I really want to like this place but the food is sub par. Cute concept and ambience, ok service, seemed pretty dirty inside and in bathrooms, but the food....Lots of technical flaws, flavor was not good, and difficult to even get recommendations from staff as it felt like they knew. Gave it a couple chances but every visit was worse than the previous one. Had previously been disappointed with the pork belly on another occasion and asked about the new set up and was told not to order it by staff. Cool--thanks for looking out but very concerning! Some comments regarding specifics for management: Brussels were really greasy and the oil tasted old (maybe your fryers need new oil and aren't holding temp?), the sweet breads sauce really tasted like ketchup, and the trout crudo was tough/chewy and needed to be sliced thin plus it needed more acid than the kumquats provided. Not pictured was the chicken liver mousse which was the most disappointing dish of them all- super gelatinous and hard, so much so that I could barely get out out of the ramekin, let alone spread it on anything. The crostini served with it was stale and then toasted so it was hard as a rock. I asked for new bread and got some type of lightly warmed, par-sliced wheat loaf that didn't go with the dish. It was honestly the worse liver mousse I've ever seen or tasted. Luckily my friend doesn't really care about food quality and she ate everything so I didn't have to feel bad for not eating more than 1 bite of anything. Was so hungry I asked for some butter and ate a piece of the wheat bread while I waited for my friend. Left hungry and thankfully went for a slice after we left. Definitely not the post birthday meal I was hoping for while my friend was in town visiting. We bounced back the next day at Nine Mile though, that place is legit! I realize the impact Covid has had on the hospitality industry as a whole and staffing is a big problem, however, it's important to make the necessary changes to adapt. Cut your menu down and do half the dishes but do them well. Taste the food on your menu regularly and check the quality before service starts. Good luck guys, I know this industry isn't easy.

Great service, great wine list with selections to not break the bank. The gnocchi and pork spring rolls were top! The food came out quite quickly and water was always filled. The mussels were to be desired, great flavor but still...

The hype about this spot did not reflect in the food. We were excited to try many little plates of different dishes than we usually experience and glad that we visited. The ambiance is spectacular and the little details everywhere was special. That said, out of the 8 plates we shared, none were memorable nor made us say wow. The Jesús built my hotrod cocktail was the most complex and best item we had. The menu was inspired but didn't translate to the food.

Visited and made reservations here after seeing a few YouTube reviews speaking highly of this restaurant. It was amazing! The atmosphere was quiet, and romantic. The food is memorable and savory. Can't wait to come and visit again.

This place was insanely delicious. My friend and I shared 6 plates and had a glass of wine each with a total cost of ~$50 before tip. The ambiance was so lovely and our waiter was great! We had mushrooms, calamari, ramp wrapped tuna, gnocchi, arugula salad, and a carrot dish. All SCRUMPTIOUS. I bet anything you order will be equally delectable. If you haven’t eaten at this place I don’t know what you’re doing with your life.

Zambra brings a very unique, rustic experience to the heart of Asheville while at the same time being very hard to miss while passing along the street. This little nook of a restaurant provides a delicious tapas experience specializing in spanish roots. In the Asheville area, I would consider its main comparator being Curate. Zambra is unique is the sense of dimly lit romantic atmosphere that makes it a great place to enjoy a date night out. I’d also highly recommend for large group settings looking for a range of delicious Spanish tapas while being slightly cheaper than Curate. The service, staff, and bar service is excellent. The cocktails are excellently prepared, service was always on point and well attentive, and the food was delicious as well. Favorite dish would be the grilled maitake mushrooms. A very surprising taste and texture brought to these mushrooms, and cannot rave enough about this dish. Flank steak was very delicious, along with the scallops. Loved the asparagus gazpacho pairing contrast with the scallops. The cocktails were amazing as well - Spanish Negroni provided and excellent twist to the traditional style Negroni. They also provide a very large list of excellent wines. They have an incredible selection here. Absolutely loved this restaurant in general. Great eating experience to wind down the night with in Asheville. It is quite dimly lit inside, which is to my preference, however if you’re one to pull out a phone light to read, I may recommend looking elsewhere as not to disturb other guests.

Fantastic Valentines dinner. Service was excellent and every item of food we got was delicious. Will he returning, 10/10 recommend

Zambra is one of the most romantic restaurants in Asheville. It’s dark, but not too much. The design transports you to another world. Cozy up in one of corner tables and enjoy some exotic food and wine. The thing I love about tapas is they’re fun to share. Start slow and go from there. Tapas are great for couples like my husband and I who don’t eat much. We enjoyed the cheese plate a salad and the meatballs. It was plenty for us. All delicious. I loved my wine as well. We like to coincide our visit to Zambra around Valentine’s making it extra special.

This is a cool tapas restaurant in downtown Asheville. A perfect place for an intimate dinner and the wine list is deep and stellar. The standout tapas was the Sunburst Farms Trout with garlic chili sauce, serrano ham and Oranges Supreme. The soft savory flavor of the trout contrasted with the salty crispness of the ham. The cheese plate, featuring an assortment of Spanish cheeses, spiced honey and quince jelly was also wonderful. Highly recommended.

Visiting Asheville for the weekend and had dinner reservations with friends for a night out. The atmosphere has a vintage Spanish feel with clay walls and bronze decor with low lighting. The food was delicious at a reasonable price with a classy plate setting as well as the drinks. However, service could have been better with our experience. We noticed that the servers weren’t as attentive to us as the other parties when we arrived first. We ordered bread as an appetizer and it was given to the other table that arrived after us when they didn’t order any. This happened a few times with the food we ordered and dessert as well and we had to keep telling them it was ours. Please ensure that your servers pay more attention. I definitely would like to come back and try again with a better wait experience.

Great options for vegetarian/ pescatarian. Highly recommend the grilled shrimp. Only observation, I would have like extra plates for the dishes. Highly recommend

My wife and I are in Asheville from out of town. We searched a long time for the perfect restaurant and we found it with Zambra. Food was amazing. Butternut squash soup, steak with pomegranate, and gnocchi blew us away. Service and atmosphere were great! Highly recommend!!

Went there for our 20th wedding anniversary. Was poorly seated but asked to be moved and was accommodated. Food and atmosphere was great after that. Every dish was delicious.

The small dishes are really delicious and with 2 or 3 you can get full quickly. I got the sangria and it was very good. I also recommend the roasted beef and the Buffalo chicken. Service was also amazing. My favorite part though is the vibe and atmosphere of the restaurant. Feels very cozy and nice. This was a great addition to our Asheville trip - definitely coming back :)

Such an amazing experience. Staff was super helpful with suggestions. Plates came out hot and fresh. Everything we had was delicious. The pork loin was our favorite dish of all, the gnocchi was great. The pork spring rolls was the second best super cool atmosphere the place is so much larger than it looks from the outside, and there is a parking deck within walking distance. Overall great experience we will be back.

I absolutely loved this place! It was my first time here. The food was outstanding, and the drinks were top-notch. It's such a beautiful place, especially at night. They have it all lit up with low light and candles. It was very romantic and sexy. The staff was wonderful, too.

Zambra has been around for awhile and could use some updating as it smells musty. Currently it's attracting a touristy crowd who couldn't snag a reservation at the premium Tapas spot in town: Curate. Wine selection is very encompassing and broad; service was efficient & knowledgeable; however the food was vastly overpriced for the portion size. We paid $24 for 2 small scallops in some weird sauce and $24 for 5 bites of flank steak. For dessert the flan was tasty except it was covered with coffee grounds. Oh, and a single-person men's restroom with a line for a place this size is inexcusable.

A rustic old world feeling Spanish tapas restaurant with all the charm. Each dish is made from scratch with delicate sauces. The staff were cordial and rotated assisting each other so that not a single customer lacked prompt service. We had a group of 7 and felt comfortable with our seating and all our order choices. Highly recommend for those visiting the Asheville area!

Just had a wonderful dinner there for my wife’s birthday. All of the various tapas we ordered were delicious and were delivered in a timely, not rushed manner. There was plenty of time to savor each dish and explore the complex flavors fully. The staff were all friendly and attentive but not obtrusive. Very much look forward to our next visit.

Excellent food. Tapas style. Tried basically ordered 10 or more of their plates. All very good and out together well. The atmosphere is really nice and scenic. Very unique. Highly suggest

My husband and I went here for dinner and drinks on our last night in Asheville. We shared a carafe of red sangria (delicious! It was different but good! Tasted like Christmas!) and some tapas. We started with the Owl bakery bread, oil, and vinegar (so good!). We ordered the tapas one at a time which is so nice. They had tapa specials and then tapas that they have all the time so there were a ton of choices. We went with the pork spring rolls (amazing!), gnocchi/sweet potato (different and delicious!), and the roasted carrots (so good!). We wanted to try more but we were stuffed! The staff was very friendly and helpful. Shauna was our waitress and she was great! The atmosphere is totally different from anywhere we have ever eaten. We had a very cozy and romantic seating area. Highly recommend! Make reservations as they can get busy. Parking is nearby.

One of my top five favorite restaurants in Asheville North Carolina. Charming and romantic atmosphere and everything on the menu is delicious. If you haven’t dined at Zambra….What are you waiting for?

Was looking forward to this place for my birthday dinner. Walked in and it had a great vibe and ambiance. Mediterranean tapas style. We had to change our reservation last minute which they were nice enough to accommodate. Arrived 15mins prior and were promptly sat down. That’s where the night changed. Our waiter approached after 10mins and chatted some. He seemed a little stand off-ish and that continued thru the night. If I’m being honest his attitude and persona alone ruined the night. We tried to look past it and order a few tapas dishes. The carrot dish was odd. Various levels of cooked carrots. Nice flavor but the difference in doneness was a bit off putting. Next up the patatas bravas, a staple tapas were alright in flavor but not all that saucy. The mushroom dish came out next which we enjoyed but still was texturally a bit all over the place. The shrimp chimmichurri dish came next. No sense of acidity of even any ability to taste the chimmichurri at all. The shrimp was over cooked and flavorless. Seasoning was lacking throughout every dish. We didn’t really enjoy the majority of the dishes, which is fine, this sort of thing is very subjective and restaurants have off night. The thing that ruined our experience and our night was our waiter Patrick. He was a bit of a soul sucker, passive aggressive and just seemed like he didn’t want to even be there. I can look past the mediocre food but the energy that dude gave off really just ruined the dining experience and my birthday. He was kind enough, although reluctantly offered to apply his discount. But even then he seemed to have hated his life and the experience. We tried to look past it and continue my birthday and our experience. My gf convinced me to keep our night going and rediscover some sense of fun and enjoyment. Ymmv but this was our experience.

My wife and I went here to celebrate my 34th birthday and let me say it was a great night. The atmosphere reminds of being back in the Mediterranean. Zambra is down a side road in downtown, it can be easy to miss if you are not paying attention. If you are looking for a place with good tapas, drinks and atmosphere, this is your place. A bonus is they have a few mocktails on their menu if you choose not to want to indulge in stronger libations. My wife and I's personal favorite dish was the pork spring roll and the gnocchi but honestly all their food was really good. The only thing we probably wouldn't get again would be the octopus but just because it was such a small portion it wasn't worth the cost to us personally but it still tasted very good. I would 100% go back and eat here again.