Ning Jr's

In July, Asheville welcomed its first Filipino restaurant, Neng Jr.'s. Created by Silver Iocovozzi, it marries Filipino/Filipinx flavors with North Carolina traditions. There’s okra, a Southern must-have, but served in an umami-rich gravy with stewed tomatoes. Lowcountry shrimp find their way into Sinigang, a Filipinx sweet and sour soup. And fried chicken’s on the menu—but Iocovozzi smokes it before frying, a nod to the smoke-kissed, open-fire cooking found across the Philippines. “I have had a mixture of young and old Filipinx customers making road trips to come to my restaurant,” Iocovozzi says. "I think of the space as a way for old traditions and new ideas to shake hands.”