Appalachia Meets Italy at Asheville Newcomer Luminosa | Eater Carolinas
"Located in the highly anticipated Flat Iron Hotel (20 Battery Park Ave, Asheville), Luminosa opened on Wednesday, May 15 as a Charleston-based Indigo Road Hospitality Group project that’s been tailored to the Blue Ridge. Indigo Road committed to hiring local talent — executive chef Graham House and chef de cuisine Sean McMullen were born and raised in Asheville — and the menu highlights wood-fired Italian plates, housemade pastas, pizzas, and plenty of local vegetables. House stresses a strong focus on local sourcing: they’ve partnered with Apple Brandy Beef for their cows and are running a whole-animal butchery program to offer a wide variety of cuts, and he describes the food as “modern Appalachian live-fire cuisine” made even more versatile by a pizza oven and an on-site pasta extruder. I’m particularly excited about the contori section — House and McMullen are very veg-focused and say they treat vegetables with the same care as a ribeye steak, and those vegetable sides will change frequently — and the team is enthusiastic about the entire menu. Luminosa is open daily starting at 5 p.m." - Erin Perkins
