ROANOKE, Va. – Fire Station One on Church Street is completely open.
When you walk through the large archway, you still get a feel that you are in the old firehouse, but what you see is completely different.
The first floor of the Fire Station is a showroom for TXTUR, which is a local furniture maker. The entire lobby is filled with unique, custom-made furniture and local gifts. In the showroom, you can sit down with a designer and create your own special pieces for your home.
As you walk toward the back of the building, you will notice a new restaurant called “Stock” that serves Nordic Cuisine.
Nick Guacheta, the Director of Sales, says, “The menu is either the finest regional ingredients our chef can get his hands on. So trout from New Castle, Caviar from North Carolina or European imports, and all sorts of cheeses.”
The restaurant just started taking reservations. On the menu, you can try things like smoked fish, sweetish meatballs, and pork schnitzel.
As far as drinks, currently, they are only serving mocktails because they are still waiting on their ABC license.
When you walk up the original winding staircase of the fire station, former offices and storage spaces now provide seven guest rooms. Each room has handcrafted furniture from TXTUR and local artwork.
“It has been about sixteen months and to see everything finally come together, especially over the last eight weeks, it is special. Now, we are excited to invite Roanoke into the space and celebrate the furniture, the food, and the hospitality in this building. It really is just remarkable,” says Guacheta.
Even though renovations were made to the 115-year-old firehouse, designers worked to keep as much of the history as possible. You can still see old brass fire poles and historic pictures of firefighters are proudly displayed throughout the hotel.
The boutique hotel also has an event space you can rent out.