We now know where and when the new Amsterdam Falafelshop in Clarendon will be opening.
The falafel restaurant will be opening at 3024 Wilson Blvd, in the former BGR: The Burger Joint space. Despite its prized location just steps from the Clarendon Metro station, BGR closed in January after 3 years in business.
The new restaurant is expected to open “mid-summer” of this year, according to a spokeswoman.
Amsterdam Falafelshop, which opened in 2004 as a single restaurant serving falafels and fries in the Adams Morgan neighborhood of D.C., currently has three locations but is in the midst of a major expansion. The new Clarendon location is one of nearly a dozen planned for D.C., Boston, Salt Lake City and Dallas-Fort Worth. More franchised locations in various parts of the country are pending.
Restauranteur David Rosenstein, who owns 12 Popeye’s restaurants in the D.C. area, is the franchisee who will be opening the Clarendon Amsterdam Falafelshop, the company’s first in Virginia.
“I’m enamored with the concept… everything about it,” Rosenstein said of the restaurant, in a statement. “I can only imagine how excited Clarendon residents, the local workforce and nighttime crowds will be to learn Amsterdam Falafelshop is coming to the neighborhood. In my opinion this is world-class falafel. And, the brand is ripe for expansion. We’re bringing it closer to fans who have been very vocal about their desire to have Amsterdam Falafelshop in Northern Virginia.”
Amsterdam Falafelship offers “falafel sandwiches,” “Dutch-style fries” and “nearly two-dozen toppings for patrons to customize their falafel,” according to the company.