dinner at the Fork

A and I have always been fond of eating out, trying hotspots and indulging in fine dining restaurants. I find that there is no shortage of deliciousness to be had in Roanoke.

Don’t get me wrong, Judy and Edsel are the most gracious hosts. They whip up yummy and healthy meals whenever we visit, we don’t even have to eat out. Seriously.

But when they are entertaining us, out-of-towners, we try to dine out to spend time together and give them a break from home-cooking. Time permitting, we also go on outings and explore Roanoke and it’s surrounding areas.

Now that we have Jake, and they have Ava, we switched our dining adventures to the laid-back settings and kid-friendly spots.

Last sunday, we came from Lee-Hi Lanes and our tummies were grumbling.

Judy and Edsel suggested we go to Fork in the Alley Brick Oven Pub.

extensive menu

We were able to beat the dinner rush, and got a spacious corner at the patio. Our table was near the entrance which allowed Jake to play out on the late summer day while waiting for our food. 

The ambiance was very cool. There was ivy on the tree stump and walls, everything looked rustic and eco-friendly.

The restaurant serves American fare with lots and lots of choices. Since we were starved, we started off with the house salad with avocado lime vinaigrette, got a bottle of Reisling, and loaded up on all these carbs!

Fresh Spinach and Portobello Mushroom Alfredo

Baked Jamaican

Pollo Vera Cruz

North Border Burrito

Jake, our food-allergic son, brought his own non-dairy enchilada. He can’t order from the menu except for juices. He was looking forward to a glass of lemonade but they didn’t have it. No big deal. Our server’s attitude made up for everything that was lacking.

For me and A, some important factors to enjoying dining out with Jake is to pick a place, like the Fork, where there is:

- attentive staff who understand that the kids’ patience runs a bit shorter than the adults

- food and drink choices to make both adults and the kids happy — they didn’t have lemonade but it was okay, Jake had brought his own chocolate soy milk in his bag. For the grown-ups, the menu ranges from salad, pizza, pasta, burgers, hotdogs, and they have a full bar on top of all the brews and wine.

- enough room to wiggle and some form of activity for kids — unfortunately, they had space but not crayons for drawing. However, the server got him a pen and paper. That was a big plus.

- as little wait as possible. No lines. I guess if we came later, our experience would be all different. The place got super busy around 6 PM or so. 

Our server got out of her way to make Jake comfortable, and happy. To an allergy mom like myself, that is highly appreciated.

The Buns

Brick Oven S’mores, the only dessert they serve, would have been nice to try except that my little guy would probably be jealous. He understands his food allergies alright, but lately he’s been asking me to make s’mores. He would have been okay if we ordered it, but we didn’t want him to feel left out. So no dessert for all of us that night. 

happy faces after a satisfying meal

The food was good, and service was efficient. We would come back here to try their brick oven pizza, but we have to make sure we bring Jake’s own s’mores, if we want dessert.