PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — Saturday wraps up Portsmouth Restaurant week in Hampton Roads. It started with a snowstorm, and end with one too.
Some restaurants closed shop today because of the wintry conditions but as the sun came up and the roads began to clear, one local café spot still served up the goods.
“We opened despite the storm. The roads were fine. Our staff could get here easily and safely so we were fine,” McConnell said.
Ranae McConnell is the owner of JoJack’s Espresso Bar and Cafe off Churchland Boulevard. The family-owned breakfast and lunch destination has been open for 15 years. She says the past few years have been especially challenging with the pandemic creating a lot of hurdles.
“It was a tough couple of years. You just kind of do what you need to do. We adjusted, and we were able to continue to stay open the whole time because we have a drive-through which really helped us out,” McConnell explained.
With the help of her two kids–who the café is named after–and the community–Renae and her husband have been able to keep their business afloat.
JoJack’s is one of several restaurants that participated in Portsmouth’s restaurant week— McConnell says the marketing that comes with it helps boosts awareness.
“It reminds people that there’s a lot of really cool restaurants in Portsmouth,” she stated.
Even though Portsmouth Restaurant week is coming to close, she hopes you’ll choose to support the 757 community all the other weeks too.
“We work really hard, and we don’t have the buying power we have to work a lot harder than the others to stay in business so definitely support us,” said McConnell.
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