A new Chipotle is opening soon in Clarendon (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
A new Chipotle is opening soon in Clarendon (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
A new Chipotle is opening soon in Clarendon (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
The new Chipotle in Clarendon is planning on opening in about two weeks.
The Mexican fast casual chain is aiming to open its new location at 3017 Clarendon Blvd on Thursday, April 21, a Chipotle spokesperson confirmed to ARLnow. It will be open from 10:45 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week. This is Chipotle’s sixth Arlington location, joining existing outposts in Ballston, Crystal City, Columbia Pike, Pentagon City, and at the Lee Heights Shops.
The eatery will be on the ground floor of the 3000 Wilson Blvd office building, next to Four Sisters Grill. It’s filling the space that once was Pete’s New Haven Apizza, which closed in the summer of 2019.
There will be indoor dining space as well as a walk-up window where customers who ordered online can pick up their food without going inside. The location will also serve beer.
The first 50 people there on opening day will receive free “Chipotle Goods.” That’s merchandise that’s, as the spokesperson put it, “responsibly sourced… focused on size inclusivity, gender neutral pieces and unisex sizing on most products.”
ARLnow first reported on Chipotle moving into Clarendon in early February. The company initially denied its was coming to Clarendon, before reversing course.
The opening caps a seven year wait for burrito fans in Clarendon. Back in 2014, a Chipotle “coming soon” sign showed up on 3001 Washington Blvd. But it turned out to be a fake, apparently put up by a local prankster.
GMU officially breaks ground on $250 million expansion of Arlington campus (staff photo by Matt Blitz)
A rendering of the George Mason University Arlington expansion (photo courtesy of Mason Innovation Partners / EYP)
GMU officially breaks ground on $250 million expansion of Arlington campus (staff photo by Matt Blitz)
A rendering of the interior George Mason University Arlington expansion (photo courtesy of Mason Innovation Partners / EYP)
GMU officially breaks ground on $250 million expansion of Arlington campus (staff photo by Matt Blitz)
George Mason University has ceremonially broke ground on the quarter of a billion dollar expansion of its Arlington campus.
At an event held yesterday (Wednesday), ceremonial shovels picked up ceremonial dirt to mark the beginning of construction of Fuse at Mason Square, a new $235 million building in Virginia Square that will house the university’s new School of Computing.
In fact, work had actually already begun a few months earlier on the 345,000 square foot facility. It’s the main piece of the quarter-billion-dollar expansion of the Arlington campus, which was recently renamed “Mason Square.”
The groundbreaking, which was one of this week’s events celebrating the university’s 50th anniversary, was marked by a litany of speeches, food, and shoveling of dirt.
In attendance were a number of Arlington officials including Board Chair Katie Cristol, County Manager Mark Schwartz, Arlington School Board Chair Barbara Kanninen, Del. Elizabeth Bennett-Parker, and Arlington NAACP President Julius “J.D.” Spain, Sr.
Cristol spoke of her pride that this state-of-the-art facility will have a home in Arlington.
“The vision of Fuse [reminds] me of a term I learned in a laboratory in St. Louis — serendipitous collisions. What an evocative image of the kind of partnerships and encounters that are going to happen here at Fuse at Mason Square,” she said. “Between cutting edge facilities, labs with futuristic devices, and human talent of educators and entrepreneurs as well as this rising generation of creators. The serendipitous collisions that occur on this campus are going to shape our community in ways that we can only imagine today.”
Back in the early 1970s, the late Arlington developer John “Til” Hazel acquired the Virginia Square property that included the former Kann’s Department Store in order to house for GMU’s new law school. The property eventually became a larger graduate school campus, and the former Kann’s building is being replaced with the new computing school.
Hazel died last month at the age of 91. His son James revealed at the ceremony that his dad grew up “not a few blocks away, not down the street. It was right there at [N.] Kenmore [Street] and Wilson Blvd.”
Hazel shared other memories of spending time in this neighborhood before GMU moved in.
“If my mom wanted to take us to get new clothes for school, we came to our grandparents. We parked the car, we came over to Kann’s, got the clothes, and saw the monkey display,” he said, to some laughter. “But best of all, we got pizza from Mario’s Pizza.”
The ceremony was also supposed to include an announcement of a “landmark tenant” at the new building, but that didn’t happen, with GMU officials telling ARLnow that the announcement was delayed.
The $235 million building will house faculty from the Institute for Digital InnovAtion as well as the university’s new School of Computing. Also being planned is an atrium, a 750-seat theater, a public plaza, and a below-grade parking garage.
About 60% of the available space will be occupied by the university, with the remaining 40% aiming to be leased out to tenants and private companies.
Fuse at Mason Square is expected to be completed in the summer of 2025.
The RAMMY Awards are handed out by the Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington, the region’s restaurant industry trade association. It’s intended to honor restaurants for its work over the last year (from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2021). An in-person gala is set to be held in July, when the winners will be announced.
In total, seven finalists this year have Arlington ties, which is pretty much on par with other recentyears. It’s a far cry from more than a decade ago when local restaurants were routinely given few accolades, further proof how far the reputation of Arlington’s food scene has come.
Last year’s awards were, understandably, altered, with more of a spotlight on how local restaurants adapted to pandemic conditions. For example, David Guas of Bayou Bakery was recognized with a “Good Neighbor Award” for his Chefs Feeding Families initiative. That category is no longer part of the ceremony this year.
This 2022 edition is, more or less, back to what it was in 2019, though “Hottest Sandwich Spot,” “Splendid Holidays at Home,” and “Outstanding Pop-up Concept” were new categories from 2021 that are being held over.
Four Arlington-based restaurants are finalists this year for an award.
Bayou Bakery in Courthouse is being recognized in the “Splendid Holidays at Home” category.
“Restaurants have a way of making special occasions feel extra special, and this year they continued to meet customers at their comfort level as Covid (and other interruptions during the year) uprooted holidays for many,” says the award description.”This nominee went all out to create celebratory menus with all the bells and whistles to help guests have memorable holidays at home.”
Chef David Guas, who’s back from Poland where he was helping to feed Ukrainian refugees, tells ARLnow that it is an honor that Bayou Bakery’s efforts in making Mardi Gras special despite challenges are being recognized.
“It was a nice surprise to be honored and a warm welcome home upon returning from an intense and rigorous two weeks in Poland assisting with World Central Kitchen. This nomination is the result of something our team created during the pandemic to help keep us afloat,” he says. “The cliche — ‘It’s a team effort’ really holds true in this scenario. I value my team everyday, and especially during the pandemic, which was such a peculiar time for us all. It was fun and rewarding to find new ideas to bring people together — that’s the New Orleans way!”
Clarendon’s Northside Social, which now has a satellite location in Falls Church, is a finalist for its wine program.
Ruthie’s All Day, which opened in October 2020 in the Arlington Heights neighborhood, is up for “casual restaurant of the year.”
Ruthie’s All-Day’s Instagram post celebrating RAMMY nomination (image via screenshot/Instagram)
Queen Mother’s, located in the restaurant incubator Cafe by La Cocina alongColumbia Pike, is honored in the “Hottest Sandwich Spot” category. Chef Rahman “Rock” Harper and the eatery are known for their fried chicken sandwiches.
A 34,000 square foot Target opening in Pentagon City (staff photo)
Target at Pentagon City is now open (staff photo)
(Updated, 4/8) The new, 34,000 square foot Target store in Pentagon City is finally open.
Store employees confirmed to ARLnow that the big box store at the corner of Army Navy Drive and S. Joyce Street at Westpost — the mixed-use retail center formerly known as Pentagon Row — is indeed open to shoppers.
The store had a “soft opening” on Tuesday with an official grand opening set for this Sunday (April 10). A sign on the door still notes the April 10 opening, which was pushed back from what had originally been an announced April 3 opening.
Construction and supply chain delays pushed the opening back by a few days, a store employee said.
The store takes over the space that was formerly occupied by Bed, Bath, & Beyond, which closed back in September 2020. It had been at that location in Pentagon City for nearly two decades.
Target is not the only highly-anticipated business to open at Westpost over the past several weeks. Nighthawk Pizza, a beer and pizza hall with “90s vibes,” began doing business late last month.
Metroway buses for the Crystal City-Potomac Yard Transitway (Photo via Arlington County)
Transitway bus stop at 33rd Street S. and Crystal Drive (staff photo by Matt Blitz)
A Metroway bus (Staff photo)
A Metroway bus at the Transitway bus stop at 27th Street S. and Crystal Drive (staff photo by Matt Blitz
Work is kicking off this week on an extension to the Crystal City-Potomac Yard transitway.
The project will eventually extend a dedicated corridor for rapid bus transit to Amazon’s HQ2 and the Pentagon City Metro station. Construction is now getting underway on the first segment of the extension.
The work will include the installation of two new transit stations at Crystal Drive and 15th Street S. and 12th Street S. and Long Bridge Drive, as well as street improvements along 12th Street S. stretching from Crystal City to Pentagon City.
Construction is expected to take a year, according to the county, and should be completed in April 2023.
The Transitway extension to Pentagon City will add more than a mile to the existing 4.5 mile corridor, including center-running transit-only lanes cutting through 12th Street.
The two new transit stations that will be built over the next year are among four others that are scheduled for construction. The stations will be similar in appearance to the existing Transitway stations on Crystal Drive and Clark Street.
New transit stations that are set to be constructed during the first segment of the Transitway to Pentagon City extension (image courtesy of Arlington County)
Impact on commuters is supposed to be minimal, with work taking place Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Portions of the northbound curbside lane along Crystal Drive, between 12th Street S. and 15th Street S. and up to Long Bridge Drive, will be inaccessible due to it being used as a construction staging area.
Existing street parking on that side of Crystal Drive will eventually become a transit-only lane, though the county has not given an exact timetable for when that might happen.
The street improvements will focus on the stretch of 12th Street S. from S. Eads Street to S. Clark Street in Crystal City and the intersection of 12th Street S. at Crystal Drive.
The work will include sidewalks, streetlights, pedestrian ramps, and new crosswalks at Army Navy Drive. There will also be a two-way bicycle facility under the Route 1 overpass, the first step in linking a planned bike track extending from Army Navy Drive to a multi-use path along S. Bell Street that will eventually go to the Crystal City Metro station. The design phase for that is nearly complete, with construction coming potentially this year.
The Transitway is the dedicated infrastructure for the Metroway rapid bus transit line that debuted in 2014. It was the first of its kind in the region and hailed as a public transportation achievement.
The transit line was designed to provide covered stations, more frequent service and newer buses, driving along a route connecting Arlington and Alexandria. The $42 million price tag was split evenly between Arlington and Alexandria.
While intended to boost bus ridership and provide accessibility to neighborhoods that are rapidly developing, the line has achieved only some of those goals and has been plagued by lack of riders. Additionally, planned features like off-board fare collection have not yet been implemented, and confused motorists sometimes drive the wrong way in the bus-only lanes.
Late last month, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized the administering of second booster shots for those who are 50 years of age and older, immunocompromised, or who received a single shot and booster of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
Two days later, on March 30, county vaccine clinics began allowing those residents to schedule appointments as well as accommodating walk-ins to get their second booster shots. This change was first announced in the county’s COVID-19 update newsletter sent that day, though some might have missed the news.
“I was unaware of this until I dropped by Walter Reed for pickleball this morning and saw the line of folks waiting for their booster,” one Arlington resident told ARLnow yesterday.
The county currently has two clinics open for vaccines. Arlington Mill Community Center and Walter Reed Community Center are both providing booster shots Tuesday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Walk-ins and appointments for residents 5 to 11 years old are only offered 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Friday.
The clinics are closed Sunday and Monday.
As of yesterday (Tuesday) evening, appointments were generally available for this week. Additionally, local pharmacies are offering boosters and availability can be found on vaccine.gov. Last month, locals started getting calls and texts from the Virginia Dept. of Health to remind them to get their first booster shots.
Need a #COVID19 vaccine or #booster? Our clinics at Arlington Mill and Walter Reed Community Centers accept walk-ins!
We're open to anyone age 5+. No County residence, health insurance or appointment required.
Evidence continues to mount that the effects of the vaccine wane over time and booster shots provide additional protection from Covid infection and serious illness, including hospitalization and death.
However, some scientists remain skeptical about the need for a second booster shot at this time — a fourth shot overall, for some — due to a lack of data. The main data point is an Israeli study that found those who received a second booster were 78% less likely to die from Covid than those who only got three shots. But the study was considered by some to be somewhat flawed.
A total of 177,000 Arlingtonians, or 78% of the county’s population, five years or older are considered “fully vaccinated,” according to the latest county data. However, the number of those who have gotten their first booster shot is lower.
Nearly 97,000 residents, or about 41.5% of the total population, have gotten at least their first booster shot, according to Virginia Dept. of Health statistics. That does exceed nationwide stats, however, with only about 30% of the American population having gotten their booster, according to the New York Times.
Kids under the age of five are still not eligible to get a Covid vaccine, much to the worry of some parents. But that could be changing soon with Moderna likely asking the FDA “in the coming weeks” to authorize its vaccine for kids six years and younger.
Covid cases in Arlington, meanwhile, are slowly rising but still well below this winter’s record levels. The county’s seven-day moving average of daily cases is now 70, up from a seasonal low of 24 one month ago, according to VDH data.
Arlington’s Covid “Community Level” is still considered low, with only 1.2 weekly hospital admissions per 100,000 residents, according to the CDC.
Covid cases in Arlington on 4/6/22 (via Virginia Dept. of Health)
Facets Fine Jewelry at the Lee Heights Shops is closing (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Facets Fine Jewelry is closing as owners Suzanne and Tom Arnold retire (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Facets Fine Jewelry is closing as owners Suzanne and Tom Arnold retire (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Facets Fine Jewelry is closing as owners Suzanne and Tom Arnold retire (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Facets Fine Jewelry is closing in May after 27 years in the Lee Heights Shops.
The shop on 4530 Cherry Hill Road is shuttering due to owners Suzanne and Tom Arnold retiring after six decades making, designing, and selling jewelry. The plan, according to the owners, is to be open until at least Mother’s Day (May 8) and then continue for a week or two after, until most of the merchandise has been sold.
“Age and attrition,” Suzanne tells ARLnow about why the couple, ages 75 and 80, are retiring and closing up shop. “We’ve kept rolling with it as long as we can because we really love it.”
In 1995, after working for other local jewelry shops, the couple came upon the shopping center and decided to go out on their own.
“I remember thinking that ‘this looks just right,'” she says. “‘It has a real neighborhood feel.'”
They opened Facets Fine Jewelry in September 1995 and she remembers the store filling up with folks buying Christmas gifts. Tom says the store survived for nearly three decades at the shopping center, including the difficult last two years, due to the neighborhood and long-time clients.
“This is our home,” he said. “[When we opened in 1995] everyone took us in. It’s just been wonderful and I can’t say enough.”
Tom got started designing jewelry in the 1960s in Beverly Hills, California. In fact, he hand-designed pieces for some of the biggest stars of the day.
“He remembers John Wayne ordered a little gold charm [from him]… to be given to all of the cast and crew of [a film] he worked on,” says Suzanne. “He was very generous.”
Tom also was a jeweler for Jane Russell, one of Hollywood’s leading ladies in the mid-20th century.
Suzanne says one of her favorite parts of selling jewelry is that it’s so personal.
“Customers aren’t just anonymous souls,” she says. “You become part of people’s lives because you really do mark special moments in their lives.”
For the next month, Suzanne will be just enjoying saying goodbye and selling off as much jewelry as possible, at up to a 70% discount.
When that final day comes in May, the couple says they will be sad but will be looking forward to their big retirement plans — staying local and spending their new-found free time touring museums, going to plays, and eating fancy meals.
“We are going to play tourist in D.C., Maryland, and Virginia,” Suzanne says.
Wiltshire plaits and sausage rolls from Salt Pot Kitchen, planning to open in Ballston in May (photo courtesy of Salt Pot Kitchen)
Wendy and Charlie Salt, owners of Salt Pot Kitchen which is looking to open in Ballston in May (photo courtesy of Salt Pot Kitchen)
Ballston Quarter Market (courtesy of Ballston Quarter)
Wiltshire plaits from Salt Pot Kitchen, planning to open in Ballston in May (photo courtesy of Salt Pot Kitchen)
British-inspired Salt Pot Kitchen is planning to open in Ballston next month.
The Loudoun County-based “upscale British street food” eatery is moving into the Ballston Quarter Market stall formerly occupied by perogi stand Rogi, co-owner Wendy Salt tells ARLnow.
Salt Pot Kitchen is looking to start serving by May 1.
The restaurant comes from mother and son team Wendy and Charlie Salt — hence, the restaurant’s name — who are currently working out of a commercial kitchen in Leesburg. This is their first brick and mortar location after mostly selling their British delicacies like sausage rolls and cottage pies wholesale and at farmers markets.
Wendy Salt says they think Ballston is the perfect location for their business because of the neighborhood’s “international demographic” made up of many who are familiar with British food from their time traveling or studying abroad. Plus, the family previously lived in nearby Falls Church for 17 years.
“We are bringing British food to the people who perhaps don’t have time to cook good wholesome food for themselves and their family,” Salt says. “We think people in this area will appreciate that.”
The menu will consist of traditional English fare, like meat pies, sausage rolls, and soups. Salt says the two most popular items at markets are the beef and mushroom pies and Wiltshire plaits (pork, apple, and cheddar cheese wrapped in a flaky pastry).
There will also be a number of vegetarian and, even, vegan options, like a vegetarian curried pasty (curried vegetables wrapped in a vegan flaky crust) and roasted cauliflower and turmeric soup.
Salt says she’s hoping to expand the menu once they get settled into the space to include other traditional British bites like bangers and mash.
Rogi owner Ed Hardy closed down his Quarter Market stand, situated near the escalator to and from the mall above, in February. At the time, he had hoped to replace it with “a series of collaborations and pop-ups from other regional restaurateurs.”
Those exact plans never materialized, but Salt Pot Kitchen was one of the potential pop-ups that was initially proposed.
The event, dubbed Enchanted Rhapsody is taking place at the intersection of 6th Street S. and S. Ball Street on Saturday from 4-7:30 p.m. It will feature food, drink and the musical stylings of the Edgewood String Quartet, which will perform classical renderings of Taylor Swift and Queen songs.
The string foursome is known for its covers of pop songs or, as the press release puts it, “think Bridgerton-style classical covers IRL.”
“An evening of Taylor Swift versus Queen songs performed by the Edgewood String Quartet will welcome the bliss of springtime and the beauty of the cherry blossoms,” an event announcement said.
While many of this season’s cherry blossoms met a gusty end last week, the National Cherry Blossom Festival continues until April 17. In Arlington, there are still petal porches to see and bike rides to take to catch what remains of this year’s blossoms.
Beginning today (Monday), the Northern Virginia-based university will be hosting a week full of events at its Arlington campus in Virginia Square on Fairfax Drive, now known as Mason Square, culminating with an outdoor concert from a local cover band on Friday night.
There is a new photo exhibit opening in Van Metre Hall tomorrow called “Profiles of Arlington” that recognizes those “who are working to impact their community, their region, and the world.”
On Wednesday, there’s set to be an official groundbreaking ceremony for the quarter of a billion dollar expansion of George Mason’s Arlington footprint. That includes the 400,000 square-foot building set to be the centerpiece of the efforts, which is being called Fuse at Mason Square.
The building will house faculty from the Institute for Digital InnovAtion as well as the university’s new School of Computing. There will also be an atrium, 750-seat theater, a public plaza, and a below-grade parking garage. The building is estimated to be completed in the summer of 2025.
While construction actually started at the beginning of the year, Wednesday’s ceremony may include some news. The university previously said it would occupy about 60% of the space with the remaining 40% likely being leased to private companies.
The groundbreaking ceremony press release promises an “announcement of a landmark tenant.”
Arlington County Board Chair Katie Cristol and Virginia’s Secretary of Education Aimee Rogstad are both scheduled to be in attendance at the groundbreaking.
Thursday marks GMU’s 50th anniversary. The university officially broke off from the University of Virginia and became independent on April 7, 1972.
Then, on Friday, Mason Square will host an outdoor concert event featuring the David Thong Band which will play cover songs from across the decades. The event asks attendees to “dress your favorite decade,” with the best costume winning a prize.
Next week, noted philosopher Cornel West is set to speak at GMU’s Arlington campus about the current state of American democracy, human rights, and critical race theory.
Foxtrot is moving into the Highlands development in Rosslyn (staff photo by Matt Blitz)
Foxtrot is moving into the Highlands development in Rosslyn (staff photo by Matt Blitz)
Boutique market, cafe, and convenience store Foxtrot is expanding into Rosslyn, looking to open its first Arlington outpost this fall.
Foxtrot, which opened its first D.C.-area location in Georgetown only a year ago, is moving into a ground floor retail space in the Highlands development at 1771 N. Pierce Street, the company announced yesterday (Thursday). Foxtrot expects to be open by “early fall.”
Foxtrot is an upscale corner store, market, and cafe that also focuses on delivery, making much of its inventory available for delivery in under an hour. That means everything from Fruit Loop Snickerdoodle cookies to White Claw hard seltzers can arrive at your door.
The Rosslyn location is one of four new Foxtrots that the company announced yesterday, including two in D.C. and one in Maryland, all of which are projected to open by the end of the year. That will make eight Foxtrots locally, including an Alexandria outpost that just opened early last month.
The menu will be the same in Rosslyn as the others, a Foxtrot spokesperson tells ARLnow. Decor will vary from location to location and is dependent on the neighborhood, though there will be some similarities across stores.
“Whether it’s a renovation of an older building or a new build, the spaces are designed to blend into the neighborhood and have a sense of place,” the spokesperson says. “Foxtrot’s new DMV-area stores will continue this model, with each site uniquely designed while still supporting the brand’s day-to-night atmosphere and incorporating signature design elements like concrete floors, hospitality lighting, wood paneling, warm color palettes and local artwork.”
Foxtrot Market was founded in 2014 and is based in Chicago, but has since expanded to the D.C. area and Texas. It recently raised $160 million and plans to open 50 stores across the country in the next two years.
The Highlands development in Rosslyn, the ground floor of which Foxtrot is moving into, completed construction last year. It features three residential towers, a park, a new fire station, and 40,000 square feet of retail space.
