Cooked by people who like people
A small Asheville kitchen with a big van, a long list of farm friends and a habit of writing the price down before anyone asks.
One van, borrowed sheet pans
Nadia Ferrante grew up between her grandmother's Sicilian kitchen and her other grandmother's garden in Haywood County. Figs from one side, fennel from the other. In 2014 she started catering friends' weddings out of a rented kitchen, with one van and a stack of borrowed sheet pans.
The food is still the same idea: Appalachian produce with Mediterranean habits. Big shared platters, bright salads, slow-cooked meat and a vegan main that is a real dish. What changed is the crew, the kitchen on Kiln Street and the number of offices that now get their Tuesday lunch from us.
One thing has not changed. We write the price down before anyone asks, and the bill matches it.
- Year we started, with one van
- 2014
- People on the team, most of them for years
- 19
- How far our farms are, at most
- 80 mi
- How far we travel for your event
- 60 mi
What we hold to
-
Numbers you can plan with
Every quote shows per-person prices, the service charge, rentals and tax as separate lines. No 'market price', no surprise fees.
-
Food from people we know
Produce, trout, cheese and pork from farms within about 80 miles, when they have it. When they don't, we say so on the menu.
-
Honest about allergies
We label everything and plate allergy meals apart, and we tell you plainly what our kitchen can't promise.
-
A crew that stays kind
Fair pay, real breaks and the whole tip pool for the people who earned it. Happy crews serve better food.
The people in the kitchen
Plus fourteen servers, cooks and bartenders who come back season after season.
-
Nadia Ferrante
Chef and owner
Grew up between a Sicilian kitchen and a Haywood County garden. Started Fig & Fennel in 2014 with one van and a lot of borrowed sheet pans.
-
Marcus Bell
Events director
Has run more than 600 events. Knows which venues have a back door, which have a freight lift and which have neither.
-
Theo Lindqvist
Sous chef
Runs the kitchen on event days and writes our allergy plating checklist.
-
June Okafor
Bar lead
Builds every zero-proof menu and trains our bartenders in responsible service.
-
Priya Raman
Corporate accounts
Looks after standing office orders. Answers email before 9 a.m., most days before 8.
Where we cook
Our kitchen and tasting room are at 41 Kiln Street, Suite 2, Asheville. We cater venues up to 60 miles from our Asheville kitchen: barns, breweries, backyards, lodges and plenty of conference rooms.
Visit or call us- Asheville
- Black Mountain
- Weaverville
- Hendersonville
- Brevard
- Waynesville
- Somewhere else within 60 miles
Come taste the food.
Tastings for weddings and events over 75 guests are $125 for up to four people, taken off your bill when you book.
Office hours Monday to Friday, 9 to 5. Replies within one business day.