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🏆 Dissen’s statewide honor
Dissen took home the honor in late February. | Photo via William Dissen
The North Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Association has recognized The Market Place’s Chef William Dissen with the esteemed Restaurateur of the Year award.
The Market Place has been a fixture of downtown for nearly 50 years, widely recognized as Asheville’s first farm-to-table restaurant. Dissen has served as executive chef and owner for the past 17 years.
“To get an accolade that says ‘you guys are among the best in the state of NC,’ which has thousands of restaurants, shows me that even all these years in, we’re doing a great job and people are noticing our commitment to quality,” Dissen said.
That commitment is even recognized beyond the state level. This week, the New York Times recognized Dissen for his role in the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program, which helps restaurants source sustainable seafood and protects our waters from overfishing.
With this wealth of restaurant expertise, we thought we’d put Chef Dissen in the hot seat and ask him to dish on Asheville’s restaurant scene.
Chai Pani is teaming up with Matt Dawes of The Bull and Beggar + Taylor Montgomery of Montgomery Sky Farm for a feast celebrating the release of Molly Irani’s new book, “Service Ready: A Story of Love, Restaurants, and the Power of Hospitality.” Grab a ticket for the March 23 dinner.
Concert
Tickets go on sale today, March 6, at 10 a.m. for Rhiannon Giddens, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Mavis Staples, and Hurray for the Riff Raff’s Aug. 1 show at Hellbender — The Orange Peel’s new outdoor venue opening this summer. Here’s what to expect from the venue.
Regional
Buncombe County and state officials held a kick-off meeting for owners of 47 FEMA-approved properties in the hazard mitigation grant program. Officials outlined the acquisition process and introduced project managers. Once completed, the properties will be preserved as green space in perpetuity.
Arts
Feeling creatively stuck or disconnected? Story Parlor’s Inward & Artward School of Creativity is offering “The Artist’s Way for Busy Minds,” a six-week virtual workshop led by Faye D’Avanza beginning March 24. Rooted in Julia Cameron’s transformative book, the series explores gentle practices for creative clarity. Sliding-scale registration is available.
Try This
Explore Asheville is accepting nominations for the 3rd annual Heroes of Hospitality Awards. The awards recognize employees representing the best of the best in the service industry. Nominations are open through March 31.
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Pro Tip
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Event Spotlight
Let’s get down to business
Hive Ambition is buzzing with opportunity. | Photo by AVLtoday
There are 10+ groups for women in business in WNC, many with overlapping members — but the groups have never collaborated. Ashley Sterken and Rachel Africh of Hive Ambition are changing that with “Better Together: The Inaugural WNC Women in Business Social,” on Tuesday, March 10 at The Mule.
The informal evening is designed to help women see just how much support is here in Asheville. Explore the 10+ groups attending and RSVP to secure your spot.
DSSOLVR’s new kitchen has started dishing out plates, adding Sunday brunch into the mix this weekend with Chef Ryan Kline, former executive chef at Jargon and Zambra, leading the charge. Picks include crispy chicken and waffles, grit cake shrimp + grits with red-eye gravy, and a banh mi bowl with lemongrass tempeh.
Beyond brunch, the regular menu is most definitely worth sampling, with heavy hitters like a crab rangoon grilled cheese and a French onion French dip. Check out the full menu.
A really good retinol serum without the premium price tag. For under $25, it’s clinically proven to reduce fine lines and wrinkles, brighten skin, and boost elasticity.
As a day one Directioner and Harry Styles fan, I’ve already listened to his new record, “Kiss All The Time. Disco, Occasionally,” since it came out at midnight last night. And if you’re as big a fan as I am, you probably already know that Baby Rabiez record store is hosting a listening party this Sunday at 2 p.m.
Annnnd, here are the receipts to prove my Directioner status since 2011. Yes, I still have the shirt, and I’m never getting rid of it.
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