I'm always looking out for short getaways from the Charlotte area - spots with some local charm and a couple of breweries. Can anyone tell me a bit about Waynesville? I know of the breweries in the area - don't know if they're all within walking distance of each other. Frog Level and BooJum appear to be a bit away from the downtown stuff. Also looking for advice on where to stay. I'd love to walk to everything, especially since we'll be drinking. Any advice will be appreciated - thanks!
Did a 2-day trip there once. Nice quaint town that also has plenty to do. First piece of advice: don't go to Tipping Point. The beers are horrendous. You're gonna want to definitely hit up Boojum. If you haven't had their beer before, it's great, and I hear their food is really good. Bear Waters is pretty cool but in a weird spot near the highway on the edge of town tucked away behind some random buildings. Once you're able to find it, the beer ranges from average to very good and they usually have a lot of choices. I think their Stiff Paddle IPA is really tasty and they had a Blueberry Pale that was nice as well, while the other 10 or so beers were either decent or meh. Worth checking out if you have the time and they have live music on the weekends. Frog Level has solid beers but usually only has about 6-8 on at a time. Where they shine is their outdoor area out back next to the river. Very relaxing atmosphere that they share with the cafe next door, Panacea Coffee Company, which I highly recommend for food. The panini I had was excellent. There are other things to check out like The Strand which is a movie theater/music venue and I really wanted to go to the Bourbon Barrel, Beef & Ale restaurant because their menu looked really good, but we didn't have time. That should be enough to get ya started!
I really like Waynesville and we are typically there one night every year for a triathlon we do out there. I echo everything Immoratale said except not visiting Tipping Point. While I thought their beers are fine, they offer a good selection of guest beers and it's typically one of the busiest "social" places downtown. Frog Levels outside space is great (you can walk to it from main st). Bear Waters ain't nothing to look at but I have had some very good beers there. Bearwaters should be a first stop though as that is not walking distance. Boojum wasn't open last time we were there. The best kept secret: The Wineseller. Little restaurant/wine&beer bar tucked in the basement of the wine shop. Great spot for a drink. We have had fantastic dinners at Chef Table but the place is tiny so you likely need a reservation. Can't help for downtown places to stay. We typically stayed at one the hotels along the expressway (which is just a mile or two from downtown).
Oh yeah, I meant to mention that. We were in town visiting a friend so we stayed at his place. Not sure of the best lodging options unfortunately.
If your up for a short, but scenic drive, you could stay in Bryson City area.. Plenty of places, or air bnb places around. Can hit up Nanatahala for all of your drinking needs, and plenty of little places to eat in town. Can easily park and walk around all day. But... I'd have a feeling most of the stuff is closed over there. Some would be open, but I'd figure another 2-4 weeks it would be in full swing for the areas of WNC.
I like the food at Tipping Point. The beer is good at Boojum, and the place to go for packaged beer and snacks is www.sunburstmarket.com/
