Hometown Eats: Don Ho’s Restaurant & Lounge

HOLLINS, Va. (WDBJ) - Have you ever driven by a restaurant time and time again, wanting to stop, but you never do?

That’s what people have been doing to Don Ho’s Restaurant & Lounge in Hollins for decades, but we decided to turn in for this week’s Hometown Eats!

“I’ve had people, even this year, come up to me and say they’ve passed this place for 25 years and never thought it was nothing more than a biker bar,” said Don Ho’s Restaurant & Lounge owner Donald “Don” Sutliff.

Since the turn of the century, a dive in Roanoke County continues to prove appearances can be deceiving. Welcome to Don Ho’s Restaurant & Lounge on Lee Highway in Hollins.

“I cleaned it up and the people I get in here, once I get them in here, I usually keep them,” said Don.

For 25 years, Donald Sutliff has been doing the same thing around his restaurant: catching up with customers and working in the kitchen.

“Sometimes I think it’s too long, but I still enjoy it,” joked Don.

Don credits his uncle for his success. If you’ve been around Roanoke long enough, you know his uncle, Gary Nimer, who owned the wildly popular Little Chef on Williamson Road in Roanoke for decades.

“He was the one who encouraged me to get into the business. He actually found the building for me and helped me find some equipment. Without his knowledge and support, there wouldn’t be no Don Ho’s,” said Don.

Uncle Gary even influenced some of the Don Ho’s staples like the chicken salad.

“That’s his original recipe from 60 years ago. I don’t know if it was his mom’s or whose it was, but I’m not changing it because I sell a lot of it,” said Don.

“It’s the best in Virginia! That’s why we come here is for the chicken salad,” said regular customer Cynthia.

“We boil all our chicken breast and pull it fine. We put some eggs in and some pickle relish and some other things I’m not going to tell you,” explained Don.

With any restaurant, consistency is key. You’ll find that with who Don surrounds himself with.

“I’ve got a waitress that’s been with me since I opened, I’ve got a cook that’s been with me for 22 years and another one who’s been with me for 18 years,” said Don.

But maybe the employee closest to Don is his son Jo Jo.

“I used to stand on a pickle bucket in the back and wash dishes in the summer breaks when the dishwashers would call out,” said general manger Jo Jo Sutliff.

Now Jo Jo is eye-to-eye with his dad, learning the ways to one day take over the restaurant.

“It means a lot that he thinks that I can do that, but it’s very big shoes to fill and I know it’s not going to be easy, but we have a very great staff to help me through it,” said Jo Jo.

“Donnie and Jo Jo are lucky. They have some really good people who have been with them a long time. The food is great, service is good, why not come here,” said regular customer Chuck.

But you’d better bring your appetite.

“A lot of people come for the big daddy sub,” said Don. That sub is stacked with salami, Lebanon bologna, bologna, Swiss cheese, cole slaw, banana peppers, and onions. Don continued with another favorite, “I would recommend our catfish. We buy it ourselves and bread it. You can’t get that in a lot of places.”

As for the side dishes, everything is homemade including. “We got black iron cornbread in the skillet,” said Don.

“That cornbread was delicious, and it had grains of corn in it,” said first time customer Yola.

“It’s unique, fairly priced, and the service is excellent,” added regular customer Geoff.

The years of customer satisfaction recently paid off for Don Ho’s as they cleaned up in the Roanoke Times readers awards for best bar, waitstaff, restaurant, burger and best customer service at a restaurant.

“They said they’d never seen any restaurant win all five of those awards. A special thank you to our staff. We couldn’t do it without them,” said Jo Jo.

Something to keep in mind, it’s non-smoking on the recently-renovated restaurant side, smoking in the lounge with separate ventilation, where you can shoot pool or sing karaoke.

“I’ll just say to give us a try because I feel like if you come in the doors, you’re going to like it,” said Jo Jo.

“It’s good to see people who come in every day and enjoy it and thank you for what you’re doing. I’m very appreciative of it,” said Don.

Don Ho’s Restaurant & Lounge, a hometown eat worth hopping off the highway.

Don Ho’s Restaurant & Lounge is located at 365 Lee Hwy, Hollins, VA 24019 and is open Monday 11 am to 9 pm Tuesday through Thursday 11 am to 10 pm, Friday 11 am to 1 am, Saturday 11:30 am to 1 am.