Hampton Roads

VIRGINIA BEACH
Darlene Mueller spoke to her husband on the phone.
“We’re at the mall and Lindsey’s riding an elephant,” she said.
The Portsmouth resident smiled when she realized he thought their granddaughter, Lindsey Daniel of Moyock, was atop a live circus creature. Nope, she told him. The 12-year-old was gallivanting through Lynnhaven Mall on a motorized animal.

VIRGINIA BEACH
A Virginia Beach upbringing anchored by family traditions helped shape the success of Bob Taylor, who will retire in January as president and CEO of Do it Best, Corp.
The 3,800 member business cooperative has $3 billion in buying power and is located in Fort Wayne, Ind.

For many local restaurants, summer brings a boost in customers – and Yelp reviews:
My steak was juicy.
My steak was too small.
The waitress knew the gluten-free options right away.
The waiter took too long to bring bread.

When Jeff Brown’s restaurant received an online review he thought was particularly unfair this summer, he went big with his response. Really big.
The critique, on Facebook, came from David Yow, a retired civil engineering technician in Virginia Beach who wasn’t happy with his breakfast at Cotton Southern Bistro in Virginia Beach one morning in June.

CAMARILLO, Calif.
The average price of gasoline has remained steady over the past two weeks, holding at $2.71 a gallon.
Industry analyst Trilby Lundberg said Sunday that while the average remains unchanged, many Midwest cities saw prices jump due to a partial shutdown of an Indiana refinery. Many West Coast cities experienced price drops.

SUFFOLK
Two Suffolk natives are hoping to make a go of a downtown hookah lounge, but it’s a unique business model that’s proved difficult to define.
While they can sell flavored tobacco at Toke Hookah Lounge, 137 W. Washington St., the business has no live entertainment.

Ninety-seven ranks as an A-plus on most grading scales. It also got high marks from business boosters in Norfolk last week.
It represents the number of applications for the Vibrant Spaces program, aimed at further enlivening downtown.

Diamond Resorts International Inc. announced this morning that it has purchased six vacation resorts owned by Gold Key PHR | Hotels & Resorts for $168 million.
 
Gold Key, based in Virginia Beach, has five resorts at the Beach, including Ocean Beach Club Resort, and one in Kitty Hawk, N.C.
 

Have companies ditched their obligation to provide solid customer service?
Sure seems that way sometimes.
Let me give you three examples of poor service I’ve received in just the past couple of months:

VIRGINIA BEACH
Behind every good beer, there’s a story.
The Wasserhund Brewing Company story starts in a small apartment in Northern Virginia, travels to Germany and lands in Virginia Beach at Hilltop.
On a mid-July afternoon, Aaron Holley, his wife, Christine, and his brother-in-law Craig Lubinski rolled up their sleeves inside the new brewery.