Nested inside one of the storefronts of Vinton's well-known S. Pollard St., is Azteca de Oro -…read moreTienda y Taqueria, a family-owned and operated neighborhood Hispanic grocery store with an unassuming, authentic Mexican taqueria tucked in the back. Curiously enough, what attracted me to this store in the first place is that it lacked any storefront sign. The only place you find its name listed is on a flyer posted under the red OPEN sign with the Business Hours. As I looked through the large front windows of the store I could begin to notice that it was a Hispanic Market by the merchandise that I saw. But then again, also included in the store was a large space with pool tables and other game tables. When I walked in, I met the owner behind the counter and immediately greeted him in Spanish to establish a comfortable relationship since my deep white skin doesn't reveal my Hispanic Heritage of Cuban parents and Spaniard grandparents with my last name of Barcelona, Spain origen, and having grown up in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and now a U.S. citizen. I explained who I was and that this was my first time in the store. He extended me a warm welcome and invited me to explore the store and maybe grab a bite to eat at their Taqueria in the back. As I walked through the store I saw many well known Hispanic brand names such as Goya and well loved products such as plantain chips and chicharrones. There were also the typical piñatas, one even with the popular Spiderman. In the back of this spacious open area was literally a hole-in-the-wall little restaurant, also not at all labeled as such if not for the dining room tables and a menu board on the wall next to a door with a sign "We're Open" and a window counter so you can order your food. A large screen TV with the Telemundo channel on the screen. From the window counter I grabbed a menu and ended up ordering their 3 Quesadillas dish with two carnitas and one chorizo, and a mango juice to drink. The Quesadillas were simple but well prepared with well seasoned meats, cheese, lettuce y and nicely cooked tortillas. I invite you to view my photographs accompanying this review to get a better sense of the place and its food. After I was finished I asked for the bill and paid it at the front cashier counter of the store with my Google Pay, leaving also a nice tip. In conclusion I highly recommend this Hispanic Market and Mexican Taqueria to get a real sense of what an authentic Hispanic grocery store with a taqueria is all about.

This shop/restaurant is easy to miss if you don't know it's there. But what a nice surprise! I had…read morequestions about ordering flautas and tamales to go and my spanish is awful. So the gentleman at the cash register helped me out since he is bilingual. I ended up purchasing chicken flautas with spicy red sauce, 6 chicken tamales verde, chipotle tostadas from the grocery section and some Sazon seasoning. Everyone was so nice and it is a clean and tidy shop. The flautas and tamales were delicious! I will definitely be back.

There so unhappy all the time, well except that one guy. The fuel center is shit, and the self…read morecheckout always has 5 employees glaring at you with an unfriendly stern face. Also, theres that one kid that is always super stoned. Dude stop smoking so much weed during work.

Horrible I got locked out my account and still getting charged for the benefits for someone else to…read moreuse and steal my money

It amazing the power of an entrepreneurial mind. This place that was once the Williamson Road…read morePancake House, and had been closed for years, reasantly was converted to the Grab and Go convenience store, grocery, and small cafeteria serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner, as well as typical Indian food on the weekend. It has a regular menu as well as a Halal Food Menu, and a small counter seating area as well as a few tables and chairs dining area. Besides this restaurant area, it also has a grocery area where among other things they sell Food and Groceries, Tabasco and Vape, Beer and Wine, and Frozen Foods. Now if this wasn't enough this store has an ATM Machine, sells Virginia Lottery Tickets, has Gaming Machines, sells H&C Brand Coffee, has two gigantic big screen TVs to watch while dining in the Cafe area, and last but not least, has a Beer Cave Beverage Center in the back. And as you might think of asking, It also has Free WiFi. The owners are India immigrants very proud to live in America, the land of opportunities, and show it by having a large American Flag in the back of the counter in the main entrance. For the store space, there is almost nothing you can think of that they don't have there. Visit the store once and you definitely would want to return to shop for something you need or want. And to top everything off, the owners of this mom and pop local small business are delightful. They greet you with a smile and a warm welcome and have wonderful personality. The husband runs the store and the wife cooks and runs the Cafe. I invite you to view my photographs that accompany my review and see for yourself this one of a kind, amazing store, go and visit it, and give them your support. For their success will come by how well they satisfy the needs of our community.

The new spot on Williamson, really affordable food that tastes great. Really good options as far as…read moreconvenience goes and drinks. The food is genuinely impressive and worth trying. The wings blew me away.

Best place for gas near Byrd. On a nice corner for convenient access. The greenery needs to be…read moremaintained a little better since it is an entrance to a neighbor hood of people who take pride in condition of their yards.

From the owner: Smoke shop ,skill games and Grocery read more

Strolling through the market I ran across Roanoke Natural Foods…read more I browsed a bit and found them pricey. A manager was stocking shelves and struck up a conversation. He was friendly and I appreciated the assistance. I ended up grabbing an apple for my walk. Checkout was friendly and smooth. I would return.

The Roanoke Co+op is Southwest Virginia's largest food co-op. And this year they are celebrating…read moretheir 50th year anniversary. Since 1975 they have been serving the Roanoke Valley community. Located in Center In The Square, in the heart of Downtown Roanoke, it's a Market featuring natural grocery staples and organic-focused produce, along with prepared foods and grab-and-go options. It also accepts SNAP/EBT for its prepared foods. Besides this Roanoke Downtown location, it has another much larger community-owned grocery store in Grandin Village. This co-op has over 6,200 owners. They welcome everyone in the community as well as visiting tourists to shop there. And if you wish you too can become an owner by filling out an application and by making a one-time purchase of 8 ownership shares at $200 or paying for your shares one at a time in 8 installments of $25 each within an 8 year period. Owners receive benefits such as Owner Rewards, Patronage Rebates, Vote in their annual Board of Directors elections, eligibility to run for an open seat on the Board of Directors, and an invitation to the Annual Co-op Meeting. Today, I visited their Downtown Roanoke location. The employee on duty allowed me to explore the grocery store and take photographs to accompany my review. The store was very clean and organized, and although it was a bit late, early in the morning its suppliers bring in fresh merchandise, and make sure to fill up all its shelves spaces. In the past, I had purchased many items from this store. In the Summer, I would sometimes get a grab-and-go salad and either go sit at one of the tables that they put out in the Center In The Square or to the ones in the Market Building, and eat it with the salad dressing that it includes inside. Their hot Soup of the day is also very tasty and popular, and I've enjoyed a bowl many times. A while ago they experimented by selling Roanoke t-shirts and due to popular demand they now carry a nice variety of them for both locals and tourists who like taking one home with them as a souvenirof the Star City of Roanoke. I invite you to view my photographs accompanying this review to get a better sense of the place and the quality merchandise they sell here. I definitely highly recommend this grocery store to all who want to eat healthy and support locally sourced products.

A significant winter storm - referred to as Winter Storm Cora - is anticipated to bring heavy mixed…read moreprecipitation to the Roanoke, Virginia area, with a Winter Storm Warning in effect until Monday, January 26, 2016. We are to expect 4 to 8 inches of combined snow and sleet, ice accumulation, and dangerous travel conditions with wind gusts up to 35 - 40 mph. After receiving the above information from the weathercasters of Channel 10 local news, I decided to go shopping for food, water, and essentials to weather the storm. Asking around, on the day before the storm would reach us, I was told that Walmart's shelves were almost all cleared out, and not to bother going there. My friends advised me to go to either Food Lion or Kroger. I decided to go to the Vinton Kroger, knowing by experience how well managed this Kroger is and how they do an excellent job of keeping their shelves stocked. When I arrived, their parking lot was pretty full, but still had some parking spaces available to park. As I parked and approached the entrance, their American flag flew high above under a beautiful blue sky with white clouds. Inside, I was able to walk around with my shopping cart and find all the essentials I needed to weather the storm. From frozen ready-made foods, easy to prepare, to bread and cold cuts, to even milk and water, that oftentimes are the first things to run out in supermarkets during inclement weather. I asked one of the employees for directions of where to find the little glass bottles of Starbucks Coffee and she immediately gave me the aile number. Another employee helped me reach the toilet paper that I wanted that was on a shelf too high for me to reach. They even had the cereal that I like that oftentimes even in good weather the other supermarkets run out. The clerk at the cashier's counter was very efficient checking out all my merchandise, and the bag packing attendant in quickly packaging all my item and nicely placing them back into my cart. In Vinton, they also don't charge you for the bags, which they do in Roanoke. As I was taking my groceries to my Lexus, cars stopped to allow me to cross over to the parking lot. I quickly placed all my items in the trunk of my Lexus and pushed the cart back to one of those cart stations in the middle of the parking lot. As I was leaving the parking lot I saw behind me how another car was paking in the parking space I had just left. I thought to myself how grateful I was to the management and staff of this Kroger in particular for being so efficient that allowed me to shop, like if nothing out of the ordinary was going on.

What is going on with Kroger in Vinton. They have done a way with their meat department. Now you…read morecan only purchase prepackaged meats and seafood. The meat department was one of the best, and the staff was really friendly and helpful. I understand that this is a trend that Kroger's is looking at nationally, but it is gonna hurt them. This is a terrible decision, and it is going to cause my family to shop elsewhere. Bring it back!

Off the tracks- literally!- is Saleeba's grocery on Tazewell Ave. great folks with a smile and a…read morehandshake, and a sign in the window that says "Best hot dogs in Roanoke." Got hot dogs with MOC and it was well worth stopping. Grilled dogs with slight blackening, herr's yellow hot dog buns, chopped onions- fresh!- yellow mustard and smoky chili. Yum! Made to order and a nice old sit-down lunch counter. Coke coolers alone are worth stopping to see. If the rest of their menu is as good as the dogs, this will be a continuous stop! Family owned since 1946- it shows!!

Through word of mouth I heard about this quaint, little neighborhood convenience store located…read morealong Walnut Avenue, in Vinton, Virginia, featuring an adjacent Valley Metro bus stop ("Walnut Eb at Booker") for convenient public transit access. It ignited my imagination to want to go visit it and write a review so that people of all walks of life could know about it, and know that it's there for those times when one has a need of an item or even a want of a particular product to enjoy as a snack. So I turned on the GPS of my pearl white Lexus and headed towards there from Orange Ave where I was coming from. It took me through narrow streets going up and down and around the hills, until I heard: "You have arrived at your destination." To my surprise the store was located in a nice little area with a small parking lot that was almost completely full of cars from customers shopping there. It had a clean storefront with lit signs all over behind the store windows and a nice store sign that seemed sponsored by Pepsi on the rooftop. I like it when large companies help out small local businesses by providing them with a deasent store front sign, even if by doing so they advertise their product as well. Right close to its front entrance there was one handicapped accessible parking space. Just this fact said a lot about the owner. Up front there was also an Air Pump not only for customers with cars to take advantage of it but there was a customer who came riding his bike, and he too could use it to fill his tires with air. When I walked inside, it was amazing the great variety of products contained within. As I looked through the store, I seemed to have captured the owner's attention since it was my first time there and he gave me a warm greeting from behind the counter and we immediately started a conversation. When I asked if he was Spanish, he told me he was of Egyptian immigrants. Right away I told him of the Egyptian I had met in Salem, who owned the Abrakadabra tiny Mediterranean restaurant. Well, it turned out to be his brother. What a small world. He told me he was expecting a large shipment of products today, but even with this coming in, he had a great variety of products that rather than naming them all I invite you to view my photographs accompanying this review to get a better sense of the place and its available products. Basically the store stocked household essentials, pantry staples, snacks, drinks, fresh produce, and specialized specialty items. Thus providing local residents with a convenient one-stop shopping destination for everyday needs. It's welcoming atmosphere brought new and old customers in, and its reputation for friendly service kept them coming back for more. I highly recommend this convenience store and urge you to give your total support to this kind-natured local owner.

This place is the best place to get snacks and drinks at, recommend. The service is amazing and abe…read moreis so nice and hard working! If you need and cat food or dog food this place gotcha, and the things are cheap so you can afford alot of stuff!

Some of the young people who work there are not too customer service savvy. The girl bagged my…read moregroceries and turned away, forgetting to give me a receipt. The guy standing next to her was talking to her about someone else's receipt or something, then he saw me still standing there waiting for my receipt, and yanked it from the machine, handing it to me like he was impatient with me. Rudeness like that has no place in a grocery store or any where else you are waiting on customers. They need a good talking to from their manager, who I hope sees this review. I rarely give bad reviews at the places I shop. I had never had a problem there before, but this just left me feeling sort of odd.