Isa's Bistro - Asheville

What a great brunch spot. Plenty of seating inside and outside, downstairs looks like it has a room for special events too. If you're coming for brunch make sure you're hungry, portions are very generous including the mimosa flight. Everything was perfectly made with flavor and I left full and satisfied. I had the chicken and French toast with a side of scrambled eggs.

Summary: We had a good waiter and an excellent meal, but a somewhat disappointing overall experience. We enjoyed our dinner at Isa?s, but it wasn?t without negative aspects. In my opinion, the restaurant does not make a good first impression. It is located on the first floor of the Haywood Park Hotel, an unusual space in downtown Asheville. I am an area native, and upon entering the hotel lobby, I felt like I was stepping back in time to a prom night the late 1980?s.The space has not been significantly updated at all since then. Isa?s itself felt like a throwback to an earlier age, too. The space gives off a weird vibe in the way it?s laid out, what with its half circle, vinyl upholstered booths,chairs that look like they belong to an outdoor furniture set, and eye level glass panels between booths and tables. The high ceilings make the space feel too open and prevent any sense of intimacy. I never felt alone with just the peopleat my table, an illusion of privacy and separateness that could be created with a better dining room layout. The service and food was going to have to be really good to overcome the first impression the place made on me. Our waiter was avery congenial young man. He was attentive to our needs and had a good sense of when to engage and when to stay in the background. We enjoyed him, even though he was not by any means a seasoned professional waiter. Chef Crockett?s food wasdelicious. We sampled the menu by ordering six appetizers, two entrees, and four desserts: Fried mushrooms Steak tartare PEI mussels Parmesan frites Sunchoke and potato latkes French onion soup Salmon nicoise Country cordon bleu Appletart Chocolate crème brûlée Flourless chocolate cake Fruit turnover We thoroughly enjoyed all of our selections. So, yes, Isa?s food is good?but the experience of Isa?s could be so much better. Given the number of really goodrestaurants in Asheville that come in at a lower price point, it is hard to understand why a restaurant th

Isa's French Bistro is one of my favorites places to get some good food. They have some good chicken tenders, I gave it a five-star rating, not to mention some of their great wines, the staff is AMAZING! Very Friendly.

We had a wonderful date night dinner. Our waiter was amazing. Next time we are in town we will go again!

We were here for brunch on a Sunday. Our server was very personable and checked in with our table often. Food was extremely slow to arrive to table and all four diners at our table commented that most of the food arrived at the table lukewarm, not hot, particularly the French onion soup. Food quality was average.