Upcoming events and things to do in Asheville, NC. Below is a list of events for festivals, concerts, art exhibitions, group meetups and more.

Interested in adding an event to our calendar? Please click the green “Post Your Event” button below.

Saturday, January 20, 2024
P U R R T H D A Y P A W T Y
Jan 20 @ 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Ginger's Revenge - South Slope Lounge

Benefitting TrapKing Humane Cat Solutions
Fundraiser & Silent Auction, Music
Performances, Cat Clicker-Training, & More!
Join us for the purrfect, cat-filled evening!

2024 Vote Blue Kickoff
Jan 20 @ 6:00 pm – 9:30 pm
A-B Tech Conference Center

Join us for our 2024 Kickoff! We will be gathering to celebrate the beginning of the 2024 election season with live music, good food, friends & fellowship!

Get Tickets

Whether you sponsor or buy one ticket to this fun evening event, your generosity will help ensure our success at the polls and safeguard the future of our democracy. BCDP volunteers are the grassroots organizing power behind every Democratic victory, and your support allows us to pay for printing, canvassing and Get Out The Vote materials, as well as access to our data software. It also helps us maintain our headquarters, which is already bustling with activity! Sponsors will receive special recognition during the event and candidate sponsors will have the option of having their information included in our presentation (email [email protected] for details).

With your ticket or sponsorship, you will enjoy a buffet dinner from Mamacita’s Taqueria — a locally-owned family business, serving up fresh, made-from-scratch Mexican cuisine. You’ll also receive a free drink ticket for beer or wine (additional tickets will be available for purchase).

Discounted tickets are available for those under 35 years old, as well as our dedicated teachers and first responders. If you aren’t able to pay the full or discounted amount for a ticket to this event, please contact BCDP Chair Kathie Kline at [email protected].

Who should attend: Democrats and left-leaning unaffiliated voters in Buncombe and surrounding counties.

Playground Stage 5 Year Anniversary Celebration
Jan 20 @ 6:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Highlands Brewery Event Center

Attire: Dress to impress in your favorite sparkly and colorful party clothes!

What’s Happening: A performance at 6:30pm with appearances from current and former PGS students and staff.

Other Details: A performance, activities for kids, drinks and snacks will be provided. Adult Beverages from Highlands Brewery will be available for purchase. All children must be accompanied by an adult for the evening.

Sunday, January 21, 2024
Valentine’s Day Take-Home Dinner Preorders
Jan 21 all-day
Red Fiddle Vittles

A special prix fixe dinner for two is now available for preorder online until Feb. 12 or while supplies last. Pickup is 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Feb. 14. Orders will be picked up chilled with complete reheating instructions included. The meal features lobster bisque with creme fraiche and brown butter croutons, port wine-braised beef short ribs, truffle risotto, dark chocolate lava cake with blueberry-lavender whipped cream.

Hot Cocoa Creation Bar
Jan 21 @ 11:00 am – 3:00 pm
Asheville Art Museum

Make your own hot cocoa creation in Perspective Café

Every weekend in December 

 

Unlock the joy and creative spirit of the holidays while also supporting the Museum’s mission! Start your winter cocoa creation by choosing between traditional or white hot chocolate as your base. Next, decorate your creation with all kinds of toppings, including crushed peppermints, butterscotches, caramel syrup, mini marshmallows, candy canes, sprinkles, and more.

Dani Shapiro in conversation with Maia Toll
Jan 21 @ 11:30 am – 2:00 pm
location will be provided to ticket holders

HappyWomenDinners invites you to an exclusive brunch, booksigning, and discussion with NY Times Bestselling Author Dani Shapiro in Conversation with Author Maia Toll.

This is a private event in Asheville, open to a limited number of guests. Click here for more information and to register via email to [email protected].
The registration deadline is January 7th. The location will be provided to ticket holders.
Tickets are $125 and include:
~ Entry to the event
~ Brunch
~ A signed copy of Signal Fires, by Dani Shapiro. 

Malaprop’s will be on hand with previous books by Dani Shapiro available for purchase.


Signal Fires cuts a gleaming window into our alternate lives so meticulously and gloriously that it is quite nearly a primer on how to not only live in the present, but in the past and future as well. Shapiro has crafted a stunning future classic.” – Lisa Taddeo, author of Three Women

“A haunting, moving, and propulsive exploration of family secrets.” —Meg Wolitzer

Dani Shapiro is the author of eleven books, and the host and creator of the hit podcast Family Secrets. Her most recent novel, Signal Fires, was named a best book of 2022 by Time MagazineWashington Post, and others, and is a national bestseller. Her most recent memoir, Inheritance, was an instant New York Times Bestseller, and named a best book of 2019 by Elle, Vanity Fair, Wired, and Real Simple. Dani’s work has been published in fourteen languages and she’s currently developing Signal Fires for its television adaptation. Dani’s book on the process and craft of writing, Still Writing, is being reissued on the occasion of its tenth anniversary in 2023. She occasionally teaches workshops and retreats, and is the co-founder of the Sirenland Writers Conference in Positano, Italy.

Maia Toll is the author of Letting Magic InThe Night School, and the Wild Wisdom series, which includes The Illustrated Herbiary, The Illustrated Bestiary, The Illustrated Crystallary, and Maia Toll’s Wild Wisdom Companion. After earning degrees at the University of Michigan and New York University, Toll apprenticed with a traditional healer in Ireland, where she spent extensive time studying the growing cycles of plants, the alchemy of medicine making, and the psycho-spiritual aspects of healing. She is the co-owner of the retail store Herbiary, with locations in Asheville, NC and Philadelphia, PA. You can find her online at maiatoll.com.
Kate O’Hara is the illustrator of the Wild Wisdom series, and a freelance illustrator based in Reno, Nevada. She received a BFA in Illustration from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. Her work combines intricate nature drawings with decorative hand-lettering and rich color schemes. She can be found online at kate-ohara.com.

Event address:
In Person-Location TBA
BURLESQUE BRUNCH
Jan 21 @ 12:00 pm
The Grey Eagle
-AGES 18+
-SEATED SHOW
-LIMITED VIP TICKETS AVAILABLEBURLESQUE BRUNCH

Welcome to the most dazzling brunch experience in Asheville! Join award-winning burlesque sensation, Madison Jane and a delectable blend of performers once a month for a Sunday extravaganza of tantalizing tastes and titillating performances. The Haus of Jane’s Burlesque Brunch Showcase is a feast for the senses, where laughter and allure collide, creating a brunch event that’s as unforgettable as the Blue Ridge Mountains.

 

Please note: While the ticket price covers your entrance into this delicious spectacle, our brunch delights are a separate indulgence. Come hungry for glamour and ready to sip, savor, and be seduced by the artistry of burlesque – where every shimmy tells a story, and every wink is an invitation to revel in the magic. Bring cash to tip your performers and prepare for a Sunday like no other!

Jack’s Bluegrass Brunch
Jan 21 @ 12:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Jack of the Wood

Jack’s Bluegrass Brunch kicks off every Sunday at 12 noon — with lively bluegrass tunes courtesy of The Jack of the Wood Bluegrass Brunch Boys from 1-3pm. Sip a Bloody Mary or Mimosa or a warm Irish coffee. Tasty brunch specials alongside our regular menu and 18 taps of rotating craft brews! Sláinte, y’all!

TRADITIONAL IRISH MUSIC SESSION
Jan 21 @ 3:30 pm
Jack of the Wood

Jack’s long-running Traditional Irish Music Session is the perfect way to enjoy the Celtic-influenced sounds of talented pluckers from all over WNC & further afield! Stop in to enjoy a pint or afternoon Irish coffee with the music! Sláinte!

Slice of Life Comedy Open Mic
Jan 21 @ 6:30 pm
Asheville Pizza & Brewing Co

A Charlotte Comic Takeover!!!
It’s Another Great Comedy Show at Asheville Pizza & Brewing Co, Theater 2! Jan 21, 6:30p, 18+, Get Dinner, Drinks & Laughs with the areas best standup comics. Featured and Open Mic Comedy. [Performing comics get 3-5m, FREE entry and pizza. ]
Morgan Marie is guest hosting, in from Charlotte with some great comic features in tow!! Get Your Tickets Now! https://www.ashevillebrewing.com/buy-tickets/

Slice of Life Comedy Open Mic + Feature Comedy
Jan 21 @ 6:30 pm
Asheville Pizza & Brewing Co

A Charlotte Comic Takeover!!!
It’s Another Great Comedy Show at Asheville Pizza & Brewing Co, Theater 2! Jan 21, 6:30p, 18+, Get Dinner, Drinks & Laughs with the areas best standup comics. Featured and Open Mic Comedy. [Performing comics get 3-5m, FREE entry and pizza. ]
Morgan Marie is guest hosting, in from Charlotte with some great comic features in tow, Matt Hammy, Thomas Heynan & Christine McLennan!! Get Your Tickets Now!!

Karaoke Nights in The Draftsman
Jan 21 @ 8:00 pm – 11:00 pm
The Draftsman Bar + Lounge

“Sing your heart out every Sunday with Lyric Jones at our laidback basement bar. Whether you’re a classic crooner or want to relive your glam metal glory days, find your moment to shine between 8pm and 11pm. Remember: what happens at karaoke night, stays at karaoke night.

People in the biz get half off select appetizers and burgers all night!”

Monday, January 22, 2024
Asheville Restaurant Week
Jan 22 all-day
Asheville Area Restaurants

For many, the delicious culinary creations of local restaurants are a big part of what makes Asheville special. Asheville Restaurant Week celebrates Asheville’s great food scene. This year, more than 40 participating restaurants are serving up great food with menu specials. Show your favorite restaurants some love or try someplace new!

Asheville Restaurant Week Participating Restaurants: Asheville Restaurant Week – Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce (ashevillechamber.org)

Quick Links

BOGO Treats at Jeremiah’s Ice!
Jan 22 all-day
Jeremiah's Italian Ice

It’s Monday and you know what that means – Buy One Flavorite, Get One FREE!

Choose your Italian ice flavor (or flavors), your Soft Ice Cream, AND your favorite decadent Layer-In! The options are endless and it’s all about YOU!!

*Offer valid on Small and Medium Flavorites on Mondays in January. In-store only. Offer includes Build-Your-Own Flavorites and pre-built Frog Squad Flavorites.

Valentine’s Day Take-Home Dinner Preorders
Jan 22 all-day
Red Fiddle Vittles

A special prix fixe dinner for two is now available for preorder online until Feb. 12 or while supplies last. Pickup is 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Feb. 14. Orders will be picked up chilled with complete reheating instructions included. The meal features lobster bisque with creme fraiche and brown butter croutons, port wine-braised beef short ribs, truffle risotto, dark chocolate lava cake with blueberry-lavender whipped cream.

Micro Monday program
Jan 22 @ 6:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Ginger's Revenge - South Slope Lounge
Join us in January and February for our weekly Micro Monday program! Come in and get a Micro Monday passport to try all eight of our exclusive small batch beverages and earn prizes!
✨Here’s the fine print: Micro Monday participants will recieve a passport punch card with the opportunity to try a different beverage each week for eight weeks. To earn a punch on your passport, you must order a full pour or 32 oz growler of the beverage of the week. We strive to have enough product to last all week, so if you can’t come on a Monday, that’s ok!
Participants who get 5 punches will receive an exclusive complimentary “I’m With the Band” 16oz glass, and those who join for all 8 weeks will also recieve a branded stainless steel water bottle, and entry into our grand prize drawing, worth $100!
🤫(hint: join us at our Kick-off Party on January 1st to get an extra entry into the grand prize drawing!)
QUIZZO PUB TRIVIA Hosted by Jason Mencer
Jan 22 @ 7:30 pm
Jack of the Wood


Hosted by the witty & sagacious Jason Mencer, our epic pub trivia night runs every Monday from 7:30-9:30pm! Plus $5.00 well drinks all night!

Come test your brain power with tasty pub fare, an adult beverage or two — and a team of your smartest friends! Win prizes each round and crow a little about what a smarty-pants you are!

Tuesday, January 23, 2024
Valentine’s Day Take-Home Dinner Preorders
Jan 23 all-day
Red Fiddle Vittles

A special prix fixe dinner for two is now available for preorder online until Feb. 12 or while supplies last. Pickup is 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Feb. 14. Orders will be picked up chilled with complete reheating instructions included. The meal features lobster bisque with creme fraiche and brown butter croutons, port wine-braised beef short ribs, truffle risotto, dark chocolate lava cake with blueberry-lavender whipped cream.

The Book + Bee Cafe + Tea
Jan 23 @ 11:00 am – 12:30 pm
The Book & Bee Cafe & Tea

This charming English-style cafe and tea room features literary decor and a wonderful menu. If you like tea 🫖 and books 📚 you will love this cafe! I’m looking forward to having a nice, hot pot of tea during the cold and dreary month of January. Come join me!

To see the menu and photos of this charming cafe go to thebookandbee.com.

For lunch it’s first come/first serve.

Hybrid | The Nourishing Asian Kitchen with Sophia Nguyen Eng
Jan 23 @ 6:00 pm
Malaprop's Bookstore

This is a hybrid event with limited in-store seating and the option to attend online.

The event is free but registration is required for both in-person and virtual attendance. 

Please click here to register for the VIRTUAL event. The link required to attend will be emailed to registrants prior to the event. 

Please click here to register for the IN-PERSON event. Note the important event details on the RSVP form.

This event includes a book signing. If you would like a signed book but can’t attend in person, you may order a signed copy online below. If you would like to have your book personalized, please order online or call the store at least two hours before the start of the event. When ordering online, use the comments field to provide a name for personalization, e.g. “To Paul.” NOTE: We do our best to get books personalized when requested but personalization is not guaranteed.

If you decide to attend and to purchase books, we ask that you purchase from Malaprop’s. When you do this you make it possible for us to continue hosting author events and you keep more dollars in our community. You may also support our work by purchasing a gift card or making a donation of any amount below. Thank you!


Featuring over 100 delicious recipes that utilize whole foods, classic ferments, hearty broths, and healing herbs and spices, The Nourishing Asian Kitchen presents an innovative approach to experiencing Asian cuisine while promoting nutritious, garden-to-place meals that are easy to make.

Sophia Nguyen Eng is a first-generation Vietnamese-American who left a successful career in growth marketing in Silicon Valley to start a five-acre permaculture farm in the Appalachian region of eastern Tennessee. During her time in the tech industry, Eng led successful growth marketing campaigns for startups and Fortune 500 companies like WorkDay, InVision, and Smartsheet, which led to opportunities to develop a certificate training program with CXL Institute and being a founder of the tech organization Women in Growth. A sought-after speaker, she has presented at Google HQ, GrowthHackers, and the global SaaStalk tech conferences. Now she draws on her experiences speaking on stage and her knowledge of food, farming, and health to present at homesteading conferences. Eng is also a Weston A. Price Chapter Leader and the founder of the website Sprinkle with Soil. With her husband, Tim, she raises grass-fed dairy cows, beef cattle, laying hens, broilers, ducks, sheep, goats, turkeys, and grows a variety of produce for her multi-generational family and local community. Sally Fallon Morell is the founding president of the Weston A. Price Foundation and author or coauthor of many acclaimed books, including Nourishing Traditions, The Nourishing Traditions Book of Baby & Child Care, and Nourishing Broth.

Terry Roberts
Jan 23 @ 6:30 pm
Fairview Library

Join us for an evening of readings and conversation with award-winning novelist Terry Roberts.

Terry Roberts is the author of five celebrated novels: A Short Time to Stay Here (winner of the Willie Morris Prize for Southern Fiction and the Sir Walter Raleigh Award for Fiction); That Bright Land (winner of the Thomas Wolfe Literary Award, the James Still Award for Writing About the Appalachian South and the Sir Walter Raleigh Award for Fiction); The Holy Ghost Speakeasy and Revival (Finalist for the 2019 Sir Walter Raleigh Award for Fiction); My Mistress’ Eyes are Raven Black (Finalist for the 2022 Best Paperback Original Novel by the International Thriller Writers Organization); and most recently, The Sky Club, released in July of 2022.

Roberts is a lifelong teacher and educational reformer as well as an award-winning novelist. He is a native of the mountains of Western North Carolina—born and bred. His ancestors include six generations of mountain farmers, as well as the bootleggers and preachers who appear in his novels. He was raised close by his grandmother, Belva Anderson Roberts, who was born in 1888 and passed to him the magic of the past along with the grit and humor of mountain story telling.

Roberts is the Director of the National Paideia Center and lives in Asheville, North Carolina with his wife, Lynn.

Wednesday, January 24, 2024
Valentine’s Day Take-Home Dinner Preorders
Jan 24 all-day
Red Fiddle Vittles

A special prix fixe dinner for two is now available for preorder online until Feb. 12 or while supplies last. Pickup is 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Feb. 14. Orders will be picked up chilled with complete reheating instructions included. The meal features lobster bisque with creme fraiche and brown butter croutons, port wine-braised beef short ribs, truffle risotto, dark chocolate lava cake with blueberry-lavender whipped cream.

YMCA Mobile Market
Jan 24 @ 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Leicester Library

The YMCA Mobile Market will be set up in the library parking lot from 2-3 pm. Bring your grocery bags and get fresh food for your family.  All are welcome, regardless of income or family size. Distributions are free and no paperwork is required.

OLD-TIME JAM Old-Time Mountain + Folk Music
Jan 24 @ 5:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Jack of the Wood


Grab some dinner and a pint while enjoying our long-running Old-Time jam! Featuring many talented musicians from the local WNC area, our traditional Appalachian mountain music jam runs from 5-9pm every Wednesday night at Jack of the Wood!

Trivia Night
Jan 24 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Hickory Tavern

Every Wednesday

Trivia Night

BIG FUR
Jan 24 @ 8:00 pm
The Pulp
Ages 18+
BIG FUR is a slick and versatile musical beast that ferociously pounces between genres and sounds. The band cultivates a wild party with their catchy original music and dynamic, energetic performing.
Thursday, January 25, 2024
Valentine’s Day Take-Home Dinner Preorders
Jan 25 all-day
Red Fiddle Vittles

A special prix fixe dinner for two is now available for preorder online until Feb. 12 or while supplies last. Pickup is 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Feb. 14. Orders will be picked up chilled with complete reheating instructions included. The meal features lobster bisque with creme fraiche and brown butter croutons, port wine-braised beef short ribs, truffle risotto, dark chocolate lava cake with blueberry-lavender whipped cream.

Tween Book Club
Jan 25 @ 4:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Pack Memorial Library

In celebration of the year of the dragon, let’s read and discuss The Dragon Warrior by Katie Zhao for our first Tween Book Club. Enjoy a dragon craft and sweet rice cakes! Refreshments will be served. Pick up a copy of your book at the Pack Juv desk or read or listen to it using the Libby app. Feel free to join us even if you don’t finish reading the whole book. We will vote on our book for next month on Thursday, February 29th.

Open to 4th-6th graders. Juvenile fiction chapter books or graphic novels will be the focus of this book group.

 

Hybrid | You’ll Do: Marcia Zug in conversation with Emily Suski
Jan 25 @ 6:00 pm
Malaprop's Bookstore

This is a hybrid event with limited in-store seating and the option to attend online.

The event is free but registration is required for both in-person and virtual attendance. 

Please click here to register for the VIRTUAL event. The link required to attend will be emailed to registrants prior to the event. 

Please click here to register for the IN-PERSON event. Note the important event details on the RSVP form.

This event includes a book signing. If you would like a signed book but can’t attend in person, you may order a signed copy online below. If you would like to have your book personalized, please order online or call the store at least two hours before the start of the event. When ordering online, use the comments field to provide a name for personalization, e.g. “To Paul.” NOTE: We do our best to get books personalized when requested but personalization is not guaranteed.

If you decide to attend and to purchase books, we ask that you purchase from Malaprop’s. When you do this you make it possible for us to continue hosting author events and you keep more dollars in our community. You may also support our work by purchasing a gift card or making a donation of any amount below. Thank you!


YOU’LL DO takes a deep dive into the unromantic, but much more common than most would like to think, reasons for marrying throughout history. Its publication date close to Valentine’s Day makes it the perfect time for the subject to be discussed and sure to attract others who are interested. Through revealing storytelling, Zug builds a compelling case that when marriage is touted as “the solution” to such problems, it absolves the government, and society, of the responsibility for directly addressing them.

Marcia Zug is a family law professor at the University of South Carolina School of Law. She is a graduate of Dartmouth College and The Yale Law School. Her previous book, Buying A Bride, explored the history of mail order marriage in the United States. She lives in Columbia, SC with her husband and two daughters.

Emily Suski is the associate dean for clinics and externships and an associate professor of law at the University of South Carolina. Her areas of expertise include education law—particularly, Title IX and civil rights in the public schools; health & poverty law; and clinical legal education. Her scholarship explores issues at the intersection of education law and civil rights as well as the role of the law in the caretaking of children. Her articles have been published in journals including the Iowa Law Review (forthcoming), Minnesota Law Review, California Law ReviewUCLA Law ReviewMaryland Law Review, and Clinical Law Review.

Black Experience Book Club
Jan 25 @ 6:30 pm – 7:30 pm
Noir Collective AVL

The Black Experience Book Club reads books by Black authors about the many facets of the Black experience. Join other book lovers to discuss this month’s pick, People Person, by Candice Carty-Williams.

WHERE TO FIND THE BOOK
PUBLIC LIBRARY
Call your local Buncombe County Public Library or visit buncombecounty.org/library to reserve your copy online.

NOIR COLLECTIVE AT THE YMICC.
Stop by the Noir Collective AVL during open hours, call 828-257-4540, or email [email protected] to check availability.