Salt-cured country ham (often Allan Benton's Tennessee or local NC product) on a buttermilk biscuit with a drizzle of mountain sorghum syrup.
Where to eat it: 4 restaurants across 1 city.
Country ham is the Appalachian curing tradition: pork shoulder or leg salt-cured and aged for 9 to 12 months, often hardwood-smoked. The Western North Carolina version traces to Scots-Irish farms; Allan Benton's Tennessee hams, used by most Asheville fine-dining kitchens, set the contemporary benchmark from his Madisonville smokehouse. Sorghum syrup, pressed and boiled from sorghum cane in October-November across the Blue Ridge, is the canonical sweet partner. The country-ham-and-sorghum biscuit appears at The Market Place, Rhubarb, Sunny Point Café and Biscuit Head; the format is a Carolinas signature.
Common allergens: Gluten, Dairy
Tip from the editors. Country ham is properly aggressive on the salt; the sorghum is what balances it. Don't skip the drizzle or the biscuit eats one-note.
This is the TableJourney editorial recipe, modelled on the canonical bistro / counter version. The first place to try the dish in its city of origin is below.
William Dissen's The Market Place on Wall Street moved here 1990 (founded 1979 by Mark Rosenstein). Dissen is a 2025 JBA Outstanding Chef semifinalist.
Order: The Sunburst Trout Farm trout from Canton, plus the seasonal foraged mushroom plate.
Tip: Book on the restaurant's reservation page. The walk-up bar pours small plates from the main menu.
John Fleer's Rhubarb on Pack Square runs Sunday brunch alongside its modern Southern dinner service. Wood-fired flatbreads, buttermilk biscuits, country ham.
Order: Whatever the wood oven is running, plus a buttermilk biscuit and country ham plate.
Tip: Book Sunday brunch a week ahead. The bar takes walk-ins from 10:30 on Sunday.
Sunny Point Café on Haywood Road in West Asheville has run upscale Southern comfort breakfast and lunch since 2003. Recommended in the Michelin Guide 2025;.
Order: Huevos rancheros, or the buttermilk biscuit with sausage gravy.
Tip: On-site production garden feeds the daily specials. Weekend waits 60-90 minutes; the patio takes the queue first.
Biscuit Head's Haywood Road brunch in West Asheville pairs cathead biscuits with a jam bar of house preserves, hot honeys and fruit butters.
Order: The Mimosa Fried Chicken biscuit (sweet potato butter, sriracha slaw, poached egg) with a jam-bar plate.
Tip: Walk-in only. Arrive before 09:30 weekends to beat the line. Order at the counter, snag a patio table.
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