Dining Out: Trio Bistro

Despite the recent closure of so many places - restaurants in particular - countrywide, there's still a great variety in downtown Roanoke. This weekend, while taking a lunch break from the Birthing and Baby Expo on Saturday, we headed down to Trio Bistro for what my wife assured me was a delicious spinach and artichoke dip made with brie.

The soup and salad bar were open, and since the day was rainy and cold, I opted for the tomato bisque soup while we waited for the spinach dip.

We were two of maybe half a dozen on one side, with some others at the bar side. I wondered as I filled my bowl if refills were free, though I didn't end up needing anything else to sate me. The soup was good. Not heart-stopping, but worth coming back for at a future time.

The spinach and artichoke dip was as sinful as it sounded, with garlic toasties for dipping - the brie making the dip as creamy as butter. While my "lying in wait" love handles would appreciate if I ate this dip more often, it will have to be one of those occasional indulgences like Cadbury Eggs or a good Tequila.

The staff was very nice, though it was largely in self-service mode. All told, I'm sure I will find myself at Trio again, if only for soup or salad with a lunch date or back for more dip after a late-night coffee.

Parking and Transportation: The Campbell Mart Makeover

The fact that Wachovia Tower's parking garage downtown was constructed by either a blind man or Satan himself is common knowledge. Many of my co-workers bear battle scars from run-ins with the garage's moronic angles, exposed water main's, and tight corners.

I have born three such scars on both of my vehicles. I would like to say that I wear them with pride, but I'm still horse from the shouting match I had with myself after the third "love tap" with that garage (which should hereafter be referred to as "The Mangler").

Signs upon exit read "Watch your mirrors" and other signs remind the new and uninitiated that the garage isn't responsible for the multiple collisions you're sure to endure during your stay. At least the staff members are nice, though I don't know where that guy from Brooklyn went to.

Alas, I have to admit that I harbor many of the same fears regarding the proposed parking structure to go into the bottom floor of the Campbell Mart on Campbell Ave. Hey, I'm glad someone's going to do something with it, and we certainly need more parking downtown, but my car and I both quiver when we think about another "converted" parking space.

Perhaps my trepidation will prove unfounded, and the refurbished Campbell Mart will bear little resemblance to The Mangler. But some wounds take a long time to forget. Just ask my car.

Mill Mountain Coffee's New(ish) Locale

Mill Mountain Coffee's new downtown digs, though my review is a little late in coming, are pretty nice if you haven't had a chance to check it out yet. They moved a whopping thirty feet to just across the street, but with some marked improvements.

1. The bar with the open windows right as you walk in is nice; granted, the old place had some window-front real estate, but the new one feels more inviting and is roomier, so I find myself sitting at the windows more now.

2. More seating. The older locale wasn't so crowded that you felt claustrophobic or anything, but it could easily end up where you had to take your coffee to go or hover around waiting for a seat. Now, there's plenty of seating in front, in a little sub-section across of the "fixins" and higher up in the back.

3. Speaking of seating, now there's the outdoor area to sit in, which feels kind of semi-private given that traffic through that pay lot wouldn't be too much. Plus, while I have yet to bring my mutt to the shop, I feel like I could have my dog out there on nice days while I drink coffee and read the paper.

Many things are the same: same community bulletin board full of local events, classes, and the like. Art and photography by local artists, often for sale. Even some good reading material, with local pubs such as Bella, Lifestream, Inc, and (usually) a copy or two of The Roanoke Times floating around.

During the first two freezing Fridays of Dickens of a Christmas, Mill Mountain was one of my few places to warm up and glean fuel for the hours of commerce. While their coffee is not quite as bold as many Starbucks blends, I try to make it my choice when I'm in the neighborhood and the inevitable siren song of coffee, cookies, and good conversation rings in my ears.

Traffic Talk: Jefferson St to Memorial Ave

As a new weekly feature to Tramping Roanoke, I've started this regular post about traffic, routes, and getting around town. I hope this will spark some interest with finding shortcuts, debating what routes work best, and - in the end - maybe inspiring some more exploration and wandering.

As my inaugural post: Jefferson St. to Memorial Ave.

This is a popular route for those who work downtown and live in SW. With the westbound road of Salem Ave now open and (relatively) free of holes and the like, I finally have my route from work to home open again.

I've heard some differing opinions on the fastest way west, but - having been forced to use Campbell Rd while Salem Ave west of 2nd was under construction - I have to disagree with fans of Campbell.

For one thing, if you're going to 13th St bridge to take Memorial Ave anywhere, you'll have to take two leftward moseys that for someone lacking in direction propensity like me, is asking for a navigational SNAFU. If heading east on Campbell, of course, these are simply merges, but heading west you'll have to recognize which road at the two forks is still Campbell.

Too, for anyone who's tried turning onto 13th Street from a westbound road, you'll very likely have to wait on a light. When you turn south on 13th St from Salem Ave, however, you not only don't have a stoplight, you have right of way (the eastbound lane has a stop sign).

Granted, the lights from Salem south to Black Dog Salvage are a little aggressive, so you're likely to catch one of them, but even taking Campbell, you still have one to deal with there at Christian Car Care.

I'm always entertaining new routes, so if anyone has other ideas (assuming it's not pulling a turbo boost over a moving train or riding willy-nilly down an alley the width of a shopping cart) please email me or post a comment.

Ding, dang, dong goes the Star Line Trolley

While heading south from downtown on an errand, I decide to give the new Star Line Trolley a try. I've seen these old-style cars roaming about downtown several times, and had heard somewhere that they're free.

So on Jefferson Street I stand at the adequately marked trolley stop which reads that trolleys come every ten minutes. I wait right at ten minutes, so it seems the assertion is correct at least as far as I can speak to it.

The car itself is pristine, though that's really to be expected based on how new it is. It has a very charming interior, with brass rails, leather handholds, and nice wooden benches (if a little slippery at fast stops). The ceilings are high, with good lighting and an embedded sound system (though there is no music or announcements during our ride).

The day is cold, but the trolley remains adequately heated. Four, small airplane-style monitors show static-laden flashes of some image or other, like I'm suddenly on the set of the film They Live. I don't know if these normally display routes and stop info or play The Sound of Music on loop.

Aside from me and my colleagues, there are two other people aboard: one, a woman who gets off maybe two blocks from where she'd been picked up, and the other a homeless guy seemingly enjoying the heat while taking a nap in back.

It's quite early, so I'd like to think the hour and the weather explain the low ridership.

Carilion Roanoke Memorial marks the end of the line, where my colleagues and I get off as does the homeless guy.

Our return trip is much the same, though the driver has country music playing softly in the background, and the monitors are just empty, sans the flicker of some pirate signal trying to break through. One more rider gets on with us, and another along the way.

I like the idea of the Star Line Trolley. I just hope that it's used in lieu of hopping in a car to drive a few blocks to meet someone for lunch, run and errand, or go to a doctor's appointment. I hope that its character encourages a strong ridership and perhaps brings more people into downtown who might otherwise avoid it due to poor parking.

In the end, I just hope it's a good idea.