We just got back from Asheville, NC where the food and beer is awesome! Wr visited many places with local food and beer. In fact, practically everywhere serves from local farmers and Brewers. If that is your thing, you should visit Asheville.
Portland also had a lot of great places for food and beer, but Asheville is the only place I know on the East coast like that.
The people in Asheville we're really nice too. And it felt really safe there. It felt like you could leave your doors unlocked, though I wouldn't take my chances, especially with all the stuff we had packed in the van.
My awesome girlfriend @Sandyh has been blogging about our trip so make sure to follow her if you want to see more of our trip, such as our visit at the New Belgium Brewery.