Local chef Tim Ma is reviving a popular sandwich shop and bringing it to the former Bread and Water “cube” in Pentagon City.
Ma’s well-regarded Chase the Submarine, which closed in Vienna about five years ago, is making a comeback at Westpost on S. Joyce Street in Pentagon City, the chef confirmed to ARLnow. It’s a joint venture with Scott Chung, who co-owns Bun’d Up, also located in Westpost.
The sandwich shop is moving into the relatively small “cube” space in the development’s plaza which was home to Bread and Water until this fall.
This will be Ma’s second Westpost restaurant. Chinese-American take-out eatery Lucky Danger opened on the other side of the development in July 2021.
Construction is essentially done, Ma said, and he’s just waiting on permits. The hope is to start serving within a few weeks, meaning likely later this month.
Along with that, Ma is also planning another concept in the cube.
At night, sandwiches will transform into cocktails with a new wine and cocktail bar called No Chaser. That isn’t expected to open quite yet, with Chase the Submarine opening first and No Chaser coming later this year.
Window stickers are already on plastered on the building, advertising both the new eatery and the cocktail bar.
Ma, who grew up in Centreville and previously owned Water & Wall in Virginia Square, said that all of this came together very quickly.
When Bread and Water closed in October, Federal Realty Investment Trust (FRIT) suggested the space to him. FRIT owns the mixed-use development, as well as the Village of Shirlington.
Lucky Danger has been doing quite well at Westpost since it opened about 18 months ago, Ma said, and FRIT has continued to be a “fantastic partner.”
“I’ve been very happy with my return to Arlington and, generally, very hopeful about the [dining] future of the area,” he said.
So, they decided to take the space and, then, just had to figure out what to put there. They turned to an old favorite.
“My team and I always talked about bringing [Chase the Submarine] back,” Ma said. “It was truly one of my favorites.”
Ma said, at least for the time being, this version of Chase the Submarine will be a more “consolidated” version than the previous one in Vienna. There will be fewer hot sandwiches and some different cold sandwiches.
The exact menu and website have not been released publicly quite yet, but that’s expected to be out in the coming days. He said he’s excited to be partnering with Chung, with whom he worked on a night market this past fall.
As part of the agreement to open the two new concepts, Ma extended Lucky Danger’s lease to keep it in Westpost for the foreseeable future. That future includes the opening of Amazon’s HQ2 this year, a few blocks away in Pentagon City, as well as expected development across the street on the Riverhouse property.
“I’m here to stay for a long time,” Ma said.