Back of the Dragon Center

The center sits on Main Street in downtown Tazewell — the northern gateway of VA-16, Virginia's only state-designated motorcycle route. That positioning makes it the natural anchor for a day on the road: riders can check conditions, gear up on branded merchandise, and fuel up on food before the first turn, or decompress here after the last one.

Inside, the building pulls several functions together under one roof. The self-pour tap wall lets you pick your own pour of craft beer, and the Dragon Fired Pizza Kitchen handles hot food. A coffee shop covers the early-morning crowd. The gift shop stocks route-specific merchandise you won't find anywhere else on VA-16. Dedicated motorcycle parking, separate from car spaces, means you're not threading past sedan doors to get to the entrance.

The center also runs a regular calendar of events — trivia nights, live music, and similar gatherings — so there's usually something going on beyond the ride itself. For a route that connects Tazewell to Marion across three mountain ranges and over 400 curves of Southwest Virginia mountain terrain, having a purpose-built home base at one end of the run is a practical convenience as much as it is a community draw.