Alexander's is located in the heart of downtown Roanoke. For my purposes I could not have asked…read morefor a better location. I had inquired with the restaurant a month or so in advance of my visit (I was concerned about the dress code) and they were spot on. I wore jeans and a buton down and was quite comfortable (and not out of place). It's a very nice restaurant, but it's certainly not "stuffy." Service was excellent. Food was phenomenal. Dinner started with some nice bread (and really good butter), and a salad came with my lamb ragu. It was all really good. The lamb was super rich and very flavorful. My only suggestion would be to serve the ragu over the polenta, and to add more vegetables. As it was, the dinner was "just enough;" I wasn't stuffed but I wasn's hungry, either. Really good dinner!

There are times when one encounters very special restaurants that can only be described as…read more"priceless." And every time one returns to dine there, it only serves to reinforce the perfect attachment that one has acquired from the very first time they dined there and had the pleasure of enjoying an extraordinary fine dining experience. 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 bring them to the attention of the public, but also to return to those special ones, that have made a difference in my life and highlight them, for the benefit of the public, so they too can have an opportunity to appreciate the qualities of a one-of-a-kind fine dining experience. And Alexander's, in the heart of Downtown Roanoke, is a perfect example. From the moment I arrived and walked through their door, I was greeted in such a way, by none other than Bjorn, the Dining Room Manager himself, that made me feel appreciated and immediately made me feel at home. Neither the coldness of the weather nor the accumulated snow could hinder me from my decision to dine here this evening. I was the first one to arrive after they opened their doors. Since the streets were still icy and filled with snow, I left my Lexus at home and took a Lyft to the restaurant, which was not far from my neighborhood, the Historic Old Southwest. Since it was a slow night due to the weather, the Dining Room Manager himself doubled as my server for the evening. To drink, we discussed my flavor liking for a Mocktail, and he came up with a special one, that ended up tasting amazing. To dine, I started with the Deconstructed cajunese california roll appetizer. It was amazingly delicious! Then I had a Salad vinaigrette, which was included with every entrée, and a French Baguette with a cube of butter. The baguette slices with butter were so fresh, soft in the inside and crispy on the outside, that they confirmed my view that the quality of a restaurant's bread and butter is a reflection of the quality of the restaurant and its cuisine. I invite you to view my photographs accompanying this review to get a better sense of the place and the quality of their food. As my main entrée, I had the Grilled filet of beef, sauce marchand de vin, cooked medium-rare. The filet was cooked to perfection, just as ordered, so tender, juicy, and flavorful. It was a culinary masterpiece from Chef and General Manager, Boni M. Webb, who graciously came out to greet me, and gave me an opportunity to personally celebrate her magnificent cuisine. She reminded me of my Japanese student who obtained the best grade in my Business class at the university where I taught. She was very humble and kind. As the Grand Finale dessert, on the advice of my server and general manager, I ordered their Glace au chocolat. It was wonderful. What an outstanding dining experience I once again had in this outstanding restaurant with a unique combination of exceptional food, atmosphere, and heartfelt service. I highly recommend it, and can't wait to return.

Recently visited the Christiansburg, Va First Watch restaurant location. I was in town visiting my…read morecollege student. Before we entered the restaurant there was a sign on the door which read one of their grills were down and a list of items were not available. The sign was very confusing b/c there were items marked out so we weren't sure if that meant they were available or not. So we took our chances. We were immediately sat and drink orders taken. Received our drinks very quickly and we asked to order the Trifecta I believe it's what is called with French toast. The waitress said they didn't have French Toast due to the grill being out of order. Our little hearts were broken b/c they have the best French toast in town. I am leaving a 4 star review not because we didn't get french toast but because the 8.5x11 white sheet of paper on the front of their door was confusing to read and you couldn't tell what was available and what wasn't. Next time I am in town visiting my student we will definitely return and try again.

Second time visiting, first time wasn't great so I'm glad I tried again before leaving a review…read more First time our food was cold/greasy, could have been the time of day/cooks, but this most recent was redeemed by the food and service. This time we sat outside since the weather was beautiful and arrive was quick. For the smoked ham & Gruyère sandwich and the tradition breakfast. Just the right amount of food and a healthy alternative to other options in the area. For the price, the quality is worth the money. Definitely going back!

Based on noticeably high prices we went expecting a high end dining experience and got just the…read moreopposite! The server was friendly and helpful but that is the only positive comment. 1. The Caesar Salad was really small, over-dressed and croutons, dry, hard and not bite-sized. 2. Fried Oysters were greasy, tasteless, overpriced, mostly breading, overly watery. Not an appropriate way to prepare Oysters. 3. The deep-fried Grits were breaded with Panco, not the right product as they are grease sponges and the Grits were mushy, too few and came with no dipping sauce. 4. The Tuna Tacos were the best item but only average at best. Very little tuna tartar and not chopped, not much flavor, served over tiny, raw, corn tortillas that should have been buttered and crisped in a pan. 5. The live Jazz with Lenny Marcus was great but the PA system was poor and one could not understand the vocals. 6. Seated right under a ceiling fan on high and AC set low and was quite uncomfortable.

Roanoke's Historic Grandin Village has many restaurants of all sizes and types but one that stands…read moreout is Rockfish Food & Wine. Founded in 2005 by Olivia and Rocky Byrd, this family-owned and operated fine-dining restaurant was established to bring a high-end yet relaxed seafood and wine dining experience to this area. It offers a seasonal menu and an extensive wine list of over 270 selections. After being ranked 4th among Yelp's Top 50 Most Prolific Elites of 2025, a distinction recognizing my consistent community engagement and high-quality contributions, I decided that this year, as an All-Star Yelp Elite, I not only wanted to be the first to discover new restaurants, businesses, and establishments, and bring them to the attention of the public, but also to go back and write follow-up reviews on those places that impressed me the most during 2025, and Rockfish Food & Wine located in the heart of Grandin Village, one of the most desirable neighborhoods in Roanoke, Virginia, is the perfect example of one of them. After making a 5 o'clock reservation on the Toast platform from the restaurant's website, I did some errands and then proceeded to drive to the restaurant located at 1402 Grandin Road. (This is considered the Main Street of this neighborhood) The restaurant's building is located next to a small 7-Eleven, and doesn't have parking, but I found plenty of on-street parking spaces good for an hour or in some cases two, and free after 5 o'clock. I picked one of them and parked my pearl white Lexus there. When I entered the restaurant, a young, elegant lady greeted and welcomed me behind the Host's station. Soon after she took me to the requested booth, I found out her name was Kayla and she would be my server. While I was reviewing the menu, she brought me a carafe of cold water with a glass, and a small dish with slices of a baguette and butter. She then took my order. To drink, besides the water, I ordered a Strawberry Fields Mocktail. It had just the right taste and was brought to my table by the bartender herself. To dine I started off with a Crispy Oysters appetizer which was delicious. Followed by a Dinner Mixed Green Salad, which was one of the most delicious salads I've ever had at a restaurant. It had many ingredients and tasted amazingly delicious. For my main entrée I had their Ribeye Filet Au Poivre median rare. It came served with roasted mushrooms, green beans, and cheesy mashed potatoes, and was cooked medium-rare just as I ordered it. I invite you to view my photographs accompanying this review to get a better sense of the place and the high-quality food. My server provided exceptional customer service, filling my glass with water, and pointing me out the restaurant's owner who was an elegantly dressed, distinguish looking lady with lots of charm and a great personality, who had moved here with her husband and co-owner from California's central coast with a vision of creating a fine-dining restaurant which they felt the local area needed. I also found out through my server that every Thursday the restaurant had live Jazz music to a full house audience, and I would need to make reservations early. Seated at the table next to mine were a distinguished looking couple which I established conversation with and found out that the lady was Dr. Laura Treanor, the fifth president of Virginia Western Community College, who began her term on July 1, 2025. She had succeeded Dr. Robert "Bobby" Sandel, who retired after over two decades of service, and is leading the college with a focus on institutional effectiveness, instructional quality, and student success. For dessert I had their Vanilla Cheesecake with mixed berry sauce, which had missing the fresh berries described on the menu. I had just had such an extraordinary dining experience that I didn't even mention it. Before leaving and after paying the bill with my Harvard Alumni World Mastercard, I had the opportunity of meeting the founder and co-owner of the restaurant, Olivia, and thanking her and her husband for such a wonderful dining experience I had today and always whenever I dine there.

The food was top-notch, my husband was a huge fan of the Key Lime Pie. I had a burger that was…read morecooked to perfection and his Gyro was very tasty as well. We will definitely be going back!

Do you like paprika? Like, so much of it you could accidentally inhale it and choke to death? Do…read moreyou also hate salt? You'll love their buffalo chips. Also, secret menu hack: if you want a thin crispy hamburger patty, order the steakhouse burger. Somehow my smash burger was an inch thick. It seems counterintuitive, but apparently that's how they do things. Maybe they call it that so you'll smash your expectations. Either way, your burger will be over cooked. Unavoidable, I guess. The drinks were good, as was the ahi tuna appetizer. I'll also give credit to the server for sensing I was not happy and asking me if the food was okay. The front of house staff is the best thing about this place.

So it was a very nice Sunday morning in Roanoke. Nice fall type weather and four big hungry dudes…read more One of us had seen some good reviews for Hatch. We were going to be ready at about ten o'clock and they opened at ten o'clock. We were worried there might be a line but happened to be the first table. They sat us in a nice both and the room was well lit. Music was kind of all over the place. Our waitress was Aubrey and she rocked. She answered our menu questions. She kept our drinks full and we all ate until we were full. The food was good not great. We got a big breakfast platter. All four of us. It was a lot of food. The waffle was really good. The eggs were bland but Texas Pete helped that. The potatoes were dry, Pete from Texas helped that too. They had a chicken on a gravy biscuit. The chicken was good but not nearly enough gravy. The Busch it was dry and crumbled and was disappointing.

I stopped in for lunch while I was in town for training and had high hopes based on the menu. I…read moreordered the fried green tomatoes and the creamy salmon with mashed sweet potatoes and hush puppies. Unfortunately, the food was disappointing. The fried green tomatoes and hush puppies were overcooked to the point that they were barely edible. While the salmon had a nice flavor, it was also overcooked. The mashed sweet potatoes had powdered sugar added, which made them much sweeter than expected and overpowered the natural flavor. The bright spot of the experience was the service. The servers were incredibly sweet, attentive, and made sure I had everything I needed. I truly appreciated their hospitality. I hope the kitchen can improve its consistency because the staff certainly deserves better food to serve.

Food was amazing. Service was excellent, thank Matt…read more We had a great experience. Seafood, pasta and Veal dinners were cooked perfectly.

Let's start with the previous reviews... they are pretty much on point. Graduation week at VA Tech…read moregives these businesses the upper hand. It doesn't matter that customers have made reservations months in advance. It doesn't matter that when the owner calls to confirm your reservations and you request indoor seating. What matters is they want you to eat there despite what you've requested. Our group sat outside on the semi covered outdoor porch. Nearby other customers were VERY unhappy that they had been given outdoor seating despite previous requests to sit indoors. Most of these customers left. We stayed because we wanted a decent meal and we wanted to celebrate. Service was spotty. It took nearly 10 minutes for a server to come outside and offer to take our drink orders or even pour us water. Yes, we were parched while sitting outdoors in 55 degree windy weather. The owner of the restaurant walked past us several times to count the vacant outdoor seats. She never acknowledged us and only looked at us after we called out to her. She was RUDE to say the least. Our server was friendly and apologetic, not sure why he didn't come out to acknowledge our group of 7 diners. The food: yes, other yelpers had concluded that the bread seemed very similar to Mrs. Schubert roll. If you know them you know. The other shocking revelation was when they called to confirm our reservation, they informed us that they were only serving the prix fixed meal of $69. Most of us ordered the "hand cut 8 oz filet", served with over cooked green beans. The salads(most of us got Caesar), was not a hand tossed dressing, not quite sure what the dressing was made of and the cheese seemed like a bagged shredded parm. We were so cold that we ordered our desserts(included) to go. Eating in the warmth of our cozy hotel dining lobby was our goal. The desserts were not anything special. The key lime pie was a disaster(crumbled and squishy), the rest of them not worth noting. Finally worth noting is their "wine", a semi inexpensive bottle of wine was out of stock so instead of coming to let us know, they brought out a cheaper local Virginia wine. Disappointing. Stay away if you are in doubt.

Friendly, what a cool spot to hang, and basil cheesy bread was outstanding? Ryan at the bar should…read morebe a concierge for Roanoke, he pointed out things to see and do during our visit and they were spot on.

We were seated outside. We sat there for twenty minutes and were never acknowledged by a server.read more

Literally the best meal I had in Blacksburg and nothing else in town came close to it! Service was…read moreawesome also as the waiter was very informative and helped guide us through the menu. Amongst three people, we got the 9pcs assorted premium appetizer, tour family platter with 12 oz ribeye, and the moqueca to share. It was honestly plenty of food to go around and everything was so delicious. I was pleasantly surprised by how juicy both the pork chop and grilled chicken were (they're both not usually my proteins of choice). Nevertheless, the best protein was undoubtedly the ribeye, followed by the picanha. The polenta squares from the appetizer sampler were so amazing and I wish we had ordered more of that! We got 3 different types of sauces (chimichurri, garlic mayo, and a guava-based one)-- our favorite was the chimichurri. Highly recommend to stop by this place for dinner! I also had their passion caiprinha and it was awesome too!

Very good food- steak was great. This restaurant is expensive though- it deserves $$$ or $$$$!read more