Chameleon Soul Food (Asheville)
My husband went there today - just opened on Merrimon. It is a meat-n-three style soul food place. Menu includes fried or smothered Chicken, grilled shrimp, smothered pork chops, fried fish, BBQ pork and Ribs. Sides include mac and cheese, butter beans, collard greens, etc and meals come with cornbread or a biscuit.
He said it was the best fried chicken he has eaten in years. Also gave big thumbs up to the mac and cheese and said their greens even blew 12 Bones' away. He said the biscuit was good but next time he will try the cornbread.
The best part was he said the owners were very, very friendly and spent a lot of time talking to him (he was the only one there), telling him funny stories like how you can't get fat on their food if you are happy on the inside (an interesting theory!) and talking about how they are all old family recipes. They brought him over samples of the dessert, just to try. He loved them.
They are open 6 days a week incl weekends (closed Tuesday) for lunch and dinner. Cards say chameleondjrestaurant.org
miss piggy
Sep 10, 2009 01:41PM
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OK, we went for dinner tonight so now I can share more. (Yes, he wanted to go back for dinner!). First I have to say that the people there are so sweet and friendly that you just can't help but want to love it. We spoke with the chef and his mom - both African-American, both very proud you can tell of their recipes (all from her mom, his grandma). You order at the counter and everything is out in front of you, cafeteria-style (or like Picnics). My husband swears it is the best fried chicken but for dinner switched to smothered, which was a leg and thigh in a gravy sauce that he also loved. The chef also offered to dip him a fried breast in the sauce if he wanted a breast, which we thought was nice. I had shrimp and grits. The grits were really interesting - they were not creamy or soupy at all, but rather coarse and super fresh tasting - like he ground his own. They were definitely not instant or quick cooking, and they had a very rustic, authentic flavor. The shrimp were grilled and then put in a very buttery cajun/blackened sauce. It was heavy but heavenly topping those unique grits. Both of us chose the butter beans as a side, which were swimming in a really good sauce spiked with some fresh lemon. They also had a few cubed potatoes in them, which the mom made a big deal about being hand cut. She insists that nothing comes out of a can, and I believe her. The collards were good - they offer veggie or regular (simmered with shredded ham). I still prefer 12 Bones, but my husband likes these more - definitely less greasy than those at 12 Bones. Very fresh. Cornbread had a nice, sweet flavor but was pretty dry.
I am not sure if this place will do well, mainly because it does not seem quite right for its location? Seems like they have put a lot of $ into the two large dining rooms but not so much in the front where you order the food. Food may be a little overpriced for some. The space is huge. I just hope it does well because the people there are so darn nice! And the food is pretty solid, too.
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I really want this place to do well also. But I'm concerned. Other than here, I've seen nothing about this place opening. There's no signage at the street and, unless you look back toward the building as you drive by, you really don't notice it. I had no idea they've been open a week or more at this point. And I only live a few blocks north of there.
The parking concerns me, too. As I drove home tonight I looked in and noticed the large dining rooms. There really isn't much parking in the lot at all. I wonder if the nearby businesses will allow their customers to spill over into their lot after hours? Otherwise, there may not be enough room for all the potential customers to park. Does anyone know if there is parking behind the building? I know there is no driveway around to the back.
I wish them well and will be trying it out this weekend.
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Where on Merrimon is this?
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It's in the building that used to house Buddha Bagels (formerly NY Bagels and Harry's Bagels before that) and Mystic Journeys.
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Ah, I see your concern. That stretch is hard to glance away from the road. I think they are the only soul food place in Asheville now. Hopefully that uniqueness will counter the lack of visability.
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Miss Piggy,
You mentioned is was the food was overpriced for some- What are the prices like?
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The chicken was $7.95 - includes 2 sides and bread. That was definitely reasonable. My shrimp was $13 - same price whether you go for dinner or lunch - and included 1 side and bread. It was more than enough food and we still got out of there for $25, but again, it's cafeteria style. I guess it is on par with Picnics. Menu says that pork chops are $11.95 and BBQ Pork is $10.95. Seems a little high, by a dollar or two. The flip side is we saved a little on the tip b/c it is counter service so we did not do the full 20% like we do in a sit-down place.
I forgot to add that we had a slice of apple pie and it was great. $3.75, a little high, but again, on par with Picnics.
We talked to her about the advertising and she said they wanted to see how how far the could get on word of mouth first. B/C everything has been so positive, she said.
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Do they have beer and/or wine?
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my wife & i tried it yesterday and were generally satisified. can't add much to the menu descriptions above; seems like they're pretty constant offerings. it is soul/southern food, and that is exactly what you get; a bit sweet, a bit salty, and pretty good.
i had the brisket (good, but one of the slighty salty items), mac-n-cheese (the only loser among our two meals; it's just not a style - penne with little sauce and cheese melted on top - of mac-n-cheese that i appreciate), and greens (one of the sweet items, cooked well - not overdone, with chunks of carrots in them), and a sweet, dense corn roll that was just ok. price was a bit high for this as the brisket portion was on the skimpy side.
my wife had the fried chicken (very good, juicy & tender with a light breading, but, again, a bit salty), grits (good texture, very underseasoned on their own, but a good base for gravy & brisket), and butter beans (very tasty). we felt the price for this was reasonable.
to address a few other issues/concerns raised above: they have a sign on the counter explaining that unforseen electric & plumbing remodeling costs have put a damper on some of their other hopes - like signage, advertising, alcohol. the people there seem really nice, proud & dedicated. if you like soul/southern food (something that i don't feel we have enough of in asheville), then stop in, give it a try, and talk 'em up if you like it.
contact info, address, hours & a bit of boilerplate here...
www.chameleondjrestaraunt.org
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Someone should suggest they set up a Facebook account. It's free and with a few fans, word can spread quickly. They can also easily get word out about daily specials, etc.
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Maybe they're running out of money... maybe they haven't really trained their staff... or maybe they're just greedy. In any event, I just got back from a mediocre meal at this place, and can't believe they have the nerve to charge those prices. $9 for a stewed chicken thigh with two small sides. $10 for a side dish (1/4 cup) size serving of sausage and peppers with the same mediocre sides. Both came with a burnt corn muffin -- completely black on the bottom -- and a generous serving of attitude. Those prices would be high for food that tastes the same as the S&W Cafeteria serves to begin with, but are outrageous when I have to go home and make myself a sandwich. I'm all in favor of supporting local businesses, but this one needs a big change to be worthy of my support, no matter how good they fried chicken, or how much they served on opening day
(BTW: the "can't get fat on our food" line is true enough... you won't get enough to get fat.)
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I had the same experiance Overpriced BAD FOOD
I predict they will be out of Business in 3 months
too Bad Asheville could benifit from a good meat and 3
Athough Early Girl does it pretty well
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I'll third this. I've hesitated to say anything because I'd like to see them succeed. IMPROVE and succeed. But I don't think that's going to happen. Too bad.
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I feel bad b/c I am the one who recommended this place to begin with. I will chime in with agreement with the latter posts...it has not lived up to what we experienced in the first few weeks of opening (I swear it was good then!). Have had no desire to go back after two visits offering skimpy portions, high prices, and so-so food. The fried chicken is the only thing that is still stellar. The mac-and-cheese has been downright awful the past 2 times...no creamy coating, just buttered noodles with some congealed cheese on top. That is NOT soul food! Staff and owners are still super sweet but I won't be back.
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I agree with some of the latter posts below in that it seems that this restaurant may have once been good and consistent with their food selections, but they have gone downhill. My husband, daughter, and I went in earlier this evening to dine there for the first time. I had a coupon/certificate with me that was clearly for their restaurant and planned to use it at check out. I did check these comments before going to the restaurant and, because of the mixed reviews, felt that it might not be a completely enjoyable experience, but decided to go anyway and use the coupon. I was not impressed with the presentation and selection of the food. Two to three of the items listed on their own website where not even mentioned or available as far as I could see--their "big fluffy biscuits" should defintely be a staple on their menu. They had plenty of beer--it seemed to be rather abundant, but not plenty of food. When I went to the register with most of our food (was waiting on the fried chicken), and presented my coupon, I was promptly told that they no longer honored the coupon (the coupon happened to come from a very popular restaurant coupon website--I have used the coupons for other restaurants), and that I should have produced it at the time of ordering (understandable). I asked about what kind of difference it would have made (would they have gone to the trash can to get my food if they knew about my coupon?) and the cashier said that it didn't matter because they no longer honor the coupon. I quickly made the decision to leave based on the coupon, of course, and the fact that the servings that sat before me on the trays were small (including the meat entree serving) and I did not (would not) want to pay the high price for those serving sizes. I felt that the discount would have softened the blow financially, and if I didn't have a coupon I probably would have turned around and left after seeing their normal prices. The staff was pleasant, during the WHOLE experience, however we will not be returning to this establishment.
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Just have to say that my husband and I went there with our two kids last night. We also has a coupon from Restaurant.com and were told up front that the restaurant was no longer honoring and they'd been taken off the website. Checked website this afternoon - they're still listed. She told us in this economy that it was hard enough to get a business going without people getting $25 worth of food for $5!??! Unlike the other posts, the woman at the front was very unpleasant to us. We should have left after the whole coupon controversy, but we were already there - kids were tired and cranky. The food was just so-so at best. The hot trays had left some of the dishes dried out and not very appetizing. There were several stranges signs posted - don't touch the glass case, leave your tray on your table, and the whole cost of plumbing sign noted above. It was way overpriced for the food and the atmosphere, not to mention the service.
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