A new casual Mexican restaurant is looking to start serving later this year at the Pentagon City mall.
Rosa Mexicano is aiming for a September 1 opening, according to the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City website. It’s moving into the 5,500-square-foot former Sugar Factory space, which has an outside entrance facing S. Hayes Street.
Sugar Factory closed last year.
New York-based Rosa Mexicano has eight other locations currently open, including one at National Harbor in Maryland. Locals also might remember a previous location in D.C. across the street from Capital One Arena. That one closed last summer after 16 years.
“Given the popularity of the brand in the D.C. market, Fashion Centre felt like it was an ideal upgrade over Sugar Factory, which previously occupied the space,” Todd Jerscheid, Director of Mall Marketing and Business Development at Fashion Centre at Pentagon City, tells ARLnow via email.
The decor will feature “the restaurant’s new prototype,” seen at recently-opened locations in Philadelphia and Boston, writes Jerscheid. The menu is also being “revamped,” though the restaurant is known for its guacamole prepared tables side. Rosa Mexicano also serves tacos, ceviche, enchiladas, and parrilladas (Mexican-style mixed grill).
The first Rosa Mexicano opened in New York City in 1984.
The Pentagon City mall has seen several retail bays turnover recently. Rihanna’s lingerie brand Savage x Fenty opened at the mall earlier this spring. The shoe restoration business SneakerMat and a customized hoodie and t-shirt retailer both opened over the past few months. In September, a cereal restaurant several other retailers began operations.
Hat tip to @rdc20132