Food news: Asheville chefs' new eateries, Jeremiah's Italian Ice opens, butchery workshops
ASHEVILLE - A new Italian eatery with coffee and wine services is coming to West Asheville; two new businesses opened offering a taste of New York and Italy; and a local butcher simplifies whole animal processing from the farm to home.
All-day, all-night Italian
A seasoned Asheville restaurateur is celebrating milestones and new beginnings with a new restaurant and retail food brand on the horizon.
Ten years ago, Chef Anthony Cerrato opened Strada Italiano and Social Lounge, a downtown restaurant and cocktail bar, neighboring each other at 27 and 29 Broadway St.
In May, Cerrato will unveil his newest eatery, Gemelli, at 70 Westgate Pkwy. in Westgate Shopping Center in West Asheville. Gemelli will open in the former Green Sage Café space next to EarthFare.
Gemelli is designed after Italian coffee shops and will cover a full day of dining with breakfast, brunch, lunch and evening wine bar dinner services. The hours will be 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily.
“Gemelli’s menu is entirely different from what we serve at Strada and Social Lounge,” Cerrato said in a news release. “We aim to make this a gathering place where people can come any time of day, whether they’re wanting an Italian coffee and pastry or a full sit-down pasta dinner with a good Montepulciano or other Italian wine.”
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Diners will have their fill of gourmet Italian cuisine with pasta and ravioli made from scratch, antipasti and customizable Sicilian-style pizzas. Also, spiedini, which is described as skewered meats and vegetables sandwiched between house-made focaccia. One of the signature pasta dishes takes on the restaurant’s name — the Gemelli Fresca will be prepared with sundried tomatoes, rosemary, capers and preserved lemon.
Sweet and savory Italian baked goods will be made in-house, too. A few café items planned so far are Maritozzi, which are Roman sweet mascarpone-filled buns, and glazed Italian donuts called Bombolone. Panettone Toast and Florentine Frittata are featured breakfast and brunch plates.
The beverage program will offer an assortment of coffee, signature draft cocktails, local beer and wine.
Convenient grab-and-go counter service and seated full-service dining in the restaurant will be available. The newly renovated indoor dining room will have the capacity of up to 100 guests with more than 30 additional seating options on the patio.
Gemelli Brand Food Products is intended to release later, allowing customers to purchase packaged pasta and sauces from the restaurant for at-home preparation. The retail area will include other local produce and goods.
The name Gemelli refers to a twisted style of pasta but has a personal meaning to Cerrato, too. The word means “twins” and is used for “Gemini,” which the chef chose to pay homage to his two-year-old twin daughters and his wife who falls under the astrological sign.
Gemelli’s website is under construction but more details and updates will be available soon.
Now open: NY deli and Italian ice
Customers don’t have to wait to get a bite at two other places that opened in the past week in Asheville.
Zella’s Deli opened at 48 College St. downtown and is the latest venture by chef Michael Reppert, of The Blackbird.
The New York-style deli with the slogan “hot buns and tasty meat” offers pastrami on rye sandwiches, bagels, hot dogs, soup and more. The hours are 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Monday-Wednesday, 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and split service from 8 a.m.-3:30 p.m. and then 5-8:30 p.m. on Sunday.
For more information and updates, visit zellasdeli.com and follow on Instagram @zellasdeli.
Jeremiah’s Italian Ice has opened, in time for the warmer weather seasons, at 705 Merrimon Ave.
The hours are noon-10 p.m. Sunday-Thursday and noon-11 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
Jeremiah’s Italian Ice offers more than 40 flavors in its repertoire with more than 20 available on its regular and rotating seasonal menu each day.
A couple of seasonal items to try are the blueberry limeade and mango margarita, coming in May, franchise owner Caitlin Olson said.
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Soft-serve ice cream is available, too. A popular option is the Gelati which combines ice cream and Italian ice.
Through April 30, customers who download Jeremiah’s Italian Ice app and set their preferred location for “North Asheville” will be entered to win “Ice for a Year.” Three winners will be selected.
Jeremiah’s Italian Ice is rapidly growing, and the Asheville site is the 50th franchise for the company, bringing the number up to 68 stores across seven states, according to the company. Nearly 45 additional stores are expected to open nationwide by the end of the year.
Olson told the Citizen Times it is the first of a series of Jeremiah’s Italian Ice locations planned to open in the next couple of years.
“We had so many fun family memories there growing up. I’m hoping we can bring the same atmosphere and environment here to Asheville where people can come for a fun, special treat with friends or family,” Olson told Citizen Times. “People can come back and try a new product and hopefully fall in love with it as much as we do.”
For more about Jeremiah’s Italian Ice, visit jeremiahsice.com.
Butchery breakdown
Andrew Magazine is the mastermind behind Applied Anatomist, a concept that breaks down the art of butchery. This month, Magazine will host two interactive, educational workshops that explain and demonstrate meat processing for the everyday home cook.
On April 16, Magazine will partner with Christian Albrecht, chef/owner of Braised & Confit for a live-fire cooking demonstration with tasting. Applied Anatomist: Pork Breakdown Class at Wonderland Hollow will be from 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
On April 20, join Magazine for Applied Anatomist: Sausage Making Class at Wonderland Hollow. Attendees will learn about “variations in breeds and cuts of pork, how diet/terroir influences the culturally historic varieties of different sausages.” Then, Magazine will walk guests through the sausage-making process in its entirety, “from primal to plate.”
Tickets for both events are $50 per person. Reserve for the workshops by emailing appliedanatomist@gmail.com. For more about Applied Anatomist, visit appliedanatomist.com.
Tiana Kennell is the food and dining reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Email her at tkennell@citizentimes.com or follow her on Twitter/Instagram @PrincessOfPage. Please help support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: New businesses and restaurants bringing new flavors to West Asheville
