to celebrate my birthday earlier this month, phillip and i decided to enjoy a getaway weekend just a few hours northeast in asheville, nc. phillip hadn’t been, and it feels like a lifetime ago since i visited for a bachelorette weekend. so, with really no reason not to go and a junk ton of breweries ready to welcome us, to asheville we went!

we were a bit parched from our travels, so after dropping our luggage, we hit downtown by foot and started taking in the city. it was a bustling thursday night, and eager to up our own energy, phillip’s eye was caught by double d’s coffee & desserts bus. what a lovely, unexpected surprise to begin our adventures!

i mean, how can you walk by this and not stop. 🙂 phillip ordered an iced mocha, of course, and i tried their unsweetened peach tea, which was perfectly refreshing on a warm summer evening. there were plenty of tables and benches around, so we sat back and relaxed as we enjoyed this little oasis plopped right in the middle of the city. i highly recommend you put this bus on your list!

caffeinated and ready for more, we strolled down to wicked weed brewing. this place seems like an asheville staple to me, and instead of sitting in the main dining room, we walked downstairs to find a couple stools at a hightop. there were lots of folks with their doggies nearby, and i noticed throughout our trip that all of asheville seems to be pretty pet-friendly. perhaps next time grace can join us!

known very much as a beer town, asheville has lots to offer in this category, so we wasted no more time. we both ordered a flight, grabbed some pretzels and yellow mustard, and took a seat. it was not too long before we were chatting with the folks at the other end of the table, getting their stories. you just never know who you might meet! we were lucky enough to get to know chase and tiffany over the course of a few more hours and a couple more rounds of beer. they are a pleasant couple from ohio and vacation to asheville every year, so we lucked out with our own tour guides! and although it was their last night in town, they shared with us the inside scoop on all their favorite places that we had to try during our visit. spoiler alert! everything they recommended was incredible. 🙂

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so, where did we go per chase and tiffany’s recommendation? i’ll tell you! we went to hole doughnuts and white duck taco shop not just once for my birthday on friday but a second time each on saturday.

hole doughnuts was like an out of body experience. we had the inside scoop to order online and then head over there; otherwise, i’m sure our wait would have been quite long. this little shop is quite inconspicuous but well worth the wait. the doughnuts remind me of funnel cakes, are piping hot when they are delivered, and will leave you almost speechless. we were very close to going a third time on our way out sunday morning, and thinking about it as i write here, i wish we had!

after something sweet, you need something salty. it’s all about balance, right? white duck delivered, no questions asked. the hangar location on the west side of town is nice and funky with lots of parking and outdoor seating, and the downtown location was easily within walking distance of our hotel. dangerous or awesome? definitely awesome. across our two meals, we ordered the queso (DELISH), street corn (served cold, fyi) the korean beef bulgogi taco, fish tacos, and the pork belly taco.

during our visit, we did find a little trouble to get into on our own, from glass-making, torch-blowing classes…

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…to a couple glasses of wine at bottle riot in the arts district…

…to a nice little stroll along the reed creek greenway, i think it’s safe to say that asheville has something for everyone.

but the fun didn’t stop there! as lovely as i am sure a rigorous hike in the mountains would have been, phillip and i decided to stay true to our foodie selves and continued to eat and drink our way through the city. we “cheersed” to my birthday with a couple pints at burial beer company, some fruity ciders at urban orchard, and the sipping chocolate at the french broad chocolate lounge.

our liquid diet needed something to go along with it, so we had birthday dinner at pack’s tavern, brunch the next morning at early girl eatery, hot subs at manicomio, gelato at asheville chocolate, and breakfast at the moose cafe on our way out of town.

so, did we have a good time? yes! would we come back? absolutely. next time we’ll definitely wander off the beaten path a little more, but for our first real visit to asheville, i’d say we were quite pleased and could not have asked for much more.