ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — The historic Biltmore Village train depot is getting a new life as a restaurant — and this time, pizza is on the menu.
Paperhouse Pizza is planning a permanent location in the 1896 train depot at 30 Lodge St., the former home of Village Wayside Bar & Grille.
A city permit filed Sept. 11 calls for interior alterations and a full build-out for Paperhouse Pizza, including a commercial kitchen, an open pizza-cook kitchen, a bar and seating areas.
The permit application says the previous tenant will not return after the building was damaged by flooding from Tropical Storm Helene.
The project follows an earlier city record filed Sept. 2 for “Rebuilding Biltmore Train Depot as Restaurant.” The 2,826-square-foot property is in a floodplain and was identified as having sustained severe flood damage.
Paperhouse’s move was announced Aug. 28 by the Asheville Foodie Community, which described the business as moving from its food-truck operation into a permanent home.
The restaurant will take over a building that had been home to Village Wayside for 15 years.
The depot has a long history in Biltmore Village. Built in 1896 for the Southern Railway, the Tudor Revival-style station was designed by architect Richard Morris Hunt. George Vanderbilt positioned the station so arriving rail passengers would have a direct view of the Cathedral of All Souls, creating a gateway to the Biltmore Estate.
Passenger rail service at the station ended in August 1975, and the building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.
The building later became a restaurant and most recently housed Village Wayside Bar & Grille before Tropical Storm Helene flooded it in September 2024.
Now, city permit records show the historic building is headed for another restaurant chapter — this time as the planned home of Paperhouse Pizza.
The permit does not list a construction value or a projected completion date.