
Address and Contact Information
Address: 40 E Main St, Saluda, NC 28773
Phone: (828) 769-9022
Website: http://www.azaleabistro.com/
Menu Photos
Related Web Results
Azalea Bistro
Azalea Bistro | Saluda NC – Facebook
Azalea Bistro – Visit Saluda NC
Reviews
When we first walked up, it appeared there’d be a hostess at the stand outside but after waiting a few moments, no one appeared. A waiter came out to wait on outside tables & hubby asked him if a hostess would be seating us and he said normally, yes but there were only two of them so he ushered us inside. We were seated by Alex within a few minutes once he cleared the table & reset it which was good.
Azalea Bistro is a very classic French restaurant and it was decorated with clean lines in a light pallet with linen draped tables. I especially loved the stained glass around the entrance door.
Hayley was our waitress & she did an outstanding job taking care of us and explaining the menu. Saturday & Sundays you can do the endless brunch which allows you to have as many small portioned brunch plated as you want. Hayley explained most people will try three which is what we did.
We started with the poached eggs over a biscuit with spicy ham served with truffled fries. Omg!!!! Perfect portion and absolutely delicious.
For our second choice, we had the 4 cheese omlet with grits. The omlet was perfect but those grits were out of this world! The were a more unprocessed grit but how they were prepared was almost like a souffle the were so light. I could eat them all day long.
Lastly, we chose for myself a berry stuffed puffed pastry with perfectly ripe sliced pear and hubb6 chose the fluffy french toast with bacon. Words don’t do either justice as they were a just the perfect amount of sweet after two savory courses.
We had the pleasure of briefly speaking to chef & owner whom was out there helping Alex & Hayley keep things moving by expediting food. He was very friendly and quick to answer our questions.
For this level of food we will gladly pay a bit more as it was very worth it. We definitely will be back!
I don’t think I’ve ever been to a French restaurant before tonight. I opted for the 4 course meal.
After failing to order a Diet Coke, my server graciously offered to make me a mocktail and started making suggestions. I asked him to surprise me and he made me a really nice old fashioned without the alcohol. It was great.
First, I was fully prepared to eat my meal and head to the bar and grill next door if I left with more of an appetite. If you leave here hungry, see a doctor immediately. You may be feeding an unknown child, parasite or worm.
I came in hungry and left stuffed as a tick.
I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised, but similar to popular bbq, things will sell out. With help from the service team, we made it work, and I’m glad I ultimately went with what they suggested.
I think the coolest thing about the experience was to learn that the main courses change weekly, likely with a different twist on the main protein choices.
The presentation speaks for itself, and I’ve included pictures of everything put in front of me.
The food was extremely rich in both flavor and satiety. The dessert was one of the best I’ve had.
It’s an easy place to recommend trying at least once. I have a feeling for most of you, if you aren’t returning it’s simply because this little tucked away restaurant isn’t in your normal path of travel.
My waitress, full of southern charm, didn’t let me leave empty handed and sent me home with a full container of the leftover sweet tea. It was a very nice finishing touch and made for an enjoyable walk back to the truck sipping on sweet tea and listening to the bugs in the trees.
Until a few days ago, I hadn’t heard of Saluda, North Carolina, but it has a certain charm to it that certainly makes it special.
Each dish was exemplary. The she crab soup was velvety (fluffy was a word that was thrown around our table) and seasoned perfectly.
The escargot and mushroom saute was perfectly cooked (not a single bite that felt rubbery, as escargot can be if not prepared properly). What a refreshing take to not have them swimming in butter and garlic, but instead with a light creamy sauce and earthy mushrooms and pearl onions.
The crepe and caviar served with the corn and lobster cake was to die for. I’m not even sure what was inside but all together that dish was amazing.
Charcuterie board was a work of art, and had amazing selections of meats, pickled veg and cheeses. On a normal day, that could have been dinner on its own!
The flavors on the fried green tomato dish were lovely, although I wish the vinaigrette had been a little more emulsified. Especially with the waitress pouring it over the tomatoes at the table. It almost seemed like a broken sauce until she mentioned it was a vinaigrette. Since the base and oil split apart when she poured it, it wasn’t quite as impressive. But still delicious.
Our only hiccup was that our filets were not cooked as ordered when they arrived, for half of the table. However, upon letting our server know, she quickly pivoted, took the plates away, switched the order of the entrees for us and went ahead and brought our duck dish while they corrected the filets.
The duck confit dish might have been my favorite of them all. The confit was melt in your mouth, the truffle croquettes were soft inside with a nice crunchy exterior, and a truffle flavor that was complementary but not overwhelming. Adding a bite of the coddled egg to the richness of the duck and croquette added a wonderful velvety texture.
The filets were perfect upon re-delivery, and were completely replated. Sweet flavors mingled with the savory from the beet foam and salty (perfectly) potatoes, in addition to the melt in your mouth steak.
The sous vide salmon just melted in your mouth. I only had a small bite since I didn’t actually order it, but they raved and my bite was delicious.
Finally my friends had the kitchen pick a dessert for us for my birthday. I would not have thought of adding peach flavor to a creme brulee but it was amazing. Light and creamy and just enough caramelized sugar to give a crunch but not so much to create a thick shell to crack through. A perfect finish.
The wines we chose were great. Their list is extensive by the glass, and even though we didn’t order by the bottle, the selections there were even more varies and well curated.
Our server was great fun. It was not what I would have expected from a French bistro with a prix fixe menu, but she was eager to please, happy to be there, and very friendly. No pomp and circumstance here. Just southern charm. Totally willing to defer to the other waitress when specific questions about the food were asked that were beyond her expertise. It was a refreshing experience. For some, it could have detracted from the fine dining experience, but we loved it.
I read some of the other (lots of fake and ugly) reviews here and I would encourage anyone who eats here to write the review this place deserves. A hidden gem in the mountains of WNC. You would be remiss to not drive to Saluda to check them out!