Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Tradition continues at The Roanoker
Larry Bly
Larry Bly has plenty on his plate these days. He's got two TV shows on Cox Cable Roanoke. Click ahead for details and showtimes.
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An old friend used to invite me over for Sunday dinners. Every single time, just before the meal, the most beautiful "homemade" biscuits you could imagine would emerge from the kitchen. Just like grandma used to make!
Turns out, it was Roanoker Restaurant biscuits, secured earlier and transferred to a beat-up baking pan that he'd pull out of the oven with great fanfare. Never-miss biscuits, indeed. I never caught on, but after he fessed up, it just wasn't the same. Why not just to go The Roanoker and get the rest of the meal, too?
Such is the reputation of The Roanoker, even after six decades. When I first moved to the Roanoke Valley in the early '70s, this was one of the first restaurants I was taken to.
But even after five moves and 65 years, The Roanoker remains, still serving great homemade meals for a reasonable price.
In the 1970s, The Roanoker was in its relatively new digs on the lower level of Towers Shopping Center. I don't remember much about it, but I do remember the great home-cooking. And the smallish bar toward the back.
When they built the new Roanoker from the ground up nearby on Colonial Avenue, they increased the size, the number of dining areas, added a private meeting room, and moved the bar even farther back. But you can still order up one of the best martinis you can drink, table side.
I had Sunday breakfast there recently, the first in several years. Not much has changed. You still have to stand in line if you don't go early. And you still pay a modest tab for great home cooking. A lot of the same people were still there -- and the staff doesn't change much, either. Butch Craft was still going from table to table to make sure all was well. The only thing missing were all the old-timers who have since passed.
Yes, there have been rumors after the founding Warren and Craft families stepped aside: one scurrilous tale being that they no longer make their famous biscuits from scratch. At my most recent seating, mine had the same delicious flavor and texture, with lots of flour on the bottom, which is a pretty good sign. I had the sausage gravy -- as still as good as mom used to make.
The eggs were done to perfection. The side dishes, including the ever-popular fried apples, were simply delicious. The portions were enough to feed a farm hand.
The only major change in recent history is that they're closed on Mondays. Imagine wanting a day off from this never-ending feeding frenzy! If no one has starved to death as a result of the decision, some old timers are no doubt starved for company on Mondays.
The menu is a quick study in satisfying the customer without having to gouge them. A seafood platter is still less than 11 bucks. A nice portion of rib eye steak can still be consumed for $12.99. And sandwiches and burgers will set you back no more than $6.
The biscuits, sausage gravy, pies, fresh veggies, meatloaf, mac and cheese (oozing with buttery goodness), and corn sticks are all still made from scratch. So is the turkey and all the trimmings, available most any time. Daily specials usually include a delicious thinly sliced beef in pan gravy.
Who knows what many hundreds of Roanokers would do for Thanksgiving if they didn't have The Roanoker kitchen doing the important work? There are lots of fancy restaurants in Roanoke now. But for plain old good cooking, this is still the place.
There have been some concessions to the new world. Appetizers include chicken quesadillas and mini pizzas. There are a few more broiled items. Salads are more plentiful and a few of them jazzed up to make them exciting. There are "lite" options in the normally heavy breakfast offerings. There's even a taco salad.
But nostalgia never hurts. How long's it been since you've seen a menu with "fresh fruit cup?" These are the throwbacks to our childhoods that bring back memories of simpler times. I don't actually order the fruit cup, but it makes me feel warm and fuzzy just to think of my Aunt Toot's easy answer to something sweet for dinner.
The Roanoker started business on Jefferson Street in downtown Roanoke and there's a photo of the first shop right on its to-go menu. Check out their Web site to see photos taken inside the small building, with the food bar and the beverage bar side by side on one wall and booths to the right.
I recently asked an employee if anyone famous ever ate at The Roanoker. She thought for a bit and finally said, "Well, I think George Jones ate here once but no one remembers much about it -- what he had or anything." Well, maybe he was SUPPOSED to eat there and didn't. They don't call him "No Show Jones" for nothing. Or perhaps the old possum just enjoyed his meal in peace and didn't want a fuss made.
A friend remembered years ago going to The Roanoker after shows and running into Dolly Parton and Porter Waggoner, both appearing together back then on WDBJ-TV. We lost Porter recently, but they say he had a smile on his face when he went, just recalling those delicious Roanoker Restaurant homemade biscuits, no doubt.
The Roanoker Restaurant
2522 Colonial Ave.
Roanoke
(540) 344-772-4834
