor with purposeful and artistic presentation.  dessert was a chocolate brulee with salted caramel topping and fresh blueberries and blackberries.  this extremely decadent and rich dessert was the perfect finish to an outstanding meal.  the understated exterior of this westashevillerestaurant means diners who venture inside will be a little surprised to find top notch cuisine and service with an eclectic and vintage decor.  we look forward to returning.

not what's it's cracked up to be. my husband and i areashevillenatives. 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 anashevillehot 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 westashevilleon haywood

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 and service was exceptional. if you're inashevilleit's a must. complements to the chefs and staff for an unforgettable evening.

you guys are getting spotty. i've been a big fan of the admiral for years now, even going so far as to rebuke some naysayers on this site. but the last couple times i've been i've noticed the food slipping a bit. i usually order a wide array of small plates and it's always been fantastic. however my two most recent visits have fallen short of your usual standard. every dish needs consistent attention to detail. the carpaccio was fantastic but the fried sweet breads were solidly unremarkable. the duck confit was dry and the rabbit was just a hot mess in a bowl. the biscuit and honey was perfection. the house cocktails were exceptional. so come on guys. don't get sloppy.


-----06 aug, 2010-----

to ashevillefoodie15. you are retarded! pull your head out of your ass and just show up without a reservation. they'll seat you pretty quick. you missed out on one of the best dining experiencesashevillehas to offer. a real diamond in the rough. a fellow chef (and james beard award winner) from charleston recommended it to me and no wonder... they're outstanding. if you can't get them on the phone that's because they're really busy making great food and unforgettable experiences for those of us who made it past the answering machine and came in through the door.

the jokes on......me. i recently had dinner at the admiral in westashevilleand 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, the service is 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.

the service was 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.

a gem. having moved toashevillefrom major cities (nyc & boston) i was disheartened by the food scene in asheville. over the years it has gotten better . . . but it wasn't until the admiral opened that i finally felt at home. i missed the big flavors and the risk adverse chefs of the big cities. with the admiral, i can walk in knowing that my palate will always be pleasantly surprised. the atmosphere is great, the staff is lovely, the drinks fabulous and the food imaginative, fun and delicious.

too exotic for my tastes. all my friends love this place but i found it too exotic or more in a vein that is not my favorite. i don't like duck, lamb or fish and the sides on some of the dishes i would try turned me off. i can totally appreciate the fine dining aspect in a dive joint and obviously my opinion of the admiral is not the norm but just wanted to give some feedback for people who might not be into this type of food. for everyone else, enjoy! it's a cool little funky westashevilledive that seems to put a lot of effort and thought into their menu and has become a local favorite. now, if they just added a great chicken, pasta or veggie plate...

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 customer service when 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 inashevilleto 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 customer service because 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

best restaurant inashevillewithout a doubt.