Ole's Guacamoles is coming back to Asheville, but not to the spot where flood-damaged diners once lined up for chips and queso. The family-owned Mexican restaurant is preparing to reopen at 4 Sweeten Creek Road in Biltmore Village, taking over the former home of Moe's Original BBQ, more than two years after Hurricane Helene wrecked its old Tunnel Road location.
Construction is already rolling at the new site, according to WLOS, though the station reports the opening date has yet to be announced. After Helene left the Tunnel Road building too damaged to salvage, the Delatorre family that runs Ole's Guacamoles ultimately decided not to rebuild in that area, the station reported, pointing the business toward Biltmore Village instead.
As WhatNow notes, Ole's Guacamoles was founded by Ole and Elena Delatorre and now has locations across western North Carolina and Tennessee. The restaurant offers dine-in, carryout and catering, according to its own website.
Helene's Toll on Two Locations
Hurricane Helene hit Ole's Guacamoles especially hard because the business had restaurants on both sides of the flooding. The nearby Swannanoa River crested at more than 26 feet in September 2024, a surge that destroyed equipment and furniture at the Asheville location, per Mountain Xpress. Co-owner Elena Delatorre estimated the flooding cost the business roughly $750,000 across its two locations, the outlet reported.
The Black Mountain restaurant also suffered severe damage during the storm, according to a report from Spectrum Local News. While repairs there dragged on, Ole's Guacamoles opened a temporary location at 502 West State Street in Black Mountain in November 2024, a stopgap documented by the Valley Echo as the family worked to keep serving customers during the rebuild.
A Long-Awaited Homecoming in Black Mountain
A Long-Awaited Homecoming in Black Mountain That temporary setup lasted roughly 12 months. Ole's Guacamoles returned to its longtime Black Mountain location in late November 2025, closing out more than a year of displacement caused by the storm, Mountain Xpress reported. The Delatorres' new Asheville location will be in Biltmore Village.
The regional hospitality industry faced a bleak backdrop: Buncombe County lost about 13,000 jobs after Helene, the largest decline of any western North Carolina county, and Asheville's leisure and hospitality employment rate fell nearly 10% in the year through August 2025, according to the station's reporting.
Part of a Broader Asheville Recovery
Part of a Broader Asheville Recovery Ole's Guacamoles isn't the only Asheville name clawing its way back. Elsewhere in western North Carolina, Okie Dokies Smokehouse reopened after Helene. Elsewhere in the city, Cúrate, one of Asheville's best-known restaurants, also reopened after the storm, according to reporting from The Guardian.
For now, Ole's Guacamoles fans will have to watch Biltmore Village for updates rather than mark a calendar. With construction underway but no firm timeline released, the next milestone in the restaurant's recovery is simply opening the doors on Sweeten Creek Road.
