Bandidos in West Asheville is locally owned and supports local agriculture to ensure the freshest seasonal ingredients. Everything is made from scratch, in-house, daily, with the utmost care for quality and consistency. They feature their everchanging menu on their website as to not waste paper.

Bandidos started as a local food cart selling scratch-made tamales and quickly had to move into a brick and mortar restaurant to keep up with the growing demand for quality Latin food. “We are not a Mexican restaurant,”says Bandidos owner Justin Smudde. “We simply use Latin inspiration in all our dishes which reflect many different styles of cooking and preparation. We only carry local beers to support our local breweries.”

Before Bandidos, Smudde was best known for selling great Mexican street food downtownat the Wedge and at the Green Man Brewing Company. Smudde has been a chef for nearly 20 years and fell in love with Latin food.
“There is something to be said about the complexity of Latin cuisine that is alluring, delicious, and of course, healthy,” he says.

“We also offer catering for private parties, festivals, and any other special event in which we can better serve our customers.”
The menu changes frequently. All of the salsas are made fresh daily. There’s also a small selection of local beers on tap and plenty of vegetarian options.