Best of Blacksburg 2025 Round-up

The results for the Best of Blacksburg survey are in for 2025, and locallyowned businesses are the cream of the crop. Downtown is full of winners who are ready for customers to spill off of campus and in through their doors. The survey, known affectionately as BOB to the staff at the Collegiate Times, is organized with care by the editor-in-chief each spring. Anyone can vote on the winners. 

Draper Road might as well be called champions’ row, because a solid seven categories have their winners packed into the short mixed-use walking and driving district. Coffeeholics took home both Best Breakfast and Best Coffee, right next to The Milk Parlor, who took Best Live Music. Rivermill Bar & Grill is directly across the street and took Best Overall Bar in town. Benny Marzano’s, which took both Best Pizza and Best Late-Night Food, is just up the street where Draper turns into a driving road with parking spaces. Next to Benny’s is the Blacksburg Farmers Market, an open-air vendor market that won the award for Best Place to Buy Flowers.  

College Avenue, which intersects Draper Street, is home to the winners of Best Vegetarian Fare, Best Sushi, Best Radio Station and Best Karaoke. Green's Grill & Sushi Bar is the winner of the first two categories. Top of the Stairs, colloquially known as TOTS, took home Best Karaoke. Karaoke takes place weekly there on Tuesday nights. Squires Student Center is home to WUVT-FM, which won Best Radio Station. This station is completely student-run and has both student and local DJs, often facilitating shows at various venues as well. 

Off of the downtown section of Main Street, you’ll find the winners for 11 categories.The Cellar Restaurant & 6-Pak Store won Best International Fare, Best Cocktail and Best Beer Selection.Sharkey’s Wing & Rib Joint took both Best Burger and Best Happy Hour.Sugar Magnolia won Best Sweets, Cabo Fish Taco won Best Overall Restaurant and PK’s Bar & Grill won Best Place to Play Pool or Shoot Darts. Live Wire Tattoo & Piercing won Best Place to Get Tattooed and Blacksburg Books won Best Bookstore.Steppin’ Out, which occupies multiple roads around downtown, won Best Festival. 

Down on South Main, the winners are a bit more spread out. Campus Emporium, which has both a downtown and a South Main location, won Best Place for VT Gear. In the First and Main shopping center, B&B Theatres won Best Place to See a Movie and Jersey Mike’s won Best Subs.El Rodeo, which also has a location on North Main, won Best Mexican Fare. The Gables shopping center is home to Vintage Cellar, which won Best Wine Selection, and Kroger, which won Best Grocery Store and also has a location on University City Boulevard. Blacksburg Boxing and Fitness is just off of South Main and won Best Gym.  

North Main is home to a less concentrated selection of winners. For Best Date Spot, the winner is 622 North Restaurant, Bar and Wine Lounge. Carol Lee Donuts won Best Bakery. The Goodwill in the Patrick Henry shopping center won Best Clothing Store. 

The other winners were scattered throughout town and campus. Buffalo Wild Wings won Best Wings and Best Place to Watch Sports on Television. West End Market won the Best Dining on Campus. Nail Bar, off of Prices Fork, won Best Salon or Spa. 

A couple of winners are outside the Blacksburg limits. The Best Hiking Trails category broadened the horizons of voters to include greater variety, and was taken by the Cascades, a trail near Pembroke. Pete Dye River Course in Radford, owned by Virginia Tech, won Best Golf Course. 

Beyond entertainment and food, the Best of Blacksburg survey seeks out the favorite locations for other specialty needs such as automotive maintenance, legal assistance and fine jewelry. Campus Automotive on North Main took first place in the Best Place to Get a Car Serviced category. On South Main, Spicer, Olin & Associates won Best Law Firm. Downtown, Kent Jewelers won Best Jewelry Store. The Edge won Best Apartment Complex. 

Keep an eye out for the 2026 poll and be ready to vote for your favorite businesses when the time comes; they may get a chance to be individually featured in the paper.