The National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial (courtesy of 9/11 Trail)
The National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial is currently closed to the public due COVID protocols and may not be open to the public by September 11, a Pentagon spokesperson confirms to ARLnow.
At this point, it’s unlikely that the memorial in Arlington will be reopened to the public on September 11, the 20th anniversary of the attack on the Pentagon.
“We can not predict when it will be open again,” Pentagon spokesperson Susan Gough tells ARLnow.
As of August 2, the Pentagon reservation has been under Health Protection Condition Bravo (HPCON Bravo), meaning there’s “moderate” community transmission. This lines up with CDC’s data on August 2 showing that Arlington, as a whole, was seeing “substantial” community transmission. (It was recently upgraded to “high” by the CDC.)
Gough says the restrictions on the memorial will only loosen when the entire reservation moves to HPCON Alpha — “limited” community transmission.
While the memorial is outside, it operates under the parameters of the entire Pentagon. Meaning, it will only reopen to the public when the Defense Department shifts the entire reservation back to HPCON Alpha.
While the memorial probably won’t be open for visitation by the general public, there will be a small ceremony on the morning of September 11 for families and invited guests only.
Fannie McNeil with family (Photo courtesy of Tiffany Jones)
Long-time Arlington resident and community leader Fannie McNeil died late last month at the age of 84, her family tells ARLnow.
A constant presence at Lomax A.M.E Zion Church on 24th Road S., McNeil was a member of numerous boards there and the founder of the SPICE (Sisters Providing Information & Christian Encouragement) program. Since the early 1990s, the church program has mentored hundreds of young women in the community.
“She really had us learn the importance of community, love, and women empowerment,” says Reba Nettles, McNeil’s daughter.
McNeil grew up in North Carolina and moved to Arlington’s Green Valley neighborhood in her early 20s with her husband.
A few years later, in the 1960s and with a growing family, they moved to the Columbia Pike corridor, right off of S. Fillmore Street. In the early 1970s, they moved to the Johnson’s Hill neighborhood, now known as Arlington View.
It was then that McNeil became a single mother, raising six children by herself. She also had eight grandchildren, three of which she raised, as well as 13 great-grandchildren, all while living in the Columbia Pike corridor and working to clean residences for more than fifty years.
And she loved her community.
Family describes how she would invite the entire neighborhood over for parties, donating countless hours and money to her church, mentoring children in the community, and bringing food to election officers at Carver Community Center on election day.
“My grandmother, when she would go vote, she would bring food for everyone,” says her granddaughter, Tiffany Jones.
Despite her positive attitude, life wasn’t always easy.
“It was a hard struggle for her,” says Nettles. “But my mother was always there for us… She never missed a step.”
She became an entrepreneur, creating a home cleaning business that allowed the family to live comfortably. The kids and grandchildren say they were never left wanting, always having food, nice dresses, and a loving home.
“This was a woman who witnessed lynchings and was in the era of the [Ku Klux Klan] and surviving that, coming to Arlington County, and building a foundation,” says Danielle McNeill, another granddaughter of Fannie’s. “I mean, she was just so phenomenal.”
As Nettles puts it, “My mother was a role model for all of us.”
She was long-time and welcoming presence at Lomax A.M.E Zion Church, says Brenda Cox who is the chairperson on the church’s historical committee as well as McNeil’s neighbor in Johnson’s Hill.
“They don’t make them like Mrs. McNeil anymore,” Cox says. “She was a pillar of our church and will be missed.”
She was also an amazing cook, so much so that the kids would fight over who would sit next to McNeil at church to get first dibs on what was being prepared for Sunday night family dinner.
“We even got her to cook for her own birthday party,” laughs April Nettles, a granddaughter. “Her own surprise birthday party, at that.”
Cox says at every big church event and moment, McNeil was there, usually doing what she did best.
“She was always in the middle of it,” says Cox. “Probably cooking.”
As McNeil grew older, she saw her neighborhood changing. Johnson’s Hill was first established in the 1880s and in close proximity to Freedman’s Village, which was in the process being closed by the federal government. By the turn of the century, 300 to 400 Black residents lived in Johnson’s Hill. In the 1960s, and around the time McNeil moved in, that number had tripled.
Arlington Cinema and Drafthouse (staff photo by Vernon Miles)
Arlington Cinema and Drafthouse remains committed to its full slate of upcoming shows scheduled for the fall, owner Tim Clark says, but he’s it taking it week-by-week.
As Covid rates rise once again in the county and masks are back to being strongly recommended indoors no matter vaccination status, Clark acknowledges this is cause of concern for the decades-old Columbia Pike theater and venue. He says he’s already had one prominent comic push back performance dates.
“I don’t know if there’s going to be others. I think we’re just going to see where this thing goes,” Clark tells ARLnow. “Either way, we will have to adjust.”
What’s currently online represents the most up-to-date bookings, he says.
The schedule lists a number of well-known comedy acts that will be taking the stage, including:
There’s also a special screening of the cult classic movie “The Room” with co-star Greg Sestero — who wrote the book The Disaster Artist about his experience making the “so bad it’s good” movie — in attendance.
Clark notes that while people are coming out, business and audiences are not back to what they were pre-pandemic.
“Comics that typically have a pretty good draw are a little bit lighter,” Clark says. “The comics that have a really good draw are not quite fully back to selling out shows.”
Arlington Drafthouse is still limiting capacity to about 65% in order to space out tables and give audience members a bit more room. The initial goal was to go back to allowing full capacity this month, but Clark admits that he’ll have to see what happens over the next few days in terms of any mask or capacity mandates.
“I don’t think it will change what we do a whole lot, but we will have to keep making adjustments,” he said.
It’s been a trying 18 months for the Drafthouse. Management closed up the theater in mid-March 2020, like many other businesses, and re-opened in August 2020 with severely reduced capacity.
In late winter, the theater started screening favorite, older movies like Lord of the Rings and Notting Hill, but it was barely sustainable with only 30% capacity allowed.
“I don’t think many restaurant theater business operations are built to run on 30%,” said Clark at the time. “And that’s 30% if we sell out, and we’re not selling out every show. If you take averages and you’re at 20%, it’s really not sustainable.”
Clark says now they are pivoting again away from movies, at least temporarily, and are concentrating on booking comics.
“I think comedy is the long term for us, especially those primetime weekends,” he says. Right now, Drafthouse is booking big name acts on Friday and Saturday nights and leaving Sunday open for “up and comers.”
Clark also says private rentals have helped the business significantly and has seen an influx of them in recent months, with smaller groups renting out the entire theater for screenings, parties, and performances
At this point, Clark says, all they can do is stay patient, take one day a time, and adjust when needed.
“The way things are going, it’s like every time we try to get [ahead of things], it’s like totally opposite,” says Clark. “We’re just going to ride the wave and do what we need to do to stay afloat and just continue to hope that this thing clears up and gets better.”
The Salt Line in Ballston under construction in July (staff photo)
Salt Line in Ballston construction (staff photo)
The Salt Line in Ballston under construction in July (staff photo)
The Salt Line in Ballston is now “looking at a September opening,” restaurant representatives tell ARLnow.
This another push back from the restaurant’s initial opening in spring 2020. Pandemic-related delays caused that to be moved to 2021. Then, construction delays shifted it again to summer and, now, opening appears to be set for late summer or early fall.
Current construction does appear to be further along than it was two months ago, with ARLnow observing several people working on the outdoor bar.
When the restaurant was first announced in January 2019, the Arlington County Board had to approve the building of the outdoor portion of the restaurant since the plan was for it to be permanent.
The Salt Line is located at the base of 4040 Wilson Blvd. in Ballston, the tallest building in the neighborhood.
The seafood spot comes from D.C-based Long Shot Hospitality and will be the second location of the popular Navy Yard restaurant. That location was the Washington Nationals’ unofficial party spot during their World Series run in 2019, partly due to Ryan Zimmerman being an investor and part-owner.
The 3,800-square-foot space in Ballston will include spread-out booths, a large patio, and outdoor bar and lounge area in response to “COVID-conscious guests requests for more space,” we’re told.
The kitchen will be managed by executive chef Matt Singer and Kyle Bailey of Long Shot Hospitality. The Ballston restaurant will have a menu similar to that of the Navy Yard location, including clam chowder, lobster rolls, rockfish, and clams. The seafood is sourced from a New York-based cooperative supplemented by local, freshly caught fish from Maryland.
There will also be house-made pastas, daily lunch service, and an “expanded selection of crudos.”
A crowd of just under 3,000 well-wishers assembled feet from the doors of the Lubber Run Community Center, near Ballston, which just opened to the public earlier this month after serving as a vaccination site.
Biden’s motorcade arrived at the park at 6:50 p.m., after speeding past restaurants and onlookers in Arlington, according to a White House press pool report. There were “a couple dozen protesters” of various stripes outside the event, including those against fracking, oil pipelines, and abortion.
After arriving, Biden spoke with a group of DACA recipients, met with McAuliffe, and took photos with numerous state and local officials. He took the stage around 8 p.m. and spoke for about 30 minutes, highlighting his agreement with McAuliffe on just about every every issue.
The president talked about jobs, increasing the minimum wage, and veteran assistance, while also criticizing McAuliffe’s Republican opponent in the race, Glenn Youngkin. He also expressed concern about rising Covid numbers.
Biden complimented current Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam efforts in helping to “get shots in arms,” but said there’s still work to be done.
“What we have now is a pandemic of the unvaccinated,” Biden said.
The president also noted, if McAuliffe is elected, he would once again be the First Lady Jill Biden’s boss, due to her being a professor at Northern Virginia Community College.
As the president spoke, uniformed Secret Service members with large binoculars watched over the crowd from the roof of the community center. At least one helicopter also buzzed overhead.
At one point, a group of hecklers started shouting something about a pipeline.
“This is not a Trump rally,” Biden said, according to the pool report. “Let ’em holler. No one’s paying attention.”
Prior to Biden and McAuliffe speaking, Dr. Leonard N. Smith, Senior Minister of Mount Zion Baptist Church in Green Valley, gave an invocation. McAuliffe later came out to Mark Morrison’s 1996 hit Return of the Mack before speaking for about 15 minutes. (“Returnofthemack” was also the event’s WiFi password.)
Other speakers included a bevy of Democrats: Virginia Speaker of the House Eileen Filler-Corn, lieutenant governor candidate Hala Ayala, Attorney General Mark Herring, Northam and Rep. Don Beyer.
Arlington County Board Chair Matt de Ferranti, County Board members Takis Karantonis and Katie Cristol, Arlington School Board Chair Barbara Kanninen, School Board member Monique O’Grady, Arlington Commonwealth’s Attorney Parisa Dehghani-Tafti, and Del. Alfonso Lopez were also in attendance.
This, of course, isn’t the first — nor, likely, the last — time Biden has come across the Potomac, but this is the first time many locals can remember a president has come to their neighborhood.
Ray Payton lives in Buckingham and grew up nearby, graduating from Yorktown High School.
“I don’t know when a president has come to the neighborhood before,” Payton said earlier in the evening. “And I’ve been here all of my life.”
Balvinder Sehmi lives just a few doors down from the community center, in a house she’s lived in for 47 years. This is also the only insistence she can remember of a president stopping by.
“I’m surprised he’s here,” she said excitedly, above the din of the crowd. “I’m going to tell people he was at my house.”
Mattie and Eddie’s at Westpost in Pentagon City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Mattie and Eddie’s at Westpost in Pentagon City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Mattie and Eddie’s logo (courtesy photo)
When Pentagon City’s Mattie and Eddie’s opened earlier this year, it immediately garnered a lot of attention. For its owner, though, the restaurant is personal.
“It’s a very personal story,” chef and restaurateur Cathal Armstrong tells ARLnow about the Irish pub’s origins. “There are pubs all over Ireland that have great food and I wanted to show that… and be respectful to my grandparents.”
Mattie and Eddie’s is named after the Dublin native’s grandparents — Martha and Eddie — and the logo featuring two well-dressed figures was designed by Armstrong’s brother.
“Every restaurant we’ve ever done… is an expression of something personal,” he says. “Each one has its own sense of community… and I’ve always wanted to do something along my own heritage, my own roots.”
In late March, Mattie and Eddie’s opened its doors in the former Siné space at Westpost (formerly Pentagon Row).
“It wasn’t necessarily something we planned. It just kind of fell into my lap. The landlord reached out to us and they had a space available and asked if I was interested,” says Armstrong. “It was just a kind of serendipity.”
This is Armstrong’s eleventh restaurant and first in Arlington since Society Fair closed on Columbia Pike in 2014.
He says Pentagon City offers a chance to be near a nexus of restaurant-goers; those commuting on Metro, those who live in the big apartment buildings close by, office workers and nearby Amazon employees, and tourists staying at hotels. Plus, there’s plenty of parking for those who choose to drive.
“That’s definitely a big appeal because people have a tendency to go to where there’s a lot of activity,” says Armstrong. “They might go to Nighthawk Pizza for dinner and come to us for a pint afterwards… There’s a perfect kind of symbiosis of restaurants feeding off each other.”
He admits business hasn’t fully returned to what could have been expected pre-pandemic. Armstrong says they are still operating at about 50% of what the restaurant is capable of.
But he remains encouraged that things will continue in a positive direction. Nothing made him feel more like things were slowly getting back to normal than the day in May when Virginia allowed bar seating again.
“I didn’t even realize it…. until the stools came back, that it was just kind of sad without bar stools,” he says, “And now it’s much more fun and lively.”
Nonetheless, Armstrong — like many others — are concerned about the Delta variant, vaccination rates, and increasing COVID cases.
“I’m kind of conservatively expecting not to get back to what we would call normal before spring of next year,” he says.
As for the future, Armstrong has toyed with opening a scaled-down version of Restaurant Eve (which closed in Old Town Alexandria three years ago) and maybe a more modern-styled Irish restaurant.
But, for right now, he’s happy with sticking to his other restaurants and shepherding Mattie and Eddie’s.
“I don’t foresee myself doing anything else for a couple of years,” says Armstrong. “We’ve got to get back to normal first.”
Lucky Danger menu items (Photo courtesy of Lucky Danger)
Aabee Express at Pentagon Row in 2018
Chef Tim Ma (Photo courtesy of Lucky Danger)
Lucky Danger’s Pentagon City outpost is finally set to open on Wednesday (July 21), according to a restaurant press release.
The popular D.C.-based Chinese-American pop-up restaurant is taking up residence at Westpost (formerly Pentagon Row) at 1101 S. Joyce Street. It moves into the space previously occupied by Aabee Express Mediterranean, which closed nearly a year ago.
The Arlington location will be the highly-regarded concept’s first permanent location, after the success of their pop-up in D.C.’s Mount Vernon Triangle neighborhood.
“We noticed a lot of our guests were actually driving over from Arlington, Alexandria to D.C. to pick up food,” Lucky Danger’s executive chef Andrew Chiou tells ARLnow. “So, we might as well go to them.”
The restaurant had initially targeted an April opening back when they first announced their expansion in February.
The opening was delayed for two reasons, Chiou tells ARLnow. First, co-owner and local chef Tim Ma’s continued activism work while co-founding Chefs Stopping AAPI Hate took bandwidth and priority. At the same time, the fabrication of custom-built equipment took longer than expected.
Lucky Danger will be take-out and delivery-only — there is no on-location sit down capacity.
Orders will be taken via an “in-person kiosk” at the location for the time being, according to the press release. Online ordering is expected to be available in the “coming weeks.”
Chiou says this was done with not just pandemic-related safety in mind, but also to pay employees more.
“We want to pay our staff more… to make up for lost time from earlier in the year,” says Chiou. “In order to do that, we have to save costs in other places.”
That meant not having a cashier and servers.
The menu at Westpost will be much the same as the one in D.C., but there will be a few additions including pan fried scallion pancakes, deep fried shrimp spring rolls, General Tso’s chicken, and Moo Shu pork wrapped in a housemade pancake. Every order comes with a “fistful of fortune cookies,” per the press release.
Chiou says they often got requests from guests for other favorite Chinese-American dishes and decided to start making them.
“We’re already moving the location to where our guests are. So, might as well also give them the food they want,” Chiou says.
Initially the restaurant will only be open for dinner Wednesday through Sunday, but the plan is to be open seven days a week and for lunch. However, the restaurant is still hiring and is not ready to move to expanded hours quite yet, says Chiou.
The hope is that this Arlington location is just the first in Lucky Danger’s expansion.
Chiou says the thought is to open a number of Lucky Danger outposts across the area, including more in Arlington, that are closer together, smaller, and remain top quality. This could mean food sells out faster (which is often the case in D.C.), but that’s okay.
“We want to open a few more spaces that aren’t too far apart [from each other],” says Chiou. “So that everyone can have access to Lucky Danger.”
Children and Arlington Public Library Director Diane Kresh, right, prepare to cut a ribbon to open the newly renovated Columbia Pike Public Library (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Arlington Public Library Director Diane Kresh delivers remarks at the newly renovated Columbia Pike Public Library (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Looking for books at the Columbia Pike Branch Library (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Former Harlem Globetrotter Spencer “Spinny” Johnson gets help balancing a spinning basketball at the newly renovated Columbia Pike Branch Library (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Looking for books at the Columbia Pike Branch Library (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
A band performs at the re-opening of the Columbia Pike Branch Library (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
(Updated at 2:40 p.m.) With a snip of a ribbon, the newly-renovated Columbia Pike Branch Library officially opened for the first time since March 2020.
The library on S. Walter Reed Drive, which first opened in 1975, underwent a significant makeover including new furnishings, updated carpeting, fresh coats of paint, additional meeting rooms, modernized audio-visual equipment and new lighting.
The 21,000-item collection has been consolidated to the first floor to make room for an expansion of the Arlington Tech high school program. The program is part of the Arlington Career Center, located on the second floor of the facility.
“We didn’t lose any collections, we gained a couple of meeting rooms, and we gained more discrete spaces,” Arlington Public Library Director Diane Kresh tells ARLnow. “[The renovation] opened up what had been a lot of wasted space. It really feels bigger.”
Renovations for the entire project, on the first and second floors, cost approximately $4.45 million, according to a spokesperson from Arlington Public Schools, which owns the building.
Kresh says APS’s ownership of the building presented a chance to make the library better.
“The library has always shared the space with schools. It’s a well-loved facility and showed a lot of wear and tear,” says Kresh. “So, when the schools planned to renovate and increase the space of the Career Center, that gave us an opportunity to consolidate down here and do a redesign.”
Kresh notes that while closing the libraries last year due to the pandemic was difficult for staff and the community, there was a “silver lining” — the renovations could get done.
The library opened to the public on Tuesday, but the celebration was held yesterday evening (Thursday).
With a vaccination rate close to 70% for adults, people packed the community library. There were donuts and cookies, and kids eating said treats while darting one way and another. A magician performed for a rapt audience. After remarks and ribbon cutting, a cover band churned out classics such as “Do Wah Diddy Diddy Dum Diddy.” The entire Arlington County Board was in attendance, as was County Manager Mark Schwartz and Del. Alfonso Lopez.
Board Vice-Chair Katie Cristol says celebrating the reopening of this library — her neighborhood library — after such a hard year is welcome.
“It’s a sign of restoration of things, things coming back to normal,” Cristol tells ARLnow. “It is also the first sign of the community being able to come back together, which is definitely what we see going on around here.”
Cristol said her favorite thing about coming to the library was to browse new fiction releases, but that’s changed.
“I now have a two-year old who loves books, so I think my favorite thing about the library is about to be this community room,” she said.
As of Tuesday, library services have expanded at five locations: Columbia Pike, Central Library, Aurora Hills, Shirlington and Westover. This ends the express service model that APL had implemented earlier this year.
New Hours at all Five Open Locations: – Monday/Tuesday: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. – Wednesday/Thursday: 12 p.m. – 7 p.m. – Friday/Saturday: 12 p.m. – 5 p.m. https://t.co/KNjso8PCS3
— Arlington VA Pub Lib (@ArlingtonVALib) July 2, 2021
Patrons now have full access to library collections with no time limit on browsing. Spaced seating is available to use the public Wi-Fi along with full access to restrooms and water fountains.
Co-owners Danny Lee and Scott Drewno (Photo courtesy of CHIKO).
Mock Up of Chiko in Shirlington, set to open this fall (Photo courtesy of CHIKO)
Double-fried wings at Chiko (Co-owners Danny Lee and Scott Drewno (Photo courtesy of CHIKO)
Co-owners Danny Lee and Scott Drewno cooking (Photo courtesy of CHIKO).
Dessert at Chiko (Photo courtesy of CHIKO)
A popular D.C.-based Chinese and Korean restaurant is coming to Shirlington later this year.
Chiko is set to open in the fall at 4040 Campbell Avenue, in the heart of Shirlington Village. It’s moving into the former location of DAK Chicken, which closed last summer.
This will be Chiko’s fourth location and first one in Virginia.
“We are excited to bring CHIKO to this amazing community,” wrote co-owner and chef Scott Drewno in the press release. “Danny and I felt Shirlington was a perfect spot as our first foray into Virginia. We are looking forward to cooking for you all in Fall of 2021.”
The restaurant is known for its dim sum, double-fried chicken wings, and fried rice. The menu will also include dishes found at the other locations including Cumin Lamb Stir Fry, Soy Glazed Brisket, and Orange-ish Chicken
“Guests will delight in the cleverly crafted menu by Chefs Danny Lee and Scott Drewno composed of a new, exclusive fried rice to this location,” notes the press release. “We will also introduce a new dessert and a few surprises for Virginia.”
The restaurant will be about 1500 square feet and be able to accommodate 30 seated guests while offering “fast-paced carry-out.” The location was designed by D.C.-based Natalie Park Design Studio.
“Federal Realty is excited to add a second CHIKO location to our DC-metro portfolio. The Bethesda location has seen incredible success during a very challenging time, and we look forward to the same in The Village at Shirlington,” writes Stuart Biel of Federal Realty, which owns the shopping center. “CHIKO’s incredible reputation and loyal following means yet another quality food option in the Village.”
So far there’s no word on an exact opening date.
Chiko is not the only new business set to open in Shirlington come the fall. Bearded Goat Barber is also planning an autumn debut.
The Japanese and sushi restaurant’s last day of service was this past Saturday (July 3), confirmed the owner, Nakano, to ARLnow.
However, Nakano also said he’s going to reopen his business at Penrose Square in the space formerly occupied by Josephine’s Italian Kitchen (and before that Marble & Rye and RedRocks), near the Giant grocery store. That space hasn’t been occupied for more than two years.
He expects to open his restaurant there in early September.
ARLnow reached out to the developer BM Smith for further details, but has yet to hear back as of publication.
Takohachi Japanese Restaurant is one of the last businesses still open at Westmont Shopping Center. Mom’s Pizza closed earlier this summer after more than three decades there. Boston Market closed last May as did Papa John’s earlier this year (the chain pizza place moved across the street).
In September 2019, the Arlington County Board approved the aging shopping center’s redevelopment. Described as an “extreme makeover,” it will include 22,500 square feet of new retail space with 250 market rate apartments built above. A small-format grocery store could be one of the new retail options. Parking will be pushed underground, into a two-floor parking garage.
Demolition of the shopping center is expected to happen very soon, with construction expected to start late this year and project completion in 2024.
ARLnow has reached out to the property management company Polinger Company for an updated timeline but has yet to hear back.
The Brass Rabbit Pub is coming soon to the former site of Bracket Room (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
(Updated at 1:40 p.m.) A new bar is coming to Clarendon, moving into the space formerly occupied by the Bracket Room.
Brass Rabbit Public House is coming to 1210 N. Garfield Street. At this point, little information is known about an opening date or specifics. It appears their Facebook page and Instagram were just created late last week, providing few details.
The restaurant’s website does say that the restaurant will serve “elevated pub fare with a healthy twist.” This includes “unique salads and lettuce wrap creations.” For those that don’t want to stick to rabbit food, there will also be burgers, wings, and sandwiches.
“To keep the place hoppin’,” as the website notes, there will also be 14 beers on draft, craft cocktails, house-infused cocktails, and an extensive wine list.
It will also have brunch, happy hour, and NFL and NHL game packages on the TVs.
The Bracket Room closed earlier this year after about seven and half years in Clarendon. It first opened in September 2013, saying it was offering a higher-end, “female-friendly” experience. It was co-founded by Chris Bukowski of “The Bachelorette” fame.
