Amazing burgers and get the loaded fries. The fried Oreos are also a super nice treat.read more

My sister and I stopped at Jack Brown's Beer & Burger Joint in Roanoke after two ladies at the L&L…read moreshop downtown recommended it, and it turned out to be an amazing experience. The place is small but quaint, with dim lighting, a full bar, and a fun mix of music genres that keeps the vibe relaxed but lively. I ordered the Gregg Brady, and my sister had the Doctor Gozo, both made with 100% Wagyu beef. You can taste the quality immediately. I added mushrooms and grilled onions for a small extra fee, and had my BBQ chips that come on it, on the side. We shared the crinkle‑cut fries, which came with their incredible house sauce. The sauce was so good I asked if they sold it, they do not, but the waitress sent me home with some samples for free. Service was fast and friendly. The waitresses were dressed in black tank tops, black shorts, and black shoes, and every one of them worked with a smile, like they were glad you came. The restaurant entrance itself is handicap accessible, but the bathrooms are not, they're very clean but also very small and too tight for a wheelchair to fit inside. One of the coolest things about Jack Brown's is their Beer Club. If you drink 100 different beers, you become a "Notcher." If you drink 1,000, different beers you become a "Saint." On Saint's Day, Saints get all food and drinks free, unlimited, with no tab. It's a huge part of their culture and adds to the fun, and a loyal community. Overall, the food was phenomenal, the staff went above and beyond, and the atmosphere made the whole visit top notch. I will definitely be coming back the next time I roll through this part of town. How to Become a Notcher (repeat for the Saints) To achieve Notcher status, individuals must follow these steps: 1. Visit a Jack Brown's location: Start by walking into any Jack Brown's Beer & Burger Joint. 2. Request a Notcher list: Ask for the Notcher list to begin your journey. 3. Try 100 different beers: Sample 100 different beers to reach Notcher status. 4. Join the community: Once you hit 100, you become part of the Notch Club, which includes various events and celebrations. This program encourages beer lovers to explore different flavors and styles while fostering a sense of community.

It's always a pleasure to go to this down home country restaurant!!! The service is timely…read moreThe atmosphere is wonderful and the cooking is great!!!

I've been here many times but it's been over 5 years since I did a review. Still great service and…read moregood fresh ingredients. The place is nice inside too. The only thing I don't like about their breakfast is there is no platter that includes gravy you have to pay $3 more for it. The gravy is great and the bacon is cooked perfectly

Tucked away inside the historic city market building the Laughing Bull has a variety of menu…read moreoptions and the staff was friendly and the food came out hot and quick. There are tables inside a spacious hall decorated with greenery and interesting architecture. I'm not sure I ordered the best thing on the menu, the Teriyaki chicken panini was lightly sauced teriyaki chicken and Swiss cheese on thick Texas toast type bread. It could have been better honestly, it had a weak flavor and was pretty messy and hard to eat. The French fries were good, maybe a little overly salted but good. I would give it another try.

In a word, OK. In the Market Building food court in downtown Roanoke, Va. comfortable common-area…read moreseating, staff brought the food to us after ordering at the window. Very nice staff, answered our questions, and were quite friendly. Ordered two gourmet burgers and a 'cheese steak' panini. All three came with fries and were visually appealing. The burgers were stacked, had nice veggies but the meat was rather tasteless, a real disappointment. The panini was inedible. The "steak" was strips of very tough and chewy meat that pulled right out of the bread, and the peppers overrode all other tastes. A real disappointment. The staff came and checked on us twice, very attentive. I would try it again, just to try another of their very creative dishes, but I am not running back. Good for a stop if you are downtown.

After a little over a year of opening its doors in Vinton, Virginia, across the street from the…read moreVinton Library, this hole in the wall, family-owned American restaurant with the name of Absolutely Delicious Bar & Grill, has absolutely delivered some of the best smash burgers, hot dogs, and other delicious freshly made American comfort food in this neighborhood and beyond. After having been selected as number 4 of Yelp's Top 50 most prolific Elites of 2025, a year when I also was awarded the Yelp Triad Squad Photographer of the Year Award at their Yelpies 2025 Award Ceremony, an event that honored the highest-performing Yelp Elites, and where last year I was awarded the Yelp Triad Squad Yelper of the Year Award, I decided that this year, as an All-Star Yelp Elite, I not only wanted to be the first to discover new restaurants and businesses, and bring them to the attention of the public, but also to uncover those found in hidden paths that for one reason or another have not reached the public in its totality. And Absolutely Delicious Bar & Grill, in Vinton, Virginia, is a perfect example. Today I decided to give them a visit for a follow-up review of the first one I wrote when they first opened. The first thing I was happy to see were picnic tables with colorful patio umbrellas placed in the open space yard on the left of the restaurant. It seems like they are gearing up for expansion and many new things to come for the Spring of 2026, after a very successful 2025, for its high-quality food at reasonable prices, in a welcoming and friendly environment, with excellent service. As usual, as soon as I walked in the place, I was received with a heartfelt, open-arm, very warm welcome, and was given the good news that starting on March 16th their hours will be expanded to 10:30AM - 10:00PM Mondays through Thursdays and 10:30AM - 1:00AM Fridays and Saturdays. They told me about all their plans for the Spring of the new year, including the further expansion of their outdoor patio dining area. My server Justin, the son of this family-owned business, took my order and had me seat down at the counter of my choice. I ordered a Coke to drink, forgetting that they also had Cherry Coke, my favorite. To eat I ordered a Jesse Jones Beef All Beef Hotdog with mustard, ketchup, and relish; as well as a Smokehouse Burger, which had a double smash burgers, BBQ sauce, Bacon, Caramelized Onions, Pickles and two cheeses of my choice. I picked American and Swiss cheese as my choice and they customized it to include lettuce, tomatoes, and ketchup. Then I made it a combo with Waffle Fries and a medium Coke. I enjoyed watching the cook make my food in their open kitchen. Wearing special black disposable nitrile gloves, he grabbed a ball of fresh, high-quality ground meat and put it on the grill; then he used a burger smasher to flatten the ball-sized beef patties onto the hot surface of the grill for maximum searing. During the process, he changed his disposal gloves several times to ensure food safety. He also used a basting brush to butter the burger buns before he heated them on the grill. This not only gave the burger a good taste but made it look delicious. I invite you to view my photographs and videos accompanying this review to get a better sense of the place and the quality of their food. When I took a bite of my smash burger, it tasted absolutely mouthwatering, or as the restaurant is called "Absolutely Delicious." The same with the hot dog. Best hot dog around! And the waffle fries were amazing. They were well seasoned and shaken after they came out of the frier; soft in the inside and crispy on the outside. The best waffle fries I've ever had. Even better than the ones from Chick-fil-A! They also had me taste their newly introduced Tater Tots; which are a graded potato formed into small cylinders and deep-fried. Their taste and texture were out-of-this-world! Very soft in the inside and just the right amount of crunchinnes on the outside. For dessert I had a couple of Strawberry Cheesecake Rolls. It reminded me of the fried cheesecake commonly served in Mexican restaurants but these also had strawberry filling. I was so pleased with their food and service that I gave them a good tip and paid at the counter with my Harvard Alumni World Mastercard. I highly recommend this little restaurant and urge you to give them your total support. What you'll get back will be an "absolutely amazing" dining experience like never before.

Absolutely amazing food and welcoming atmosphere!!! Would recommend to anyone for a delicious…read moremeal!! Great service and prices!! 10/10

It's been over a year now and I still remember that bowl of delicious fried Okra I had the first…read moretime I ate here. It was very significant to me because as I was growing up I learned to eat Okra from my grandmother's home cooking. And I can't think of no better way to describe this place as this. After being awarded the Triad Yelper of the Year 2024 Award at the Yelpies Award Ceremony last year, an event that honored the highest-performing Yelp Elites, I decided that it would be appropriate this year to go back to this restaurant and write a follow-up review, since my initial review was one of my reviews that contributed to me obtaining this highly esteemed Award. Pok-E-Joe's has become one of the most loved BBQ restaurants in Vinton, Roanoke, and nearby cities and towns. And key to its success is their quality meats and slow smoking cooking process that lasts for hours, turning their meats into award-wining Southern culinary masterpieces. Today, when I arrived a friendly young lady greeted me at the Host's station and after giving me a warm welcome, and inquiring as to where I wanted to be seated, took me to a comfortable booth next to the window. There I enjoyed looking over the menu with all the unique and delicious Southern BBQ foods such as the Pulled Pork, the USDA Prime Brisket, the Smoked Sliced Turkey, and others. Not long afterwards, my very friendly server, Jessica, came by with a big smile to greet me and take my order. I ordered an Iced Lemonade to drink. And to eat I ordered the Build Your Tray. I first asked for the Brisket Tips, which I had heard so much of, but they didn't have any today. So I picked my meats for the tray 1/4 lb of Pulled Pork and 1/4 lb of USDA Prime Brisket. For my sides I ordered Fried Okra, a Side Salad with Blue Cheese dressing, and Straight Cut Fries. The tray also included 3 Hushpuppies. I also wanted to include in this review their Pok-E-Cuban Sandwich, so I also ordered this with the idea of taking home the leftovers to eat tomorrow. My server Jessica did an excellent job taking my order, seeing that it was delivered, and checking on me at the right times. Everything was to good to the point of being exquisite. The flavor of the meats were out of this world, and they were so tender and juicy. The Salad was made with fresh ingredients and tasted refreshing with the Blue Cheese dressing. The Fried Okra and Hushpuppies were magnificent. And the Fries were the perfect cut and fried to perfection. As to the Pok-E-Cuban Sandwich, it surpassed all the others that I have had, with the slow smoked Ham and Pulled Pork, pickles, Swiss Cheese, and their house-made Spicy Mustard. All this, and at a very reasonable price. The ambiance of the restaurant was clean, warm, and relaxed. And contributed to the amazing diving experience. For dessert I had a Chocolate Chip Cookie Bowl Sundae. It was the dessert of the day and tasted amazing. Even the quality of the Vanilla Ice-cream was tops and creamy. This restaurant is very detail oriented, with fine food, cooked the right way, and provided with excellent customer service. And this makes for an extraordinary dining experience.

My wife and I were visiting Roanoke, and we stopped at Pok-E-Joe's for supper. We were very…read moreimpressed with the ribs, the jalapeño cheddar sausage, the smashed potato with pulled pork, and even the potato salad. Ryan was our server. He was very attentive and friendly. Keep up the great work!!

After being awarded the Triad Yelper of the Year 2024 Award at the Yelpies Award Ceremony last…read moreyear, an event that honored the highest-performing Yelp Elites, I decided that it would be appropriate this year to go back to this restaurant and write a follow-up review, since my initial review was one of my reviews that contributed to me obtaining this highly esteemed Award. Consistency in the dining experience of a restaurant is something very important. It is something that the restaurant has to earn every time a customer enters through its door. As easily as a restaurant can win a customer over, it can also lose him and his loyalty to the restaurant. Sadly, this is what happened to me during this visit. I had missed having lunch, that day, so I arrived at around 4:30pm to have an early dinner. A gentleman greeted me and had me take a seat at a table of my choice. I went and sat at a booth facing the kitchen. I think it was the same place I sat the first time I ate here with a friend. The same gentleman performed as my server. He came by and asked me what I wanted to drink. I asked him if they had any Mocktails. He answered me that Mocktails are not the drinks that people usually drink there, but that he can have them make one for me at the bar. I described the one I would like to have and right after give him my food order. I ordered a Hunter's Burger, with a fried egg, smoked bacon, and American cheese, among other ingredients. And tater tots to accompany it. After putting in my food order he goes to the bar and comes back with my Mocktail, which was extremely acidic, but he had already walked away before I could tell him. So I stirred it hoping that this would fix it. But as the acidic liquid reached my throat it made me caught and gave me an unpleasant sensation. The server brings me the Hunter's Burger, my main course, with the tater tots. The tater tots are not cooked well. When I try to hook one up with my fork, it just splits in half. The Hunter's Burger bun was not big at all, and the patty was extremely small that you could hardly see it without opening the buns up, and that is what I did and discovered that the egg was not fried evenly but the yolk had been broken while being fried and was not soft. I tried to make the best of the situation and ate the burger with a fork. If all this wasn't enough, the server approached me with something in his hand that I think was my bill and asked me if I wanted something else. I told him that I wanted the Fried Oreo Cookies with the Vanilla Ice-cream. He brings me them with so little ice-cream that it had melted in the middle of the Fried Oreo Cookies. What an awful dining experience this has been compared to last time, which I still remember today. And today's experience, I just want to forget. I hope the owner of this restaurant reads this review and takes a look at my photographs that accompany it, and takes action to remedy it so that this doesn't happen again and tarnish the Image of what I once thought was a great restaurant.

Attentive service and pretty good food. Nothing to write home about but I enjoyed the burger and…read morefries. Good spot for some typical American food.

Now a days it's very hard to find a restaurant that's open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and…read morethat's only closed on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. A family-owned restaurant that has been serving locals, travelers, and late-night crowds from its classic 10-stool lunch counter since 1930, and continues to be strictly cash-only. A restaurant that not only has survived, but strived for 96 years, owned by the same local family, and is currently owned by fourth-generation owner Matt Bullington. Who has said that the key to its longevity has been sticking to what has made them successful since they opened. A restaurant that has never been remodeled and whose menu has never been expanded, but that in this lies its real charm. A restaurant that despite economic hardship, tries never to raise prices and remain affordable. A restaurant that many people go to it because of their food, others because of their prices, and others like me this morning, because of the experience to sit at its counter and appreciate its character and charm while enjoying a classic breakfast of three fried eggs over easy with bacon and white toast basted with butter. That restaurant was and continues to be the iconic Texas Tavern, located in the heart of Downtown Roanoke. This morning I drove my pearl white Lexus up to it and parked in front of the sidewalk at the parallel parking with a one-hour limit. There is so much history behind this place that the excitement of the moment made the breakfast experience more momentous. Once inside, a young gentleman who has been working there for over two years now greeted me and immediately made me feel at home. He took my order and almost at the same time started making my toast and frying my eggs. In no time at all I had my order in front of me. I noticed and made him aware that one egg was missing. He made it right by frying me another egg over easy and I didn't mind because of his positive attitude and very unique personality. He also asked me how I'd like my coffee and prepared it just as requested with two creams and three sugars. Every one of the three eggs were perfectly fried over easy and I sprinkled a salt and pepper mixture over them. The bread of the toast was so fresh and tasty braised in butter. I invite you to view my photographs accompanying this review to get a better sense of the place and the high-quality of their food. I'm looking forward to returning one day at lunch time to taste some of their menu items of which they are known for. Starting with their Cheesy Western, the tavern legendary trademark burger served with a fried egg, cheese, pickles, and a sweet-and-tangy homemade cabbage relish. Or maybe a bowl of their secret-recipe chili served with onions. Or their trademark hot dog served Coney Island-style with chili, relish, mustard, and unions. All comfort food that make you feel good and bring a sense of nostalgia, warmth, and satisfaction. I highly recommend this small, historic, eatery for a one-of-a-kind, memorable, dining experience. One that you'll cherish and hold dear forever.

A 24 hour cheap eats spot serving up burgers and dogs under $5. When you ask for a recommendation,…read morethey'll likely say the cheesy western which is a cheeseburger with pickles, onions and cabbage relish. They offer it with bean chili and you can get onions added in. The place is a 10 seat dinner and at roughly 2 am on a Saturday, will have at leave 15-20 people crowded it looking for a post bar meal. They employees were nice and will talk to you about what to get and make recommendations. I will say, this is somewhere I liked trying but may not return.

The mussels carbonara is out of this world! You can't go wrong here! The staff is amazing and…read moreextremely knowledgeable about the menu!

Love this place. Passing through and hungry so we relied on our Yelp app to get us to a great place…read moreto eat. This place did not disappoint. Appetizer of freckles was delicious which is fresh, fried pickles with a delicious homemade sauce. Portions are huge. Our main course was grilled chicken house salads which included perfectly cut vegetables such as heirloom tomatoes. Delicious dressings which seemed to be housemate. Bonus-bathrooms are decorated beautifully and super clean. Highly recommend.

The food is amazing service is always great for a small business the workers are 1st class love…read morethat place...

Great service, food and atmosphere. Live music was awesome too! Our server Abbey was great, so…read morefriendly!