Nona Mia Italian Kitchen will reopen, merged with sister restaurant Pizzeria Ritrovo, at 1050 Haywood Road in West Asheville on Tuesday, Sept. 13. Nona Mia had its last day of business at the Patton Avenue location on Sept. 2, then closed for one week to facilitate the move to Haywood. Both Nona Mia’s and Ritrovo’s menus will be available in the new location. Consolidating the two restaurants enabled all of the employees to maintain their jobs, says Yolie Affatato, who owns both restaurants with her husband, chef Peter Affatato. "Thank you to all of our supporters and the people that have helped us keep our jobs for all of our employees," she says. New hours are Tuesday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Friday through Saturday, 11 a.m. until 10 p.m., Sunday brunch, 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. For more information, visit nonamiaasheville.com.
The West End Bakery in West Asheville is expanding its menu with additional breakfast and lunch offerings. The bakery offers a line of sandwiches on West End-made bread, including a handmade veggie burger with ingredients like Viable Cultures Tempeh and locally grown mushrooms. For more information, visit http://www.westendbakery.com
A new traditional Mexican restaurant, Puebla, has opened in Swannanoa. The restaurant is named after the regional food of Peubla, a village located in east-central Mexico. "It's not like any Mexican restaurant in Asheville or any other place in Western North Carolina," says Carlos Maldonado, who runs the establishment with his mother, Maria Romero, and his aunt, Bobina Rodriguez, both chefs. The restaurant serves a number of traditional specialties like molé poblano and cemitas, a traditional sandwich with breaded pork and chicken cutlets, topped with quesillo, a type of Mexican string cheese. "It's huge — it's like an exaggeration of a sub," says Maldonado. 204-A Whitson Ave. in Swannanoa. For more information, call 423-2338.
