7 Best Places to Shop in Asheville, North Carolina

The biggest and arguably the best art gallery in town has changing exhibits of regional sculpture, paintings, fine crafts, and photographs.

French Broad Chocolate Lounge—so popular it had to move to this much-larger location on Pack Square (though the line is still sometimes out the door)—makes its own delicious chocolate candy, but that's just the start. As the name suggests, it's also a lounge, where you can sit in comfort and enjoy not only truffles and other premium chocolates but also ice cream, cookies, brownies, various kinds of hot and cold chocolate drinks, and specialty coffees and teas. Adjoining is the grab-and-go Chocolate Boutique. The owners also have a small chocolate factory and tasting room at 21 Buxton Avenue, with guided tours daily, starting at $3.

Odyssey Center for the Ceramic Arts has the largest number of working clay artists in the region. It has two ceramics galleries, plus pottery studios and clay classes. The main gallery, Odyssey Co-Op Gallery, has a large and high-quality selection of ceramic works, both functional and decorative, as well as figurative and abstract sculpture, by 25 juried clay artists. Odyssey Clayworks offers classes and has a gallery of clay work by students and others.

In this 1928 landmark building decorated with polychrome terra-cotta tiles, about 100 artisans show and sell their crafts. A second location two doors away, Kress Emporium II, has about 25 art and crafts stalls.

Established by the late arts entrepreneur John Cram, New Morning Gallery has more than 13,000 square feet of exhibit space in a prime location in Biltmore Village. The gallery, which has a national reputation, focuses on more popular and moderately priced ceramics, garden art, jewelry, furniture, and art glass.

More than 40 artists, craftspeople, and entrepreneurs in ceramics, painting, textiles, woodworking, and jewelry work in this complex of studios and galleries in the River Arts District. Several of the artists offer classes and there's lots of free parking.

Chocolate truffles and sea-salt caramels are favorites here, but you can also buy made-on-site items such as chocolate in the shapes of cowboy boots and high heels. Most items are sold for takeout, but there's limited in-store seating if you just can't wait to scarf down these delicious sweets with a cup of rich hot chocolate.