Author: Heather Mongilio

Rosslyn Restaurant to Hold Burrito Eating Contest

By Heather Mongilio

El Cachudo (Courtesy of Guajillo)

To help celebrate Mexican Independence Day and its own 15 year anniversary, Guajillo in Rosslyn will be giving customers the chance to scarf down a burrito the size of a small newborn baby.

The Mexican restaurant in the Colonial Village Shopping Center (1727 Wilson Blvd) will hold its annual burrito eating contest this coming Saturday, Sept. 19, at 4 p.m. Up to six contestants will attempt to eat a 16-inch, seven-pound burrito called El Cachudo for a chance to win a future dinner for two, said Guajillo spokeswoman Joahna Hernandez.

“El Cachudo is a 16-inch long burrito made with flour tortilla, filled with Mexican rice, refried pinto beans, Oaxaca cheese, pork carnitas, shredded beef, shredded chicken, lightly battered tilapia and most importantly, voodoo salsa made with a blend of fresh habaneros and garlic. It is served with pico de gallo and sour cream on the side,” Hernandez said.

The current record to beat is 20 minutes, which was set by an 18-year-old named Ian, she said. Guajillo co-owner Rolando Juarez started the contest in 2009 and named the burrito El Cachudo, which is a slang word for devil in Spanish, Hernandez said.

In addition to its large size, El Cachudo also has a spicy kick due to the homemade voodoo habanero salsa.

“As for the spicy level, you only need to pour a few drops [of the salsa] on a taco to give it a spicy kick; a little goes a long way!” Hernandez said in an email. “As you may know, an habanero chiles are even hotter than thai peppers and serranos.”

Anyone brave enough to sign up for the burrito eating contest can call 703-807-0840 or email [email protected] for more information.

Guajillo will also be holding specials starting today through Sept. 19 in honor of the Mexican holiday and its anniversary. The restaurant will serve $15 El Taconayo, a build-your-own taco meal, $15 tequila and Mezcal flights and $4 Coronas and Pacificos today. On Saturday, the restaurant will serve brunch starting at 11:30 a.m. with $5 spicy margaritas, according to a press release.

The full press release, after the jump.

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Twisted Vines on Columbia Pike Changes Owners, Updates Menu

By Heather Mongilio

Twisted VinesTwisted Vines Bar and Bottleshop at 2803 Columbia Pike has a new owner and with it, a new menu and more drink options.

“Our whole concept that we’re working for is casual elegance,” said Tony Wagner, who took over on Aug. 10.

Wagner wants the place to be welcoming, with good quality food at “neighborhood prices,” he said. With his new concept of “casual elegance” in mind, Wagner and his staff have added new small plates, dishes and craft beers to the restaurant’s menu.

In addition to the small plates, which include new crab cakes, Wagner’s kitchen staff has also added flatbreads.

“We overhauled the menu completely,” Wagner said. “[We added] small plates that are absolutely delicious and pair well with the drinks.”

Wine, and to a lesser extent beer, have been the main attractions of Twisted Vines since it was opened in 2010 by previous owners Sybil and Josh Robinson. Wagner is expanding the drink menu by adding whiskey and bourbon drinks, as well as a new Bloody Mary for brunch, he said.

Under Wagner’s leadership, the restaurant has also started opening on Mondays, from 4-10 p.m., according to the restaurant’s Facebook page.

Twisted Vines is the first restaurant Wagner has owned, he said. The restaurant’s foundation had already been established by the Robinsons, giving him a good base to build on, he said.

Owning a restaurant has been “a passion for a while and the opportunity presented itself,” Wagner said.

File photo

Clarendon Day to Return With an Extra Hour of Music, Food

By Heather Mongilio

Scenes from Clarendon Day 2011Music and the smell of chili will fill the air around the Clarendon Metro station on Saturday, Sept. 26 for the 18th annual Clarendon Day.

There will be arts and crafts, food, beer, music and the annual chili cookoff, all on Clarendon and Wilson Blvds outside the Clarendon Metro station. The free festival will be open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., an hour longer than previous years.

There will about 25 bands playing across four stages, with the headliner Slam Allen Band playing blues and soul on the Main Stage at 4:30 p.m.

“Slam Allen is not only pretty good, he is taking the blues world by storm having sat at No. 1 on the Roots Music Report Blues List for 16 straight weeks with top single and album,” said Anders Thueson with Songs, Writers and Poets, one of the festival’s sponsors.

Slam Allen will play until 6 p.m., but the other four stages, including one dedicated to dance performances, will close at 5 p.m., said Matt Hussmann, executive director of the Clarendon Alliance.

For the third year in a row, Clarendon Day is also home to the annual chili cookoff, sanctioned by the International Chili Society and sponsored by Hard Times Cafe.

Members of the chili society will enter their best recipes for red chili, chili verde, salsa and homestyle chili in hopes of winning and moving on the the World Championship Chili Cookoff this October in Palm Springs, California. Proceeds from the cookoff will benefit Wounded Warriors, Hussman said.

Chefs will be giving samples of their chili, but there plenty of other food options from local restaurants, including Bowl’d, Circa at Clarendon, Fuego Cocina y Tequileria and Liberty Tavern, Hussman said. Top Chef contestant Mike Isabella will be selling food from his three Ballston restaurants — Kapnos Taverna, Pepita Cantina and Yona.

“We’re also bringing back several longtime specialty food vendors — evidently fried food is a hit at Clarendon Day,” said the event’s website.

In addition, there will be arts and crafts booths and a kids zone with rides, music, storytelling and face painting.

The Arlington County Police Department will close down Clarendon and Wilson Blvds from Washington Blvd and N. Highland Street starting at 5 a.m. for the festival. N. Highland will also be closed from 11th Street N. to the Views at Clarendon (1210 N. Highland Street).

Wilson Blvd will be closed from N. Highland to N. Lynn Streets from 5-9:15 a.m. for the annual Pacers-organized Clarendon Day 10K/5K/Kid’s Dash. The southbound lanes of Route 110 will also be closed from 8-10:30 a.m. for the race.

Columbia Pike to Kick Off Inaugural Fall Festival with Wine, Beer and Music

By Heather Mongilio

Columbia Pike Fall Festival (Courtesy of Takis Karantonis)

The Columbia Pike Revitalization Organization will be holding its first fall festival on Columbia Pike this coming Saturday.

The event runs from 2-8 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 19 on S. Adams at Columbia Pike, near Taqueria Poblano.

“We want to have a lot of fun with the community,” said Takis Karantonis. “We started the summer with a festival and we wanted to close summer with one as well.”

For $25 a ticket, each attendee will get 12 wine tastings, eight craft beer tastings and tastings of food from Pike restaurants William Jeffrey’s Tavern, Red Rocks Arlington and The Celtic House Irish Pub and Restaurant.

Wine will be selected by Jason McKechnie of Twisted Vines Bottleshop and Bistro, and William Jeffrey’s Tavern’s Logan Skidmore will choose the craft beer.

“Kids and grownups will be happy with the quality of the food. It’s not dumbed down carnival food,” said Christine Hopkins, who helped plan the festival.

Beer selections will be unique to the festival — not be the craft brews that are offered every day at William Jeffrey’s, Karantonis said.

There will also be live music throughout the entire event, with local Pike band the Boxcartels playing from 4:15-5:15 p.m.

CPRO wants to start holding more fall events, Karantonis said, adding that fall on the Pike is typically a quieter than the summer.

Commuting Assistance App Wins Startup Competition

By Heather Mongilio

Startup Monday header

Editor’s Note: Sponsored by Monday Properties and written by ARLnow.com, Startup Monday is a weekly column that profiles Arlington-based startups and their founders, plus other local technology happenings. The Ground Floor, Monday’s office space for young companies in Rosslyn, is now open. The Metro-accessible space features a 5,000-square-foot common area that includes a kitchen, lounge area, collaborative meeting spaces, and a stage for formal presentations.

RouteHero (Courtesy of Thomas Woo)An app designed to make commuting easier recently won a tech startup competition hosted at 1776 in Crystal City.

RouteHero, built by Arlington native Thomas Woo, provides traffic and Metro updates based on an user’s route and time of travel.

“It’s a really good opportunity to limit some of the hassle of the commute,” Woo said. “You don’t have to check traffic in the morning. You don’t have to worry if the Metro will be single tracking when you get there. We’ll do the worrying for you.”

People can customize the app to include multiple commuting routes. Each alert comes through a text message, Woo said.

“What my app does is you put in your regular commute, whether it is driving or Metro, and the time you commute and we’ll send you an alert if there is traffic or an accident,” Woo said.

RouteHero app dashboard

Woo developed the app based on his own personal experience with commuting from his home in Falls Church to his previous job, he said. He signed up for Google Now and Metro alerts, but he said the alerts weren’t specific enough. He wanted something that would make his commute easier.

“My app sends you one alert just what you want and just when you need it,” he said.

In addition to the alerts, the app also shows the Metro schedule for the lines the user travels. It could work as a compliment to navigational apps Google Maps or Waze because RouteHero tells users when they should find different routes, and then users can use the other apps to find a new travel path, he said.

RouteHero won the D.C. Tech.co Startup of the Year Competition held at 1776 Crystal City last Wednesday, Sept. 9, which gave Woo validation that his app was useful for commuters, he said.

“It was a good confirmation that yes, people want a traffic and transit app for their commute,” Woo said.

A Metro alert on RouteHeroRouteHero is currently available for Android phones only, but Woo said he is working on an iOS version of the app, which he tentatively expects to have in the next three to five months.

Woo also plans to expand the app to include other modes of transit, such as Metrobus and Capital Bikeshare, and to be able to run alerts for transit systems outside of the D.C. area, such as the “T” in Boston or the subway in New York City.

The app is currently free and is supported with advertisements, but he may add in-app purchases, Woo said.

“The idea is that if you have more than one route, you’ll have to pay a monthly fee of $1,” he said.

Public transportation alerts would remain free, regardless of how many alerts an user requests, Woo said.

Utility Pole on Lorcom Lane Catches Fire

By Heather Mongilio

Telephone pole that caught fire on Lorcom Lane(Updated at 2:15 p.m.) Lorcom Lane was closed at Old Dominion Drive earlier today after a utility pole near the intersection caught on fire.

As of 1:15 p.m., Lorcom Lane had reopened to traffic, except for the right yield lane from Lee Highway. Crews were on scene fixing the pole.

The cause of the fire may have been a couple wires touching, said a Dominion worker. There were no flames when the worker arrived on scene, but wires can spark, he said.

Traffic Delays Possible on Williamsburg Blvd Due to Water Main Construction

By Heather Mongilio
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Traffic delays are expected on Williamsburg Blvd as the county builds a new water main under the road.

“The County is building new water mains and modifying pipes to the Minor Hill Reservoir site and its four underground storage tanks. The projects will improve the water system’s reliability and redundancy at our most critical and largest water storage area,” said county spokeswoman Jessica Baxter.

Construction is scheduled to start today on southbound Williamsburg Blvd. at N. Sycamore Street, Baxter said.

There are potential traffic delays, as the county will be narrowing the existing travel lane to allow for the water main installation. Southbound traffic will be affected for eight to 12 weeks, according to a press release.

The county will also be closing a gap in the water main that runs under westbound Williamsburg Blvd between N. Frederick and N. Harrison Streets.

The westbound lane will be closed to traffic until summer of 2016 while crews work on the water main, according to the county. Cars will be routed around the construction using a part of the eastbound lane on Williamsburg Blvd.

There is no set date for when the county will start working on the main line under the westbound lane, Baxter said.

“Earliest anticipated start date would be Sept. 21, but we’ll update the community when a date is confirmed,” she said.

The water main project will cost $4.1 million and will come from the county’s utility fund, according to the press release. Once the water main line construction is completed, water will be able to flow through storage tanks easier, resulting in fresher water from the tap, the county said.

“The projects will boost the water system’s reliability and redundancy by providing a backup main to our most critical and largest water storage area,” said the press release.

Photos via Google Maps

North Arlington Church to Discuss Race and Religion

By Heather Mongilio

Rock Spring Church (via Google Maps)

The Rock Spring Congregational United Church of Christ (5010 Little Falls Road) will discuss the intertwining of race and religion this month through sermons and evening session called “Starting the Conversation.”

The sermons and conversations were sparked by the deaths of Freddie Gray and Eric Garner while in police custody, which made national headlines and sparked a national dialogue on race, Rev. Kathy Dwyer said.

“I think we have just really been struck by the shocking events that have put the spotlight on racial injustice,” Dwyer said.

Starting on Sunday, Sept. 13, Dwyer will talk about racial justice through a series of three sermons about the story of Esther. The sermons will be a “broader brush stroke” about race and prejudice, she said.

“This series is based on the book of Esther, a dramatic story in the Hebrew Bible that is about an imbalance of power, privilege, prejudice, and taking risks to effect change,” Dwyer said. “In her sermons, Rev. Dwyer will reflect on Esther’s story and its connection with our lives, especially as it connects with the concerns about racial justice in America today.”

The church will also hold a series of three evening conversations about race and religion starting on Sunday, Sept. 20, which will be led by Dwyer and church leaders Susan Henderson, Laura Martin and Dale Dwyer. Each conversation will be held from 6:30-8 p.m. in the Saegmuller Room at the Rock Spring church.

The conversations are open to youth, teenagers and adults, she said, and are part of a larger, “year-long focus on racial justice” that will extend into 2016.

Through the sessions, the church and its congregation will “explore the fundamental issues of racism, connecting the discussion to our church’s and denomination’s histories, to our our individual beliefs and actions, to the role of race in society and to the themes of race in religion,” according to the Starting the Conversation event page.

The discussion on Sept. 20 is called “Whose Story?” and will address what sparked the Church to talk about race. Participants will also talk about how race connects to the church and themselves in terms of their “denominational histories, identities and commitments.”

On Sept. 27, the church leaders will look at language and behaviors in terms of racism. The group will also look at the difficulties in talking about racism as part of the “Racism 101 and Beyond” conversation.

The last planned discussion, “The Bible and Racism” on Oct. 4, will examine the role of race in the Bible. Church members will also talk about how racial and cultural themes in the Bible are different than today’s experience with race.

“In our core values, we proclaim that we are an inclusive community, and a justice-seeking community. When we sing our centennial hymn, we pledge to loose the bonds of injustice,” Dwyer and church officials said in an email to congregants Thursday night. “We look forward to the start of this exciting program of learning, sharing, and taking action in support of our core values.”

Wilson Blvd Down to One Lane Around New Courthouse Hotel

By Heather Mongilio
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(Updated at 6:20 p.m.) It’s slow going for drivers and bicyclists on the stretch of Wilson Blvd between N. Wayne and N. Adams Street in Courthouse, as two construction projects are underway.

Wilson Blvd is currently down to one lane, with cars navigating through traffic cones, due to construction on the new Hyatt Place hotel and a county project to install fiber optic cables below the street, said county spokeswoman Jessica Baxter.

Driving down the stretch of Wilson puts the cars half on the bicycle lane, while crews access underground wiring for fiber optic cable installation. The utility project is set to finish in the “early part of next week,” Baxter said.

Once the utility work is finished, the left lane and parking lane on Wilson Blvd will reopen to vehicles, she said.

However, the righthand parking lane and possibly one travel lane of Wilson Blvd between N. Wayne and N. Adams Street will remain blocked off until the end of September for hotel construction, Baxter said, and lanes may also be closed periodically after that.

“Each periodic closure will require the issuance of a right-of-way use permit from the Department of Environmental Services, and that closure will only be for the timeframe requested on such permit,” she said.

The new Hyatt Place in Courthouse, the hotel brand’s first in Arlington, is on schedule for an August 2016 opening, according to Jim Villars, a spokesman with Schupp Company, the hotel’s developer. Contrary to information from the county, Villars said the hotel construction project will not require the closure of a travel lane on Wilson Blvd.

The topping out of the eight floor structure is expected to be complete before the end of the month, Villars said. At that point, all eight floors above grade and the two floors below grade for underground parking will have been built.

After sealing the structure, crews will start constructing the hotel’s interior, he said.

Once finished, the Courthouse Hyatt Place will 161 rooms, two restaurants and a bar. The hotel will also be the first hotel with gold LEED certification in Arlington and the first Hyatt Place to receive gold LEED certification, according to Villars.

The company is currently looking for a tenant to fill one of the restaurant spaces, which is almost 1,300 square feet, he said. The hotel is replacing a low-rise commercial building that was formerly home to Wilson Tavern.

New Rosslyn Restaurant Takes ‘Americanized’ Approach to Lebanese Cuisine

By Heather Mongilio
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(Updated at 6:15 p.m.) A D.C. based shawarma and falafel chain has opened up a new restaurant in Rosslyn.

Shawafel, which opened at 1919 Wilson Blvd on Monday, Sept. 7, is bringing an “Americanized” twist to traditional Lebanese cuisine, said co-owner Ali Amarlooi.

The new Rosslyn location is the third Shawafel location — there is one at Nationals Park and on H Street in northeast D.C. — but it will serve as the flagship as Shawafel becomes a franchise, Amarlooi said.

The new restaurant can currently sit 30 people, but will have a few more seats once their countertop seating opens, he said. Shawafel is open from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to midnight on Friday and Saturday.

“It is a fun place. We play good music and everyone seems to have fun working here,” he said.

Shawafel is named after one of the restaurant’s popular sandwiches, the Shawafel, which is chicken or meat shawarma, falafel, tomatoes, pickles, lettuce, parsley and tahini, he said. The restaurant also offers a variety of meat, chicken and vegetarian sandwiches, as well as flatbreads, salads, hummus and platters.

“We have a very good vegetarian menu,” Amarlooi said.

For those new to Lebanese cuisine, Amarlooi recommends trying the Shawafel, the meat shawarma sandwich and shish Taouk sandwich, which is a “chunks of grilled chicken.” New customers should also try the cauliflower, falafel and Batinjan, crispy eggplant, sandwiches, as well as the hummus, cauliflower, Tabouleh salad and baba ghanouj, which is an eggplant dish, he said.

“Our meat shawarma is a combination of meat and lamb,” Amarlooi said. “It’s extremely juicy.”

The shawarma is cooked on large roasting sticks behind the checkout counter at the restaurant. It takes about 30-45 minutes to cook the meat and about five minutes to make and sandwich, he said.

Amarlooi and co-owner Alberto Sissi decided to open the restaurant in Rosslyn because of a sizable Middle Eastern population in Arlington, Amarlooi said.

“It fits our food because we’re trying to come as an Americanized version the Lebanese cuisine,” he said.

Races, Festivals to Close Roads in Arlington This Weekend

By Heather Mongilio

9-11 Memorial 5K logo.

Multiple roads will be closed in Arlington this weekend due to a 9/11 memorial race, a triathlon and festivals.

The 14th annual Arlington Police, Fire and Sheriff 9/11 Memorial 5K Race on Saturday will shut down some streets around the Pentagon.

The race takes runners around the Pentagon, starting from the DoubleTree Hotel in Pentagon City (300 Army Navy Drive) down Army Navy Drive, around Columbia Pike and on Route 110 back to the DoubleTree.

Online registration is closed, but the race is holding in-person registration for $50 on Sept. 10 and 11 from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the plaza next to Arlington Police headquarters (1425 N. Courthouse Road). On race day, Sept. 12, runners can sign up from noon to 5 p.m. at the DoubleTree. All participants get a commemorative shirt and post-race refreshments at the DoubleTree.

For the race, both directions of Army Navy Drive between 12th Street S. and S. Eads Street will be closed from about 3-8 p.m.

The following roads are also closed between 5:45-6:30 p.m.:

  • Westbound Army Navy Drive between S. Eads Street to S. Joyce Street
  • S. Joyce Street from Army Navy Drive to Columbia Pike
  • Columbia Pike from Pentagon South Parking to S. Joyce Street
  • The northbound I-395 HOV exit to S. Eads Street

All roads that cross Army Navy Drive will be closed for approximately 20 minutes.

The following roads will be closed between 5:45-8 p.m.:

  • Westbound Washington Blvd from Memorial Bridge to I-395
  • Southbound Jefferson Davis Highway from Rosslyn to 15th Street S.
  • Marshall Drive at Jefferson Davis Highway
  • S. Eads Street from Army Navy Drive to 11th Street S.

Street parking will also be limited in Crystal City during the race.

In addition to the 9/11 Memorial 5K, there are two festivals shutting down roads on Saturday. The Prio Bangla Street Festival in South Arlington will close 9th Street S. from Walter Reed Drive to S. Highlands Street from 8 a.m. to midnight.

The Rosslyn Jazz Festival in Gateway Park (1300 Lee Highway) will close southbound N. Fort Myer Drive between east and westbound Lee Highway from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. There will be detours from on westbound Lee Highway and south on N. Scott and N. Veitch Streets for cars coming from Key Bridge. Heavy pedestrian traffic is expected between 2-10 p.m., according to ACPD.

On Sunday, roads in Pentagon City will be closed again, this time for the Nation’s Triathlon. The I-395 HOV lanes from the 14th Street Bridge in D.C. to the HOV overpass at S. Fern Street will be closed from 6 a.m. to 1 p.m. to allow triathletes to complete the bike leg of the race.

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