6 Virginia Restaurants That Closed and Are Still Missed

A Virginia newsroom asked its readers a simple question: Which closed restaurants do you miss?

The comments filled up fast, and the answers say a lot about what a restaurant can mean to a town.

Here are the places that stuck with readers, along with a couple of comebacks.

1. K&W Cafeterias

K&W Cafeterias closed its Roanoke location on December 1, 2025, along with every other location the chain had left.

WSLS, a Roanoke TV station, reported that the company announced on Facebook that it was closing immediately after more than 88 years in business.

K&W began in North Carolina in 1937.

At its peak, you could have eaten at one of 35 locations across the Southeast, including Virginia.

By the end of 2024, it was down to 10.

Then the last doors closed.

Cardinal News wrote in January 2026 that the closing of the Roanoke cafeteria had set off a nostalgia wave.

The company’s farewell post described K&W as a gathering place and a home for Sunday traditions.

If K&W was your Sunday stop, that line described you.

2. Country Cookin’

Country Cookin’ was a comfort-food restaurant chain founded in 1981, WSLS reported.

It once had 13 locations, most of them along the Interstate 81 corridor.

Its Melrose Avenue location in Roanoke had already closed in September 2020.

The coronavirus pandemic forced a two-month shutdown and layoffs for the majority of its more than 400 employees.

The company announced the closing on Friday, October 16, 2020.

Only five Country Cookin’ restaurants were still open when the chain closed all of them on Sunday, October 18, 2020.

That gave customers two days.

If you’re wondering where the last five stood, they were Christiansburg, Culpeper, Lexington, Staunton, and Troutville.

Six people commented about the chain on Cardinal News’ Facebook post.

One reader credited the chain’s chopped steak and its reasonable prices.

Did the chopped steak win you over too?

3. Mrs. Rowe’s Family Restaurant

The Augusta Free Press credited Mildred Rowe, known as the pie lady, with establishing the Staunton restaurant Mrs. Rowe’s.

After 78 years in business, the restaurant closed for good.

That was Christmas Eve 2025.

The restaurant had been listed for sale for quite some time without a buyer.

Mildred Rowe was also the subject of a 2009 book by local author Mollie Ann Cox.

If you’re picturing the menu, WDBJ named lemon meringue pie, peanut butter pie, corned beef hash, and buttermilk biscuits.

The address was 74 Rowe Road in Staunton.

4. Bill's Barbecue

How did the Bill's Barbecue restaurant chain come to an end?

WTVR, a Richmond TV station, reported that the chain began in Norfolk in 1930.

Five restaurants closed in April 2012 to try to save the company.

Richmond station NBC12 named the closed shops: Regency Square, North Fourth Street, Midlothian Turnpike, Hull Street Road, and Broad Street Road in Manakin-Sabot.

The three that stayed open were the main shops, on Myers Street, West Broad near Libbie Avenue, and North Boulevard by The Diamond.

Not for long.

The final three Richmond locations closed in September 2012, after more than 80 years in business.

WTVR reported that increased competition, a dwindling customer base, and rising costs led the company's president to make that call.

At its height, you could have eaten at Bill's Barbecue in 13 locations.

Bill's now sits alongside Circuit City, Thalheimers, and Miller and Rhoads as Richmond names that have disappeared.

If you grew up in Richmond, some of those names may be on your list.

5. The Roanoker

The Roanoker Restaurant in Roanoke opened in 1941 and closed at the end of the day on Sunday, May 29, 2022.

That was 81 years.

Butch Craft worked at The Roanoker Restaurant for 52 years and owned it for 20 of its 81 years, Cardinal News reported.

Craft said retirement wasn't the only factor in the decision.

If you want to cook from The Roanoker's kitchen, Craft co-authored 81 Years of Food and Family, which has multiple recipes from those decades.

WSLS described The Roanoker as adored by many since 1941.

6. Pete's Deli

WDBJ reported that Pete's Deli, a Roanoke restaurant, served the city for 60 years, from 1965 to 2025.

A notice on the door explained the closing.

The family-owned deli said it had spent the past year on a month-to-month lease and was told another business would take over the space.

Cardinal News placed Pete's in Towne Square Shopping Center and said the landlord ended its month-to-month lease.

One reader's go-to at Pete's was the turkey pita.

Was that your order?

Saturday night, March 29, 2025, was your final chance to eat at Pete's Deli.

The Cardinal News Reader Roundup

Cardinal News counted 187 comments when Facebook users who follow the newsroom responded to its post by listing their favorite now-closed restaurants.

Reporter Tad Dickens wrote on January 2, 2026, that news of the K&W Cafeterias and Mrs. Rowe's closings had set off a nostalgia wave that extended to other local and regional favorites.

The Roanoker drew the most comments on the Facebook post behind it, with 23, and Pete's Deli followed with 10.

Country Cookin' and Angler's Cafe drew six comments each, The Homeplace drew five, and Mike's Grill drew four.

Angler's Cafe in Roanoke and Mike's Grill in Blacksburg rounded out Cardinal's list of six but aren't featured here.

The Orange County Revival

Country Cookin' is back in Orange County, where a revived restaurant held its grand opening on January 3, 2024, according to 29News.

If you're curious what's on the plates, the new menu combines the original menu with some items from Staunton's Depot Grill.

The revived restaurant goes by Country Cookin' Depot.

Depot is new.

The Homeplace Comeback

The Homeplace Restaurant in Catawba closed in 2020 and reopened in 2026 under new owners.

The restaurant shut its doors on October 18, 2020, after 38 years in business.

WSLS reported in May 2021 that the owners had decided not to reopen.

An October 17, 2025, Facebook post by a real estate agent announcing the sale of the restaurant was shared about 1,300 times, Cardinal News reported.

More than five years passed.