Ash & Olive owner Gregg Brooks is serious about his Ashland restaurant’s commitment to “flame-to-table” cuisine. “Everything with the exception of french fries is cooked under a flame at 625°F in our stone oven,” says Brooks, who’s also a drummer with the yacht rock band Three Sheets to the Wind and who previously worked at Belle Isle Moonshine and Comfort. Brooks calls the menu “Euro-American,” an eclectic blend of French, Italian, Greek, and Spanish cuisines. “It’s heavily influenced by the foods that my wife and I love to cook and experience,” he says. Open since fall 2024 along the railroad tracks in downtown Ashland, Brooks says the restaurant’s greatest hits so far include a whipped feta appetizer, specialty pizzas, and steak and hummus plate. Ash-Olive.com
This article originally appeared in the Best of Virginia 2025 issue.
