Asheville Food Bites: How to get Neng Jr.'s to-go, more new menus, events, projects

ASHEVILLE - Neng Jr.'s offers special carryout service and hosts culinary event; Luminosa launches lunch service with original menu; Regina's extends hours and announces Italian garden harvest soiree; and Asheville restaurants launch fundraiser to provide mental health resources and counseling to industry workers.

Neng's Bar & Grille and "Flavorama" event

James Beard Award finalist Neng Jr.’s has introduced a different dining concept for a limited time in celebration of the Filipinx restaurant’s second anniversary.

This week, Neng's Bar & Grille will be open for walk-in and to-go orders only at 701 Haywood Road, Suite 102, serving dishes like Filipino spaghetti, smoked chicken, wings and ribs.

The hours are from 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Wednesday-Friday.

On July 6, Neng's Bar & Grille will open for lunch only from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. as the restaurant closes for a special evening event.

At 6 p.m., Neng Jr.’s will host Sarap Means Flavorama at the Assembly Hall at the Center for Craft, 67 Broadway St., downtown.

Panel guest speakers will include Silver Iocovozzi, chef and owner of Neng Jr.’s, Dr. Arielle Johnson, food scientist and author of “Flavorama: A Guide to Unlocking the Art and Science of Flavor” and Angel Dimayuga, a Filipinx transdisciplinary culinary artist and cultural producer, who will discuss food, flavor, food pathways, fermentation and applications at home and in restaurant.

A book signing will follow with copies for sale. Admission is free but registration is required at Eventbrite.

For more, visit nengjrs.com and follow @nengjrs on Instagram.

Luminosa brunch service

Luminosa, the newly opened Italian-Appalachian restaurant in The Flat Iron Hotel, 20 Battery Park Ave., has extended its hours to include weekend brunch service.

The Italian brunch classics, made with regionally sourced ingredients and “local flair.”

The menu features an assorted pastry basket, a market salad with fresh and seasonal produce, pastrami hash, an apple brandy burger and a 4 oz. chef’s cut steak with fries, an egg and salsa verde.

Pizza varieties include a breakfast pizza topped with spicy sausage, red onion, smoked mozzarella and eggs.

Or liven up a classic hot dog with the Brunch Dog, made with a Chop Shop butchery “weenie” topped with soft scrambled eggs, chives and crème fraiche.

The cocktail menu offers the Luminosa Daisy, blanco tequila, nasturtium blossom, fortified wine and lemon and other signature and classic brunch beverages.

Brunch hours are 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

Luminosa’s open for dinner from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday. Walk-ins are accepted but reservations recommended via OpenTable.

View the menu at luminosaavl.com.

Regina’s new hours and pop-up harvest dinner

Regina’s now open for breakfast, lunch and dinner on Fridays and Saturdays at 1400 Patton Ave.

The new hours are 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday and from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

The West Asheville eatery offers a dog-friendly back patio, and a full bar serving fresh summer cocktails.

On Aug. 18, Regina’s will host its first “Bel Gattino” pop-up, a tomato harvest dinner of Italian-inspired fare and prepared with ingredients from chef/co-owner Kat Fitzgerald’s garden.

Fitzgerald told the Citizen Times “bel gattino” translates to “cool kittie” ― or “beautiful kitten.”

The event is reservation only, email [email protected] or call (828)-505-3099.

For more, visit reginaswestside.com and follow on Instagram at @reginaswestside and @belgattinoo.

Chefs interested in hosting a pop-up at Regina’s may submit a bio and menu for review to the restaurant via email.

Fitzgerald said that after a challenging beginning to her career, she feels fortunate to be where she is and wants to create opportunities for others. She said the pop-ups will introduce the community to other chefs and help the chefs feel confident in their passion and make their dreams come true.

No cost counseling fundraiser

The Linked4Life Foundation, a nonprofit organization, has launched a fundraising campaign to establish a peer network for mental health resources and provide no cost-counseling sessions for local food and beverage workers.

Cheryl Antoncic, co-owner of Bear’s Smokehouse, said she founded the Linked4Life Foundation amid the COVID-19 pandemic in Connecticut ― where Bear’s was established ― in response to people struggling with issues like isolation and hopelessness. Community partners joined the initiative aims to give people hope and provide them with needed support.

Since opening Bear’s 11 years ago, Antoncic said she's witnessed staff and other service industry workers struggle daily.

“I had experience as a teenager losing my softball coach to suicide,” Antoncic said. “I’ve had family members struggle with mental health, substance abuse, addictions and back in 2019 we lost a former manager at the age of 25 to suicide.”

Antoncic said the Linked4Life is designed to engage communities, support hospitality workers, stimulate conversations, break the stigma of mental health and promote positive connections and show the power of connection. The organization encourages individuals to take preventive measures like counseling, medication, exercising and healthy eating and living.

Antoncic said the first stage goal is to raise $200,000 to cover such things as mental health training for restaurant management and staff, and the costs for Asheville food and beverage workers to have no-cost counseling sessions with the Asheville based nonprofit, All Souls Counseling Center.

Laura K. Jones, a Linked4Life board member and doctor who runs the mental well-being consulting practice, Mindwell Consulting, is leading the initiative in Asheville.

Local food and beverage partners include Asheville Pizza & Brewing, Chai Pani, Green Man Brewing/Green Man Eats!, Hi-Wire Brewing, Wicked Weed Brewing Funkatorium and Chemist Spirits/Antidote Bar.

On July 4, the “Mental Health is No Bull” event from Noon to Midnight at Bear's, 135 Coxe Ave., will kick off the fundraiser, coinciding with downtown fireworks and a party to follow, and a performance by Asheville-based funk band, BoogiTherapi, fronted by Ryan Barber.

Bear’s will introduce its Hope Bus, a converted mobile eatery featuring artwork by local muralist Ian Wilkinson that's aimed to drive donations to the program. The Hope Bus will be parked at Bear’s South Slope restaurant, 135 Coxe Ave., from Noon to 8 p.m. daily.

For $6, individuals may purchase a pair of blue carabiners ― metal clips symbolizing the power of connection ― wherein they keep one and the other may be hung in the Hope Bus with a message of hope written on a tag.

“People may be struggling when they visit the bus,” Antoncic said. "Hopefully those folks who may be struggling with something will see that there are people who do care and they are never alone."

For more, visit linkedforlife.org and allsoulscounseling.org.

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Tiana Kennell is the food and dining reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Email her at [email protected] or follow her on Instagram @PrincessOfPage. Please support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Neng Jr.'s limited time concept, more Asheville dining events, news