In earthy Asheville, food is so elemental that the locals have coined their own word for the city: Foodtopia. A thriving farm-to-table green scene, a flourishing network of family farms and farmers markets and a growing roster of award-winning chefs combine to create the ideal food climate in Asheville. Year-round local food tours lead visitors to locally roasted coffee, gourmet shops and chocolatiers, artisan bakeries, specialty shops and breweries. Along with its 135 restaurants, 11 annual food festivals and 17 farmers markets, Asheville has a dozen microbreweries and five annual beer festivals – numbers that propelled travel blog Gadling.com to name Asheville one of the best cities in the world for drinking beer.

Have a sweet tooth? Read about Asheville's chocolate shops.