#134 of 109 Asheville Restaurants

Five Points Diner

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Five Points Diner - Old Fashioned Small Town Dining
Written by: David Angotti
Local Expert's Rating:
4.5 / 5
The Bottom Line:

Five Points Diner isn't your run-of-the-mill greasy spoon. Located in beautiful Asheville, NC, Five Points is as genuine as it gets in terms of southern breakfast food. Dine in, take out, or treat the kids; you'll feel right at home as soon as you walk in.

- The SmokyMountains.com Local Expert Team

Family-owned and operated, Five Points trades fancy menus and elaborate interior design for the classics you know and love. Biscuits and gravy, omelets, steak, pancakes, grits, fries, and more: it’s the best of breakfast comfort food. Whether you stop in for breakfast, lunch, or a quick coffee, you’ll quickly come to love the eats and the family-friendly staff.

While you won’t find fancy ingredients or intricate plating, you will get satisfying and filling flavors from the ingredients you’ve known since childhood. Eggs, biscuits, ham, bacon, beef, and potatoes are available in some form or another. The omelets offer more diverse flavors with spinach, feta cheese, tomato, onions, peppers, chili, and other tried-and-true ingredients.

Drinks are plain and simple and really cater to the family-friendly theme. Choose from juice, milk, coffee, tea, or hot chocolate. No frills or fuss.

Despite its humble appearance, Five Points Diner is the result of tremendous dedication on part of the owners, cooks, and wait staff. We enjoyed watching the short order cooks in action and were impressed by the speed and quality of the service overall. Small on price and big on portions and charm, Five Points is a rare classic diner hidden among flashier and pricier restaurants in up-and-coming Asheville.

Some of our top picks at Five Points Diner are:

Five Points Special
The iconic southern breakfast in a portion a grandmother can appreciate, you can’t go wrong with this classic. Choose from two pancakes or French toast with two eggs, two slices of bacon, and two sausages. The platter is much larger in person than on paper. It’s a filling and familiar way to start your day.

Country Fried Steak
A perennial favorite, Five Points’ country fried steak seems like an anachronism among the fancier steak options abound in Asheville. And we think it’s awesome. Complemented by eggs, fries or grits, and biscuits or toast, the steak is immaculately tender and flavorful. You’d be hard pressed to bite into a more satisfying steak near the price of this one.

3 Eggs Omelets
Available in 10 varieties, these omelets are wonderfully delicious and filling. Florentine, Vegetable, Greek, Spanish, Farmer’s, Western, and more encompass ingredients such as spinach, Feta cheese, tomato, salsa, peppers, onions, mushrooms, ham, bacon, and sausage. We can’t decide which one is our favorite. You’ll have to try them for yourself!

Best Gyro in Town
It’s not often that restaurants can back up claims of “best,” but Five Points’ gyro has certainly won us over. The size of four school-cafeteria-sized gyros combined and four times tastier, this champion gyro comes with an even more massive Greek salad and a heaping helping of classic French fries. It’s not often that you get quantity and quality at a diner price.

Catfish
We were a bit skeptical about ordering seafood at a classic diner, but the catfish quickly reeled us in. We chose three fantastically southern sides in macaroni, pinto beans, and turnip greens. What arrived at our table was just short of a whole catfish with tartar sauce, amazingly fresh, crisp on the outside, and flaky on the inside. The sides were similarly larger than life and boasted the rich southern flavor we love. Did we mention it also comes with a corn muffin and biscuit?

Insider Tips:
-We recommend stopping by early in the morning or later in the afternoon to avoid the lunch rush.
-If you normally eat modest portions, you may want to skip a meal or work up an appetite beforehand if you want to finish your order in one sitting. There’s no shame in asking for a take-out box, as you’ll certainly get more than you pay for.