Forestry Camp Restaurant Is Reopened in Asheville | Eater Carolinas

"Set on a rustic two-acre former Civilian Conservation Corps site three miles from downtown Asheville, I discovered Forestry Camp as Burial Beer’s multi-purpose campus at 16 Shady Oak Lane, where six 1930s wood-frame buildings were restored into a brewery production space (including a new 20-barrel system), offices, a wild-and-sour barrelhouse, Visuals Winery and a grain warehouse. After launching a two-story restaurant and taproom in fall 2019 with a Basque-inspired opening menu by Brian Canipelli — featuring grilled gernika peppers seasoned simply with flaky sea salt, olive oil and lemon; chorizo sausage links with roasted potatoes; and a grilled whole trout stuffed with pickled onion, roasted chilis and glistening roe — the site closed during COVID and spent two years rethinking its model. Reopened Feb. 5 as Forestry Camp Taproom + Kitchen, the downstairs taproom retains polished beer-hall tables and benches made from hard pine harvested on the grounds while the redesigned upstairs offers contemporary chairs, banquette window seats and a cozy lounge with plush velvet sofas; the new service asks guests to open a tab at the bar (order at the bar for the taproom; servers will take and deliver orders upstairs). Executive chef Mike Achberger’s new menu leans on local growers and providers and mixes Basque echoes with regional fare — try the chicken liver mousse toast with embered almond, apple gelee and truffle powder, smoked meat croquettes with house mustard and cornichons, smoked fish with crispy potatoes, a seasonal root vegetable gratin with barley, or the half chicken with barbecue red peas, couche-couche (cornmeal hash) and wilted bitter greens. Weekend visitors can buy a 90-minute guided walking tour of the property that finishes with a seated food/beer/wine pairing in the taproom, reinforcing Forestry Camp’s aim to showcase the Burial world and its collaborations with local makers, growers and artists." - Kay West