Events

ACPD to Hold Free Ice Cream Event in Clarendon Next Week

By Adrian Cruz

cones-with-a-copLocals will have the chance to enjoy some ice cream with an Arlington County Police officer during a special event in Clarendon next week.

ACPD officers will set up shop outside of Goody’s (3125 Wilson Blvd) next Wednesday from noon-1 p.m. for a community outreach event called “Cones With a Cop,” according to an event flyer.

During the free event, attendees will be able to “get to know the officers and neighbors in your District while enjoying a refreshing treat,” the flyer says.

Image courtesy ACPD

Arlington County Fair to Kick Off in Two Weeks

By ARLnow.com

Image via Twitter/Arlington County Fair

The 40th Arlington County Fair is coming to town with pig races, rides, concerts and chicken teriyaki on a stick in roughly two weeks.

The fair, billed as “Groovy Since 1977,” is scheduled for Wednesday, Aug. 17, to Sunday, Aug. 21, at the Thomas Jefferson Community Center (3501 2nd Street S.)

Locals can grab their chicken teriyaki sticks from Yummy Food Corner and Grill, milkshakes from Royal Creamery and Coffee or food from more than a dozen other vendors as they check out the indoor and outdoor attractions.

The entertainment includes a parade, the Hollywood Hogs All-Star Racing Team, pony rides and live music. The fair’s outdoor stage will host DJ Funkhouse (Thursday, Aug. 18), rock group Sub-Radio Standard (Friday, Aug. 19), country singer Wesley Spangler (Saturday, Aug. 20) and R&B group The 5-1-2 Experience (Sunday, Aug. 21), among others.

The Zipper, Heart Flip and more spinning and flipping rides are are slated to return to the midway, too.

The fair will have cooking, art and vegetable-growing contests — and other competitions as well.

In celebration of the groovy theme, fairgoers can hunt for a disco ball hidden in the indoor vendor area each day and win free ride tickets if they’re the first to find it.

The fair also will have T-shirts and ride tickets for the best photograph of the festivities each day.

The grounds are open from 5 to 10 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 2 p.m. to 11 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday.

Public parking isn’t available at the fair, but shuttle buses will run from the Arlington Career Center (816 S. Walter Reed Drive) and I-66 parking garage (N. Quincy and 15th Street N.), as well as the Ballston and Pentagon City Metro stations.

Image via Twitter/Arlington County Fair

Arlington Agenda: Aug. 1-7

By Tim Regan

(Updated at 4:45 p.m.) Arlington Agenda is a listing of interesting events for the week ahead in Arlington County. If you’d like to see your event featured, fill out the event submission form.

Also, be sure to check out our event calendar.

Wednesday

Sparkling Wine Tasting*
Osteria da Nino Cucina Italiana (2900 S. Quincy Street)
Time: 5-7 p.m.

The Italian restaurant and bar hosts a free wine tasting every first Wednesday of the month. This month’s wine tasting is centered around sparkling wines and will include four different wines from across Europe.

Pokemon Go Meetup
Arlington Cinema Drafthouse (2903 Columbia Pike)
Time: 5:30-9 p.m.

The Drafthouse invites patrons to meet up and take advantage of its two Pokestops. Employees will activate lures and “random incense areas” before, during and after screening “Pokemon: The First Movie.” The event promises “pizza and wing buffet, prizes and Pokemon trainers get in for free.

Thursday

The Bow Tie Guy Launch Party
Don Tito (3165 Wilson Blvd)
Time: 5-8 p.m.

Guys in bow ties will drop by Don Tito to celebrate the official launch of BeTheBowTieGuy.com, a website that aims to unify the bow tie community and dole out free bow ties in the process. Attendees are strongly encouraged to show up in bow ties.

Saturday

Kennan GarveyThird Annual Kennan Garvey Memorial Ride
Phoenix Bikes (4200 S Four Mile Run Drive)
Time: 7 a.m.-4 p.m.

County Board Chair Libby Garvey will join other cyclists for the third annual Kennan Garvey Memorial Ride, dedicated to her late husband. The full 100 mile-long ride begins at the Phoenix Bikes shop on Four Mile Run Drive.

Iceland: A Changing Landscape*
Cherrydale Branch Library (2190 Military Road)
Time: 2-4 p.m.

Photographer Robin Kent will exhibit photos of Iceland and give a talk about her journey photographing the beautiful landscapes on the balcony of the Cherrydale Branch Library.

*Denotes featured (sponsored) content

Photos: Saturday’s ARLBBQ in Pentagon City

By ARLnow.com
1/24

Despite threatening skies, more than 160 people came out for our first-ever ARLBBQ event in Pentagon City on Saturday evening.

The free event was held at The Bartlett, the new apartment building at 520 12th Street S. in Pentagon City. Guests took advantage of a selection of local beer; platters of beef brisket, pulled pork, pork bell, and wings; and a selection of games from fussball to cornhole to giant Jenga and chess sets.

Luckily, the rain held off for the entire three-hour event, and the clouds helped to make the outdoor patio an especially comfortable option for hanging out.

We learned some things about ARLnow readers during the ARLBBQ. First, they can get really loud if the fussball competition heats up. Second, there are very few who would opt for Budweiser or Bud Light if there’s a locally-brewed pale ale or wheat beer available. Third, they can house a hundred pounds of meat like it’s nobody’s business.

Thank you to Vornado Residential for sponsoring the event, providing the space and subsidizing our food and drink. If you’re in the market for a really nice new apartment with an equally nice view, and if you want to be able to pop over to the area’s newest Whole Foods without even having to go outside, be sure to check out their current offer of up to two months free rent.

Thank you to the catering department of the new Pentagon City Whole Foods for supplying the delicious barbecue and other bites. Thank you to Omar DeBrew for our fiery logo. Finally, thank you to the Washington Wine Academy for tending bar and to Sehkraft Brewing in Clarendon for supplying a keg of their NoVa IPA, which was such a hit that it was unfortunately empty before the halfway point of the event.

If you weren’t able to attend and were really jonesing for an ARLnow t-shirt, be sure to keep an eye out for an announcement about our next event this fall. If you’d like to learn more about The Bartlett, call (844) 807-9317 to schedule a personalized tour.

Photos by John Robinson Photography

ACPD to Participate in National Night Out Events Across Arlington Tomorrow

By Adrian Cruz

National Night Out 2016 logoArlington County Police Department officers are set to meet with locals during fun community gatherings at six locations across the county tomorrow night.

The planned events are held as part of National Night Out, a “community-building campaign that promotes police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie,” according to a flyer distributed by the police department.

National Night Out celebrations are a chance for police and members of the community to come together, usually over free food and activities.

National Night Out events will be held at the following locations:

  • Arlington Forest (200 block of N. Galveston Street) at 7:30 p.m.
  • Nauck Town Square (24th Road S. and S. Shirlington Road) from 6:00-8:00 p.m.
  • Barcroft Community House (800 S. Buchanan Street) from 6:00-7:30 p.m.
  • Farlington Villages Pool 2 (3045 S. Buchanan Street) from 5:00-7:00 p.m.
  • Park Glen Condo Associations: (800 block of S. Arlington Mill Road) from 7:00-8:00 p.m.
  • Whitefield Commons: (106 N. Thomas Street) from 5:30-7:30 p.m.

Image via ACPD National Night Out Flyer

Ben’s Chili Bowl Community Day to Have Games, NatMobile

By ARLnow.com

Ben's Chili Bowl community day (Photo via Ben's Chili Bowl)

Ben’s Chili Bowl is set to throw a party with games, giveaways and the Nationals NatMobile for locals in Rosslyn this weekend.

The eatery’s second annual community day is scheduled for its location at 1725 Wilson Boulevard from noon to 2 p.m. Saturday.

The day also will include the unveiling of Ben’s Chili Bowl’s “latest family member,” spokeswoman Vida Ali said in an email. But she didn’t elaborate.

Photo via Ben’s Chili Bowl

Arlington Bookshop to Throw Party for New Harry Potter Book

By Adrian Cruz

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (Photo via WIkimedia)Muggles are set to descend on an Arlington children’s bookstore for crystal ball reading, wand-making and an owl visit this weekend in celebration of the latest installment in the Harry Potter franchise.

Child’s Play at 4510 Lee Highway is scheduled to have activities for aspiring witches and wizards Saturday before “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” comes out at midnight, according to a news release from the shop. The book, which is based on a J.K. Rowling story, is the script for an upcoming London play about Potter as an adult wizard.

The countdown until the book’s release is slated to begin at 10:30 p.m. But the shop also is planning to have free activities throughout the day to celebrate the event. According to the news release, they include:

  • A “Platform 9 3/4” photo station
  • A sorting hat station, where store visitors will receive their Hogwarts house assignment for Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw or Slytherin
  • Wand-making and Hogwarts tie-decorating
  • A “History of Magic” game, also known as Harry Potter trivia
  • Exams in divination, allowing shop visitors to have their fortunes read and to test their crystal ball-reading abilities
  • A Harry Potter-themed scavenger hunt
  • A potions snack station
  • A visit from a Potomac Overlook Park owl from 2 to 6 p.m.

“This party is going to be a glorious return to Hogwarts,” Child’s Play’s book buyer Molly Olivo said in the press release. “We will be supporting a good cause, enjoying fun wizard activities and sharing the excitement of a new Harry Potter book.”

Harry Potter fans can pre-order the book at Child’s Play or on its website. The shop will give 10 percent of the book’s proceeds to An Open Book Children’s Literacy Foundation, an organization that brings authors and books to underserved schools in the D.C. area.

Photo via Wikimedia

Arlington Agenda: July 25-31

By Jackie Friedman
Tracy Morgan (Photo by Randy Holmes/ABC)

Arlington Agenda is a listing of interesting events for the week ahead in Arlington County. If you’d like to see your event featured, fill out the event submission form.

Also, be sure to check out our event calendar.

Monday

OLL_largeFree Home Buyer Seminar*
Optime Realty (1600 Wilson Blvd, Suite 101)
Time: 6-8 p.m.

The free event will have specialists, including lenders and buyer agents, to give an overview of the buying process. Learn valuable home buying strategies that will save 3% or more when purchasing a home. All attendees will receive 2 guarantees.

Wednesday

TLT-WEB21U.S. Army’s Twilight Tattoo
Summerall Field on Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall
Time: 7-8 p.m.

The United States Army Military District of Washington invites you to experience the U.S. Army’s elite ceremonial units in action by attending a Twilight Tattoo program this summer. Twilight Tattoo is an hour-long military pageant featuring Soldiers from The 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard) and The U.S. Army Band “Pershing’s Own.”

Thursday

Image courtesy Devin HicksHaus Party
Sehkraft Brewing (925 N. Garfield Street)
Time: 5 p.m.- 1 a.m.

Sehkraft Brewery will be releasing two new beers, Sehkraft Amber and Sehkraft Solarize Saison. Local D.C. and instrumental soul band, The Junior Bryce Band will be performing starting at 8:30 p.m.

Friday

Wine in the Water Park (photo courtesy Crystal City BID)Wine in the Water Park
Crystal City Water Park (1750 Crystal Drive)
Time: 6-10 p.m.

The free event will feature live music from Johnny Artis Band, hand-selected wines from the Washington Wine Academy, and a free outdoor ArtJamz session. A cash bar is will be available at the outdoor pop-up wine and beer garden.

Saturday

water-play-flyerWater Play on the Plaza
Shirlington Branch Library (4200 Campbell Avenue)
Time: 10 a.m.-12 p.m.

Join the Northern Virginia Association for the Education of Young Children (NVAEYC) and Arlington Public Library for a water play party. All young children are welcome to come to the free event and parental supervision is required.

Tracy Morgan (Photo by Randy Holmes/ABC) Live Comedy: Tracy Morgan
Arlington Cinema Drafthouse (2903 Columbia Pike)
Time: 7 and 10 p.m.

Actor and comedian Tracy Morgan, of TV’s “30 Rock” will bring his standup comedy act to the Pike. Morgan has two scheduled performances on Saturday night. Tickets are available online for $50.

Sunday

Wine bottles in The Curious Grape in Shirlington

Summer Wine Tasting Dinner*
Osteria da Nino Cucina Italiana and Bar (2900 S. Quincy Street)
Time: 6-10 p.m.

Try four courses and five wines from the regions of Tuscany, Piedmont, Veneto, and Friuly. Signore Max Evans from Siema Wine Import of Springfield, VA will be guest speaking. Tickets cost $69 per person, not inclusive of tax and tip.

*Denotes featured (sponsored) content

‘Junior Park Ranger Ride’ Planned Along GW Memorial Parkway

By Jackie Friedman

Bikes on a tree, photo via Facebook : Kidical Mass ArlingtonThe Arlington chapter of a group centered around casual bike rides for families plans to lead a trek along George Washington Memorial Parkway this weekend.

A “Junior Park Ranger Ride” is set to kick off this Sunday at 9:30 a.m., according to Kidical Mass Arlington, the event’s organizers.

During the 60-90 minute trip, riders will hit several stops along George Washington Memorial Parkway, including the U.S. Marine Corps War Memorial, the Netherlands Carillon and Lyndon B. Johnson Memorial Grove. The ride will end up at Theodore Roosevelt Island, according to Kidical Mass.

The event will also include activities from BikeArlington and the U.S. National Park Service. All young riders will earn Junior Park Ranger credentials for the GW Parkway once the ride is complete, according to event organizers.

Photo via Facebook / Kidical Mass

Newly Redesigned Courthouse Plaza to Open Thursday

By Lindsay Smith
1/10

After years of construction, work on Courthouse Plaza is finally coming to a conclusion.

Tomorrow, a party is planned for the plaza’s reopening. The metal fencing, barricades and orange-vested workmen that have been plaguing the open area will be gone at last — leaving behind an attractive gathering space for shoppers and pedestrians.

It has been a long time in the making. We first reported that the project was behind schedule in 2011. In January, we reported that “all work is expected to be completed by this April.” Despite the delays, the project is delivering on its other promises.

The plaza now boasts an updated entryway. Trees planted along the brick walkway are surrounded by chairs, tables and wood planters that double as benches. There are potted plants, trees and metal tables. New brick pavers keep the area looking clean and organized.

With renovations to two parking garages and to the AMC movie theater, some of the nearby amenities were also improved during the long plaza project.

To celebrate, Arlington County, Courthouse Plaza owner Vornado and the Clarendon-Courthouse Civic Association are sponsoring a “Party on the Plaza.” The event is taking place this Thursday, July 21, from 5-7 p.m.

The event will feature music, games, free food and giveaways.

Arlington Agenda: July 18-24

By Jackie Friedman

Arlington Agenda is a listing of interesting events for the week ahead in Arlington County. If you’d like to see your event featured, fill out the event submission form.

Also, be sure to check out our event calendar.

Monday

event_beer

Beer Pairing Dinner*
Osteria da Nino Cucina Italiana (2900 S. Quincy Street)
Time: 6-10 p.m.

Try four courses, featuring beers from Greenbrier Valley Brewing Co. from West Virginia. Co-owner William D. Laska will be the guest speaker. The meal is $40 per person, not inclusive of tax and tip. A full menu has yet to be announced.

Tuesday

CCL-LogoCitizens Climate Lobby Summer Kickoff
Arlington Central Library (1015 N. Quincy Street)
Time: 6:30-9:30 p.m.

During the two day meeting, participants will work together to generate the political will necessary for passage of new climate legislation as well as engaging with elected officials, the media, and the public on environmental issues.

Wednesday

OneMorePageBooksFrackopoly Book Talk
One More Page Books (2200 N. Westmoreland Street)
Time: 7-8:30 p.m.

Food & Water Watch Executive Director Wenonah Hauter will be visiting Arlington to discuss her book “Frackopoly: The Battle for the Future of Energy and the Environment.” The event is free but participants must register online.

Thursday

MG_9264The U.S. Army Band In Concert
Brucker Hall on Fort Myer (400 McNair Road)
Time: 7:30-9 p.m.

The U.S. Army Band “Pershing’s Own” welcomes guest conductor Craig Kirchhoff as part of the 2016 U.S. Army Band Conductors Workshop. The free program will include highlights from Copland’s Symphony No. 3, Arturo Marquez’s Danzon No. 2, and staples of the wind ensemble repertoire by Samuel Barber, Percy Grainger, and John Philip Sousa.

Green Flash and Alpine Pint NightSehkraft Brewing in Clarendon
Sehkraft Brewing (925 N. Garfield Street)
Time: 5-8 p.m.

The Green Flash Southeast Sales Team, also known at the Yeastie Boys, will be on hand for pint night. Sehkraft Brewery will also be releasing their newest beer, Pro Forma Pils. Local D.C. band Surprise Attack will be performing at 8:30 p.m.

Clarendon GrillParty Like It’s at Clarendon Grill
Clarendon Grill (1101 N. Highland Street)
Time: 9:30 p.m.-12 a.m.

Local party band Party Like It’s will be performing at Thursday night show at Clarendon Grill. The seven piece band from D.C. plays a mixture of current hits and classic songs as well as songs from the 80s, 90s and 2000s.

mfThe Shack Band Performs at the Shirlala Musical Festival
Shirlington Village (2700 S. Quincy Street)
Time: 6:30-8:30 p.m.

The Village at Shirlington is hosting live music every Thursday evening through Labor Day. This week will feature a performance by southern funk group The Shack Band. The concert is free.

Friday

Crystal City Wine in the Water Park (courtesy Crystal City BID)

Wine in the Water Park
Crystal City Water Park (1750 Crystal Drive)
Time: 6-10 p.m.

The free event will feature live music from Fat Liver Jenkins, hand-selected wines from the Washington Wine Academy, and a free outdoor ArtJamz session. A cash bar is will be available at the outdoor pop-up wine and beer garden.

Rosslyn Outdoor Film Festival (file photo)Rosslyn Summer Film Fest: Casablanca
Gateway Park (1300 Lee Hwy)
Time: Starts after sundown

The classic 1942 film,”Casablanca” will be shown after sundown. Admission is free. The film festival will feature food, beer and wine from local restaurants and food trucks. Films will be shown every Friday until August 26.

*Denotes featured (sponsored) content

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