Correspondent Michael Franco continues his exploration of dining options on the late-night scene. This installment takes a look at the after-hours offerings at Isis Restaurant & Music Hall.
Isis Restaurant & Music Hall
9:30 till midnight (or later) Wednesday-Sunday.
8:30 till midnight (or later) during Tuesday Bluegrass Sessions.
$4-9 per dish
Alongside all the fiddling, drumming and strumming at this terrific West Asheville music venue, there’s a kitchen making music all its own. Co-owner Josephine Woody says the late-night offerings here were chosen specifically to accommodate a standing, music-loving crowd. “It’s more like bar food,” she says, “but it still keeps the integrity of what our main menu is. It’s super-tasty but reasonably priced.”
Finger-friendly dishes include a duo of sliders with ever-changing fillings, always served on buttery, pillowy house-made buns that are grilled to perfection, virtually upstaging whatever is lucky enough to be sandwiched inside. The hand-cut frites with garlic aioli and Parmesan is one of those dishes you swear you won’t finish because of its generous size and then, faster than a Yngwie Malmsteen guitar lick, you’re greedily diving for the last of the perfect, just-this-side of burnt, superbly salted sticks.
Chef Mike Mahoney flexes his creative muscles even more in his twist on chicken wings: crispy-on-the-outside, juicy-on-the-inside frog legs in a tangy, spicy ancho barbecue sauce.
What and where are your favorite, locally owned, late-night eats? Let us know at food@mountainx.com.
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