The food service is amazing and the food is great. It has a…read morelot of options in regards to foods. Great place to eat. El servicio de comida es increíble y la comida es excelente. Tiene muchas opciones en cuanto a alimentos. Es un gran lugar para comer.

Never in my wildest dreams did I expect to find a Latin American Restaurant and Market this good in…read morethis Star City of Roanoke, Virginia. Yet during the first half of Hispanic Heritage Month this year, I so happened to discover this hidden gem of a restaurant and Roanoke's Best Kept Secret! After being awarded the Triad Yelp Squad Yelper of the Year 2024 Award at the Yelpies Award Ceremony last year, an event that honored the highest-performing Yelp Elites, celebrating their contributions and accomplishments throughout the year, 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 uncover those found in hidden paths that for one reason or another have not reached the public in its totality. And the Super Amanecer Restaurant in Roanoke, Virginia, is a perfect example. It's interesting what led me to this restaurant in the first place. I was talking with a Salvadorian young lady who's very kind and hardworking mother raised 7 children of her own in this country; and she told me that whenever she wants to treat her mother out to eat and asks her where she would like to go, her answer is always: "Al Super Amanecer." Located in Town Square Shopping Mall, a strip mall in Northwest Roanoke, Virginia, featuring a variety of shops, restaurants and other establishments, the Gran Amanecer II Restaurant and Market offers a diverse selection of Latin America comfort foods in a casual and relaxing environment. It has an ample parking lot, where many Hispanics gather in the late afternoon to socialize with their families and friends after work while enjoying some comfort food like pupusas or tamales, or tropical flavor ice-creams in or around their cars. Inside the Restaurant / Market is like another world. They are separated by an entryway and both the restaurant and market have the largest variety of Latin American food than any other place in Roanoke, Virginia. When I entered the restaurant, I was greatly impressed with its cleanliness, simple decor, cozy ambiance, and extensive menu. A friendly young lady greated me at the Host's station and after finding out that I spoke Spanish, asked me where I wanted to sit. I sat at a booth next to the window and then moved to a table because the sun was getting in my eyes. The menu had a great variety of Latin American dishes from places like Mexico, El Salvador, Argentina, and Honduras, among other places. To drink I ordered a Maracuya (Passion Fruit) drink. And as my main entrée I order their Parrillada. I invite you to view my photographs accompanying this review to get a better sense of the place and its food. This dish included chicken, steak, shrimps, 2 chorizos, lime, avocado, roasted jalapeño, rice, refried beans, and pico de gallo. All the meats were quality and cooked to perfection in such a way that it brought out their flavor. For the Grand Finale of this exquisite meal I had Churros with a scoop of ice-cream. They were amazingly delicious though a bit overcooked, thus too crunchy, and lacked the sugar on top, but were decorated so amazingly well, with chocolate and caramel syrup and a cherry, that I enjoyed eating them. Afterwards I went to visit their Supermarket and it too was the greatest thing I've ever seen in Latin American Markets. It had hard to find product at your fingertips, and others you didn't even know they existed. In the back they even had their very own meat department with the meats in the display cases looking tender and fresh In conclusion I highly recommend this restaurant and market for their variety of quality food and products cooked extremely well, and served by friendly staff providing excellent customer service, and an extraordinary dining experience.

This Pancho Mexican Restaurant is located in Vinton, Virginia. It was the second of three to open,…read morethe other two being the first one in Daleville and the third one at Towers Shopping Center in Roanoke, Virginia. They are a family owned local business. Located in the East Vinton Plaza, this casual Mexican Restaurant serves menu items for lunch and dinner and a popular lunch buffet with all-you-can-eat option. A friend of mine invited me last Tuesday to go there for dinner. When we arrived the restaurant was clean with walls nicely painted and and with a few framed paintings on the wall and colorful painted booths with Mexican motifs. The host greeted us with a warm welcome and handed us our menus. The menus were pretty much the same as those of the other two restaurants. Very nicely designed with color pictures of.some of the items on the menu. You can tell that this was a very popular restaurant in the neighborhood because in the time we were there many other customers came in and were seated. Our server welcomed us with a smile and took our order. To drink we just had iced water. As our main course my friend had the Guadalajara Especial and I had the Flautas, from the Mixed Specialties area of the menu. As we waited we enjoyed some wonderful fresh tortilla Chips with an amazing salsa. When the main courses were ready our server brought them to us. They tasted as good as they looked. Our server came by our table at reasonable times to check on us and see if we needed anything such as a refill of our water. Considering the Cleanliness of the restaurant, the nice variety of items on the menu, the quality of the chips and salsa, the big portions of food cooked to perfection and very tasty, and of course the excitement customers service provided by all servers, I highly recommend this restaurant as one of the better Mexican restaurants in the area.

We ate lunch here yesterday and had the buffet. The food was so salty that it was uncomfortable to…read moreeat. It was almost like a disgruntled employee or some kid was messing with the food it was so awful. I told our server and he just acted like it was no big deal. I realize he had nothing to do with it but I asked him to pass along the message to the kitchen staff. With the number of good Mexican restaurants in town I will never eat here again and do not recommend it for you!

I have been eating here for years and tonight will be the last. The food is still good but the…read moreservice is terrible! Two weeks ago we came and ate and never got waited on the same thing tonight you get your food. You're never ask if you want to refill a box or even if you need your check, we stood up at the front several minutes before someone finally come to ask us what we needed. We then paid the bill after letting another couple go in front of us that have received their check the waitresses sit at a back table on the computer or on their phone.. I hope the manager will see this and the service will get better. I let the woman that checked us out know of our concerns.

No trip to Smith Mountain Lake is complete without a dinner at El Toreno Mexican restaurant. SO…read moreGOOD! The food was amazing as usual! And I think I had the best margarita of my life. Thank you staff at El Toreno! See you next year.

I found myself in Roanoke, VA for Cinco de Mayo, and found this joint somewhat close to my hotel…read more(Springhill Suites which was awesome). I pulled up and I'm 99 percent sure this used to be a Pizza Hut. The 1% skeptic in me didn't see a table top Pac Man machine, so I could have been wrong. Back to the Mexican cuisine, I kept it simple with tacos, and loved that I could order 3 different tacos. I went with the Al Pastor (good), Chicken (great), and Steak (dry and meh) tacos and was in and out pretty quickly. It was already later in the evening so it wasn't too crowded. I'd probably hit something else in Roanoke if I was here, but it wasn't bad for what I was looking for on May 5th!

I can't believe this place isn't more popular…read more Went here for my birthday and everything was SO fresh and delicious. It was a Friday night at 5:30 and no one was eating in the restaurant! This is a SHAME as this place should be hopping! We will definitely be back! Yum yum!!!

The other day when I happened to be in downtown Roanoke, I decided to dine at the Inka Grill as a…read morefollow-up to my first visit. I love the decor of this restaurant. It's more modern and elegant than that of their first restaurant on Brambleton Ave. Although the service there is superb. When I arrived a young lady greeted me, took me to my table, gave me the menu and asked what I wanted to drink. After consulting with her on what they had, I asked for a mango drink. It was mighty good, like a mango juice served in a tall glass. For appetizer I order an Avocado Salad with Sea Salt. It was just slices of an avocado with salt on the side. It would have been better with some oil and vinegar as well. For ma main entrée I order.one of my favorites on their menu the Bistec a lo Pobre. This is basically a steak with a special rice, a fried egg, and fried ripe plantain. Inside of the special rice I asked for white rice and black beans. My server goes to the kitchen to see if this was possible, but comes back saying it would be a $2.95 extra to include the black beans. I told her to go ahead. When the food comes out she puts it on the table and leaves. I thought she went to get the black beans but they never arrive. The food looks great but when I cut the steak it was well done and I asked for medium rare. When she goes to bring something to another table I called her and tell her about the steak and the black beans that was missing. She offers to make me another steak but the piece of meat tooked so well and I was so hungry that I decided to eat it like that. She repeated that the black beans would be an extra charge. I told her I didn't mind. She finally brings me the black beans. The beans themselves were a bit hard and not as tasty. The ones I had at Panera Bread the other day were 100% better, but I pour them on top of the rice and eat them like this. For dessert I ordered a Passion Fruit Mousse. It was good but a bit dry and lacked sugar. I still enjoyed my meal but can't understand why they always overcook the steak when medium rare taste so much better. When I order it for delivery via Door Dash, most of the time it arrives well done as well. I still love the Peruvian cuisine of this restaurant, they should just train the new servers better so they can better communicate with the customers and chef. And I think the manager should have come out to at least apologize for the confusion. For this reason this time I'm only given them 4 stars.

While in downtown Roanoke, we decided to try this. The seating was immediate and we quickly…read morereceived our drinks and a small dish of cancha (fried corn) and Peruvian green sauce. We ordered the whole chicken with yucca and plantains and a side of black beans. The food was good and price was reasonable. With all of the choices in downtown, not sure I would make a special trip to eat there again. But if downtown and want to try a Peruvian meal, it is worth a visit. As I was reading the other reviews it reminded me that we, also, had to ask for the black beans after the rest of our food was brought to the table. They were good, nothing special.

I LOVED BROOD. The chique bar area was our first nights dinner. The bartenders was FANTASTIC. His…read moreknowledge of cocktails and the menu made it a true experience. The food was well made and tasted like home. Rich, delicious, and unique. Highly Recommend

Sometimes in the smallest of places one finds the most exquisite food and the most precious of…read moredining experiences. After having been selected as number 4 of Yelp's Top 50 most prolific Elites of 2025, a year when I was also 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 Brood Restaurant and Bar in the heart of Salem, Virginia is a perfect example. Hidden in a small but cozy spot with a small but beautiful bar of only a few chairs, off East Main Street in Salem, Virginia, is one of my favorites fine dining restaurants: Brood Restaurant & Bar. The name means: "the children of a family," or "the chicks of a hen." It is meant to describe a warm place where people gather and feel just like in the best of homes: safe, cared for with unconditional love, and well fed with food that is made from the heart. A simple wood framed glass door with the restaurant's name written on it in capital letters with a classical font, is all one sees from the outside. But once you open the door and enter you encounter a space with lots of character coming from an exposed red brick wall and lovely dark wood hardwood floors. The furniture is elegant but comfortable. And the people treat you like if you were right at home; practically one of the family. On this occasion I arrived 15 minutes early to my five o'clock reservation time, yet I was greeted and received with open arms by a hospitable gentleman who seemed to be the bartender but with the distinction of the manager of the place. I was taken to my table in a perfect location in the wall facing the middle of the restaurant. The bartender prepared me a Guason Mocktail that all I can say is that it tasted devine. To dine I ordered their Sea Scallops appetizer with a roasted garlic emulsion and a bacon and fried onion crumb. Followed by an Arugula Salad. And the main entrée being the Steak and Frites. Everything was amazingly delicious and served in the appropriate timing. The scallops tasted out of this world in its unique sauce. The salad was wonderful. And the steak, an 8oz CAB Manhattan cut New York Strip cooked medium-rare and served with vaudouvan compound butter was one of the tastiest steaks of this nature that I have ever had, along with some fries with a cut that brought out the best of them. My server and bartender visited my table at the right times to see that everything was to my satisfaction and see if I needed anything and when he was busy made sure to send one of the other servers who all worked very efficiently as a team. Even at the end of my meal when the restaurant was almost completely full. For dessert which I consider the "Grand Finale" of a great meal, I had their Belgian Waffle Bread Pudding. It was amazing. I invite you to view my photographs accompanying this review to get a better sense of the place and the high-quality food. Needless to say I highly recommend this restaurant which has become one of my favorites for its delightful ambiance, exquisite food, and excellent customer service, together leading towards an extraordinary dining experience.

Really good food, reasonable prices, great service. We boated up and docked for free by Mangos…read more Loved my margarita. Arroz de la Mexican was the favorite dish at our table.

Excellente!!! Had the burritos alpastor, hubby had the carnitas dinner. We shared chorizo fries…read more Everything was delicious. The coups de gras... was the jumbo watermelon margarita. Omg... made with fresh fruit, tasty tequila... I've never needed help finishing off a margarita... mi sombrero is off to Cancun... well done... well done indeed.

My kids loved the nachos supreme and the enchiladas supreme. The food was great. I had the ACP,…read morethey gave me way too much chicken. The service was great!! They were friendly and sang happy birthday song and fed them cake to some of the customers. The restaurant ambiance was clean and very decorative.

Ok, this is the best Mexican restaurant I've tried! I'm cautious w them as I've felt portions were…read moresmall and options are generally an enchilada or taco something and lots of soupy bean "sauce." New to the area, we went for dinner. It was busy, but we were instantly seated. The vibe was fun, with many families and groups present. The menu is comprehensive with many options. I ordered a Choose Three Combo of chili relleno, enchilada, and chimichanga. She had the Choose Two and had two chili relleno. After munching the standard tortilla chips and very hot thin sauce, our orders came quickly. The entree plates were huge, food was very hot (temperature) and included rice and beans. So here's where I became a convert... helpings were huge, and very yummy! The menu huge with variety! We both gobbled down our dinners, and brought home boxes! The chili relleno are the best we'd ever tasted. My enchilada and chimichanga delicious! I'm definitely humbled by the quality, the portions, the service, and overall experience with this Mexican restaurant! I'll be back...