Bean Vegan Cuisine's 'vegan conquest' advances

Bean Vegan Cuisine plans to open a second location in Asheville this spring, "if not sooner," says the restaurant's Charlie Foesch. The new place will be in south Asheville, at 2145 Hendersonville Road. "The restaurant god were smiling on us," he says, and the only thing that needs to be brought in is vegan equipment (as in, equipment that hasn't been used in non-vegan food preparation). The location is near new shopping and the airport, as well, says Foesch, "which is good for us; we get a lot of travelers." Expect an identical menu to Charlotte's (where some dishes, such as the cowboy burger and fishless filet, are moving soon from the specials list to the permanent menu). Expect, too, a third location in either Raleigh or Durham, he says: "The Triangle Vegan Society has been lobbying for us to open ... and I think that's part of our vegan conquest." The plan had been to follow the addition of the grocery store element in Charlotte with a place in Asheville, then in Raleigh or Durham. He says that decision hasn't been made, but Durham appears to be favored.