Ember Restaurant to Open in Asheville on December 3

The new live-fire concept replaces a pop-up, marking a shift for the Biltmore Avenue site to owner-managed evening service.

Updated on Oct. 28, 2026 in Openings & Closings

Glowing wood coals and woodsmoke in a cast-iron hearth, representing a new live-fire restaurant opening in Asheville. — Restaurateurs Layla and Justin Neuroth will open their new live-fire restaurant, Ember, at 5 Biltmore Avenue in Asheville on December 3. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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Asheville restaurateurs Layla and Justin Neuroth will open their new concept, Ember, at 5 Biltmore Ave on December 3, 2026. The new venture replaces the current Palmar Latin Kitchen pop-up, which ends its residency on November 28, 2026.

Why it matters

The transition marks a strategic pivot for the owners to move away from hosting guest concepts toward managing their own evening service at the Biltmore Avenue property. This shift allows the operators to unify their nighttime revenue stream with existing businesses Bru and Färməsē under a singular, in-house culinary brand.

Ember will feature a menu with entrees priced between $28 and $48, including specific items like a $28 Wagyu-blend burger and a $34 roasted cinder celeriac. This replaces the pop-up model that occupied the 5 Biltmore Ave space since April 2026.

The players

Layla and Justin Neuroth

Local hospitality operators who manage a portfolio of food and beverage concepts at 5 Biltmore Ave including Bru and Färməsē.

Ember

A new live-fire restaurant concept opening in downtown Asheville.

Palmar Latin Kitchen

A food concept that operated as a pop-up residency at 5 Biltmore Ave since April 2026.

The details

The restaurant utilizes live-fire cooking methods, incorporating coal, embers, and ash into its preparation of dishes like roasted bone marrow, priced at $26. Before the official opening, the space will host three invitation-only Sunday dinner service sessions on November 15, 22, and 29. By managing the nighttime kitchen directly, the owners aim to streamline operations at their shared Biltmore Avenue location.

November 28, 2026: Palmar Latin Kitchen ends its pop-up residency.
December 3, 2026: Ember begins regular dinner service.

Market Landscape

This transition follows the broader urban trend of landlords opting for proprietary evening concepts over rotating residencies to exert greater control over brand consistency. It marks a strategic departure from the incubator model that occupied the Biltmore Avenue location for the past year.

Operators currently utilizing pop-up residencies to test concepts should monitor the transition of this space as a signal of potential shifts toward permanent, owner-operated models in high-traffic districts. Owners should evaluate the margin stability of managing full-time in-house service versus the lower operational overhead of third-party pop-ups.

The takeaway

Moving to in-house management allows for greater control over high-end menu pricing and brand identity in a competitive urban market. Owners considering similar transitions should calculate the cost of staffing a full-service nightly kitchen against the commission or lease revenue generated by pop-up tenants.