Restaurant openings in Hendersonville area since January 2024
Since December 2023, there have been several new restaurants that opened in Henderson County, including one historic eatery that reopened after new ownership.
The restaurants are listed below, with more information on each of them.
Green River BBQ
Green River BBQ, 131 U.S. 176 in Saluda, shut down in June when one of its owners, Chris Deariso, died unexpectedly on June 22 at the age of 47. Deariso co-owned the restaurant with his wife, Kathryn, since December 2022.
Thomas Haas and his wife, Brianne, closed on the restaurant on Jan. 26. The Haases and their friend, Josh Kilby, who is helping open the restaurant and will be a worker there, said they've eaten there many times in the past. After several months of hard work and preparation, the restaurant reopened in March.
More: Historic Green River BBQ in Saluda set to reopen under new ownership
Thomas Haas said they have no plans to make any big changes at the restaurant, which has been in business since 1984 when Saluda Commissioner Melanie Talbot first opened it. She owned it until selling it to the Dearisos in 2022.
Hours are 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Sunday. More information is available at greenriverbbq.com or by calling 828-749-9892.
Blue Ruby Bistro and Bakery
A longtime chef at the downtown Hendersonville restaurant Never Blue decided to leave the establishment in 2023 and go off on her own, starting her own business. Never Blue announced it had closed for good at the end of January.
Jesse Roque, who was the head chef at Never Blue, shifted gears and started her own restaurant in the smaller town of Flat Rock. She called it Blue Ruby Bistro and Bakery. Roque, who earned the 2016 Chef of the Year by the North Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Association, said Blue Ruby has a more relaxed atmosphere than restaurants she's worked at before.
More: Former Never Blue chef loving slower pace of new venture, Blue Ruby Bistro and Bakery
Roque is a French-trained chef who said she loves croissants but also loves brownies just the same.
"For dinner here, we're doing globally inspired tapas, so there's no specific region we're pulling tastes from," she said.
Hours for the bakery are 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Thursday-Sunday, and hours for the lounge (for 18 years and older only) is 5-9 p.m. Thursday-Saturday. More information is available at https://www.theblueruby.com/.
Tooley's Café
Kathie Hunter opened Tooley's Café nearly 40 years ago in Laurel Park and ran it for 18 years before selling it in 2003. It is now once again back in the family.
Hunter's son, Ben Rieger, recently moved back to the Hendersonville area from Winston-Salem, and although he was already in the real estate business, he wanted to open his own café. In 2020, Rieger and his mom were on the verge of signing a lease when the coronavirus pandemic hit, Hunter said.
More: Nearly 4 decades later, son helps buy back eatery his mother once owned
They decided to hold off on the lease. A few years later, Hunter visited her old restaurant to say hi to the owner, and she found out the owner was ready to sell it. Hunter and Reiger jumped at the opportunity.
The restaurant at the Laurel Park Shopping Center, 1729 Brevard Road, has a variety of sandwiches, salads and dessert items. It is currently open 11 a.m.-8 p,m. Thursday, Friday and Monday and 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday. More information is available by calling 828-595-2230.
Boodas Brewing Co. Kitchen & Taproom
Near the close of 2023, a new option for craft beer lovers opened in the southern part of Hendersonville, just steps away from all the shops along Main Street.
Boodas Brewing Co. Kitchen & Taproom, located at 120 E. Barnwell St., opened just before the start of 2024, according to owner Jeff Hughes, whose wife, Erin, and daughter, Olivia, also work there.
More: New option for craft beer lovers opens in South Hendersonville: Boodas
Hughes said Boodas currently has 24 craft beers on tap, mostly from North Carolina, but there will be even more taps in the coming months, including some taps of his own.
As far as food, Hughes said the menu offers a wide variety of items for kids and adults.
"Our most popular items are the smash burgers and wings. We also offer shareable items, flat breads, salad, vegan wings, fresh baked cookies and a cheesecake eggroll for dessert," he said.
Hours are noon-9 p.m. Sunday-Thursday and noon-10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. For more information, send an email to [email protected], go to Boodas' website at Boodasbrewingcompany.com or call 828-435-2727.
Dean Hensley is the news editor for the Hendersonville Times-News. Email him with tips, questions and comments at [email protected]. Please help support this kind of local journalism with a subscription to the Hendersonville Times-News.
This article originally appeared on Hendersonville Times-News: New eateries that have opened in the Hendersonville area since Jan. 1
