Restaurant owners across Roanoke are keeping a close eye on their businesses following a 1% increase in the meals tax that took effect on July 1, pushing the total rate to 6.5%.

A new meals tax hike is leaving a bad taste in the mouths of Roanoke restaurant owners. This week, the City Council approved an increase in the meals tax from 5.5% to 6.5%. Now, some local business owners say the city is taking too big of a bite out of their profits.

Roanoke City Council is voting today on its proposed budget of more than $403 million in general funds that could impact schools, public safety, and the meals tax.

Roanoke City is proposing increasing its meals tax by 1.5%, which could increase the cost of eating out.

After the holidays, many people take on New Year’s resolutions like spending less or drinking less—enter Dry January. But what does this growing trend mean for bars and restaurants? For many, January is already a slow time of year, but the growing trend of Dry January adds even more pressure.

Local bands unite to support hurricane relief

After months of preparation and planning, Downtown Roanoke businesses are ready to welcome the crowds on St. Patrick's Day.

Thousands of people will be hitting the streets of downtown Roanoke to celebrate the start of 2024.

Downtown Roanoke ready for New Year's Eve Celebrations

Jason Martin has spent more than two years trying to get Gov. Bill Lee’s attention in Tennessee.

A Nashville doctor critical of Republican Gov. Bill Lee's hands-off approach to the COVID-19 pandemic has won the Democratic nomination for governor.

A pandemic later and after three years of anticipation, Mother Nature had her own plans for the City of Roanoke’s Shamrock Festival.

As the holiday weekend kicks off, some industries are anticipating an increase in sales and customers, whereas some bars and restaurants in Roanoke actually plan on being closed on the Fourth of July.

Jonah Heim and Nate Lowe had two-run homers among their three hits apiece, Kolby Allard pitched five scoreless innings of five-hit ball and the Texas Rangers emphatically snapped their 16-game road losing streak with a 12-1 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers.

ROANOKE, Va. – Roanoke was not able to host its trademark St. Patrick’s Day Parade for the second straight year, but a crowd still came downtown to celebrate the occasion on Saturday. Many people who came out said they’re celebrating not just St. Patrick’s Day, but the optimism of declining COVID-19 cases and loosened restrictions. He came downtown because he’s grateful to live another day after his battle. “When you’re in a hospital and you’re on oxygen, you may or may not come out,” Seligman said. Martin’s owner Jason Martin said the day gives him hope that the parade and normal celebrations can return in 2022.

ROANOKE, Va. – Streets usually filled with a sea of green will be relatively empty this weekend. Downtown Roanoke canceled its St. Patrick’s Day parade and Shamrock Festival, but restaurants are still open for business. Bryan Summerson from Big Lick Brewing Company said they’re not officially celebrating St. Paddy’s Day until Wednesday. “We really want to actively discourage any major social gatherings around St. Patrick’s Day. Roanoke native Cricket Price, who just got vaccinated, said she is laying low this year.

ROANOKE, Va. – Once again, due to the coronavirus, Roanoke has canceled its St. Patrick’s Day festivities. “It’s by far our busiest day of the year, I mean hands down,” said Jason Martin, the owner of Martin’s Downtown. Downtown Roanoke Inc. announced Monday that it’s canceling the city’s annual parade and Shamrock Festival, citing current restrictions. Business owners will be thankful for any kind of boost right now, but even more thankful when things return to normal. “I think our goal is to weather the storm,” Broyles said.

ROANOKE, VA. – With the state cutting off alcohol sales at 10 p.m. and closing restaurants by midnight, a night of partying on New Year’s Eve just isn’t possible. At Martin’s in downtown Roanoke, owner Jason Martin said it’s just another Thursday. “With having to close at 10, there’s no champagne toast, there’s no band ringing in the new year, there’s no Times Square on the TVs. JD Sutphin owns Big Lick Entertainment and hosts the annual Big Lick Countdown. The event brings people in from as far as Pennsylvania and Ohio, all spending money in the area.

ROANOKE, Va. – New COVID-19 restrictions are now in effect across Virginia, limiting what people can do as we head into the holidays. After starting to build back a little normalcy over the last couple of months, new restrictions are bringing new challenges for the hotel. “Now it’s really back to really quiet,” Wells said. “It’s going to cost us tens of thousands of dollars a week,” Martin said. “It’s been painful to do, but at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how much we try to enforce stuff to keep people distanced and safe, it doesn’t seem to matter,” Martin said.

ROANOKE, Va. – In a year full of fright, Halloween is presenting a new predicament: to party during a pandemic or not. “The big event just felt too big for right now and the right thing, it just felt like the right thing to do was just kind of pull back,” Martin said. “We wrestled with it and knock on wood, everything up-to-date has been pretty successful,” said Bryan Summerson, president of Big Lick Brewing Company. Big Lick Brewing Company is still celebrating Halloween thanks to outdoor space and guidelines they’ve been enforcing for months. Big Lick Entertainment in conjunction with the Berglund Center is also implementing strict policies to keep its outdoor celebration safe.

Restaurants across the commonwealth are preparing for a sight they haven’t seen in months: customers dining inside. Under Phase One guidelines, they’ve been limited to outdoor seating at half capacity. Martin’s was able to add temporary outdoor seating to get by, but the once-bustling restaurant has been empty inside for months now. Outdoor seating at Martin’s only runs through Sunday. Starting Friday, Tuco’s will expand its outdoor seating, adding more tables in the parking lot.

ROANOKE, Va. – Hundreds of events across Virginia and the nation have been canceled due to the coronavirus crisis, but restaurants in downtown Roanoke still went on with their St. Patrick’s Day plans. Two restaurants held large celebrations on Saturday, despite the cancellation of Roanoke’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade scheduled for the same day. In text messages to 10 News, owner Jason Martin said St. Patrick’s Day is the busiest and most important day for the restaurant. He said attendance dipped by 25 percent due to the coronavirus crisis and the cancelled parade. Corned Beef and Company also held an outdoor event on the stretch of Jefferson Street outside of its restaurant.