New eateries launch in Roanoke despite US consumer lag
ROANOKE, Va. (WFXR) — Six and Sky, the long-anticipated rooftop restaurant at the top of the Center in the Square, opened its doors Tuesday.
With panoramic views of Downtown Roanoke and towers of fresh seafood, the new grill built a buzz well before its Spring launch.
It’s not the only business taking off despite consumers holding back on spending.
“A lot of people are feeling a squeeze with interest rates and inflation so we’re finding that people are not eating out at restaurants as much,” says Dr. Nancy Hubbard. “You may be able to have a wow factor or an interest factor to get people in the door.”
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“I think the view speaks for itself,” said Jo Jo Soprano, co-owner of Six and Sky and part of the Parry Group, who own over a dozen restaurants in western Virginia. “We get our seafood in fresh daily. We’ve got towers of seafood which include lobster tails, we’ve got clams on the half-shell, oysters on the half-shell, tuna tartar. We’re really putting a good focus on that seafood. We want you to feel like you’re at the beach eating but yet you’ve got this beautiful atmosphere here in Downtown Roanoke.”
Meanwhile, Markus Ballengee started Surreala Coffee on Franklin Road in February.
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“We originally bought 65 pounds to open the shop and we had some in storage just in case and we completely went through that in a way shorter time than expected,” he said.
He says he’s tackling the current economic situation by adapting his coffee truck to his customers. So far, that’s meant changing hours to suit coffee drinkers’ needs and making speed a priority.
He’s also locking into the local network.
“We’re close to a thousand followers on Instagram and we just started up three weeks ago, so that’s amazing,” he said. “We’ve had some other local businesses repost us and we’re trying to be interactive with the community and other small businesses as much as we can.”
Ballengee says he’s even looking to bring more food trucks into his lot to share the space with other businesses.
TGI Fridays permanently closes its doors in Roanoke
It’s not just new businesses making moves. Lynchburg favorite El Jéfe Taqueria announced they were closing Tuesday, but promised to return with an “exciting new concept.” They posted the notice to Facebook:
“Dear Lynchburg family,
We want to extend our heartfelt thanks for your support over the past decade. It has been a privilege to share our journey with you!
We are closing our doors at the end of business tonight to make way for an exciting new concept that we can’t wait to share.
Thank you once again for your support and understanding during this transition period.
– El Jefe Management“
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