Ballston

When the Ballston Silver Diner opens this fall, the long-time Clarendon location will close

By Matt Blitz
1/4

When the new Ballston Silver Diner opens, the Clarendon location will close.

Silver Diner is now planning to start serving at 750 N. Glebe Road in October 2022, a company spokesperson tells ARLnow. This is bit of push from its initial “summer 2022” debut that’s still being advertised on its storefront throughout construction.

When it does open, though, the long-time Silver Diner at 3200 Wilson Blvd in Clarendon will shutter after 26 years.

“The current Clarendon location will close the day after the new location opens,” a spokesperson said, confirming what has long been expected given redevelopment plans for the Clarendon site. “Their lease is ending so they’re moving as close as possible to their current location.”

The new Silver Diner is about a mile from the current location. What’s somewhat surprising, perhaps, is that it will shutter as soon as the new diner opens. The closure will make way for a new development that’s set to include a hotel, gym, and a 286-unit residential building.

The Ballston Silver Diner was first announced five years ago as part of the new Waycroft apartment building, which also includes a Target store that opened on the ground floor in the summer of 2020.

The new 6,700-square-foot restaurant is set to have a 68-seat outdoor cafe, which was just given a thumbs-up by the Arlington Planning Commission this month.

While last year’s application noted that “the applicant anticipates operating the restaurant 24 hours a day,” the spokesperson said this won’t be the case. The Ballston restaurant will keep the same hours as the Clarendon location, which operates 21 hours a day — from 7 a.m. to 4 a.m. — on Fridays and Saturdays, while closing 2-3 hours earlier on other days of the week.

“Many restaurants apply for permitting for longer hours, just in case anything changes in future but none of the Silver Diner restaurants operate 24 hours,” the spokesperson wrote.

The outdoor seating, meanwhile, will be open “seasonally.”

Construction is ongoing at the future diner, with fences protruding into the sidewalk and wires dotting the side of the building.

Hawkers Asian Street Food set to open next week in Ballston

By Matt Blitz
1/6

Hawkers in Ballston is setting its sights on opening next week.

The Orlando-based Asian street food restaurant chain is looking to open on Thursday, August 4 on the ground floor of the Ballston Exchange office building at 4201 Wilson Blvd. It’s across from Philz and next to El Ray taqueria.

The opening comes two years after it was first announced and more than a year after the restaurant was initially supposed to open in the spring of 2021. Then, its debut got pushed to earlier this summer due to supply chain woes, a common occurrence for restaurants these days.

Now, Hawkers seems finally ready to start serving in the first week of August.

When ARLnow went there this morning (July 25), construction appeared to be basically complete and employees were in the midst of training. There’s a bit of a neon aesthetic — in keeping with the street food theme — with the exterior signage wired up to glow red and the interior hued yellow. Posters plaster the walls and grates cover the ceiling.

The menu highlights street food from across the Asian continent, including dim sum, baos, chicken wings, pad thai, noodle dishes, and fried rice.

The Ballston location will also be offering rotating seasonal flavors of Taiyaki soft serve ice cream, a first for any Hawkers location.

Hawkers was founded in central Florida in 2011 when “four best friends joined forces (like the Avengers, but better) to bring the streets of Asia to the streets of Orlando.” The restaurant now has about a dozen locations in six different states, including a Bethesda outpost which opened in late 2020.

When Hawkers opens in Ballston next week, it will be the first Virginia location as well as the first to have a take-out window. The Ballston location is a “bit smaller” than the one in Bethesda, a restaurant spokesperson tells us.

There are a number of jobs listed as still being open, including server, prep cook, host, and bartender.

Ballston’s Pirouette Café & Wine Shop looking to start pouring by September

By Matt Blitz
Pirouette Cafe in Ballston (photo by Jay Westcott)

Arlington’s newest wine bar is aiming for a September opening.

Pirouette Café & Wine Shop is in the midst of construction on the ground floor of J Sol apartments at 4000 Fairfax Drive, in the Ballston area.

The new wine bar, restaurant, and shop is from the wife and husband team of Jackie and Philippe Loustaunau. ARLnow first reported its move into the ground floor of the 326-unit high-rise apartment building in January.

All is going well with construction, Jackie tells ARLnow, and the hope is to open the restaurant part of the business by mid to late September. The wine shop portion of the business could open sooner, she said, perhaps as soon as early September, depending on when the ABC license is approved.

“Our walls are up, some mudded, some covered in [fiber-reinforced plastic] and others tiled,” the co-owner said. “The construction company is doing excellent work carrying out our architect’s design… and troubleshooting challenges throughout the process.”

Construction was set back a few weeks, a common occurrence for Arlington restaurants, particularly recently.

The restaurant/bar/shop’s aim is to have a “casual feel” that takes the “intimidation” out of wine. Executive chef Adam Hoffa, who previously worked at Fiola and St. Anselm in the District, is planning to serve “global” cuisine with a menu featuring an assortment of small plates, desserts, and a few entrees like house-made focaccia, scallops, mac & cheese croquettes, and corn cake with summer fruit compote.

The couple said they’ve always wanted to open a restaurant in their hometown. They often hoped that when a new mixed-use building went up it would include a local restaurant or bar. But that never happened, Jackie said, until they decided to do it themselves.

The couple, along with their child, lives in Virginia Square, only a few blocks away from Pirouette, which was part of the appeal.

“I love the idea of meeting our customers in the street, going to the park and seeing them with their children, seeing folks at school,” Philippe said in February. “This is a neighborhood environment, which I think creates community and connects people.”

NEW: Possible abduction attempt near Ballston

By ARLnow.com

An older man may have tried to abduct a boy who was riding his bike in the Ballston area yesterday (Tuesday) evening.

Police say the incident happened just before 7 p.m. on the 4100 block of 4th Street N., in the Buckingham neighborhood.

A man in his 50s or 60s struck up a conversation with a boy then tried to grab him, according to Arlington County police. The boy then confronted the suspect, who drove off.

From today’s ACPD crime report:

ATTEMPTED ABDUCTION, 2022-07190178, 4100 block of 4th Street N. At approximately 6:50 p.m. on July 19, police were dispatched to the report of an attempted abduction. Upon arrival, it was determined the juvenile male victim was riding his bicycle in the area when the unknown suspect attempted to make contact with him from inside a parked vehicle. The victim initially approached the vehicle believing he knew the suspect, at which time the suspect attempted to reach out towards the victim’s arm. The victim confronted the suspect and he fled the scene in the vehicle. The suspect is described as a white male, 50-60 years old with short white hair wearing a short-sleeve collared shirt and dark sunglasses. There is no description of the vehicle. The investigation is ongoing.

Also according to the crime report, a man was robbed of a laptop by a suspect armed with a gun during a “pre-arranged sale.” It happened yesterday afternoon along S. Glebe Road, in the Green Valley neighborhood.

The robbery suspect, like the abduction suspect, is still on the loose.

ROBBERY, 2022-07190142, 1900 block of S. Glebe Road. At approximately 4:21 p.m. on July 19, police were dispatched to the report of an armed robbery. Upon arrival, it was determined the victim and suspect met for the prearranged sale of electronics. During the attempted sale, the suspect brandished a firearm, threatened the victim and fled the scene on foot with the stolen laptop. A lookout was broadcast for the suspect and officers canvassed the area which yielded negative results. The suspect is described as a Black male, 20-27 years old, approximately 5’8, approximately 170 lbs, wearing a black hoodie and black jeans. The investigation is ongoing.

Ballston breakfast and lunch spot Laura Cooks is closed after decades in business

By Matt Blitz
1/2

Ballston breakfast and lunch spot Laura Cooks is now closed after 18 years at its current location on N. Randolph Street.

Today (July 13) was the restaurant’s last lunch rush, owner Laura Hong tells ARLnow. Although both the website and the sign on the door note tomorrow (July 14) as the closing date, Hong clarifies that’s a mistake.

Laura Cooks was a deli-style lunch and breakfast spot that was open from 6 a.m. to 2:30 p.m, located on N. Randolph Street just a half block from Wilson Blvd (and in close proximity to ARLnow’s office). It served sandwiches, breakfast burritos, omelets, pancakes, and burgers all morning and afternoon.

The restaurant is closing because Hong is retiring after more than four decades cooking, memorizing orders, and running a business.

“I’ve doing this for 45 years and all of my kids are grown. They want to travel with me and I couldn’t do that because I’m always here,” she says. “Now, I’ll be able to do that.”

Laura Cooks began as a sidewalk snack bar before moving to various locations in and around Ballston. It eventually landed at its current location on 875 N. Randolph Street in the mid-2000s, and that’s where Laura Cooks has remained ever since.

Hong says that her long-time landlord, local developer Fred Schnider, always made sure her business stayed afloat and had a place to go even during tough times. The decision to retire and close was hers, Hong notes.

“It’s bittersweet to announce Laura is retiring and closing down the store… Laura has been serving Ballston for over 45 years and loving every moment,” reads the sign on the door. “She will miss getting to see all of her customers (and memorized orders) she’s gotten to know over the years. Thank you again for supporting Laura.”

While Laura Cooks is closing down, Hong insists that she won’t be totally gone from Ballston. She plans to cook and help out some at the new Hangry Joe’s Hot Chicken location that’s moving into space, Hong tells ARLnow.

Hangry Joe’s Hot Chicken is a franchise of Nashville hot chicken restaurants, with other Northern Virginia locations as well as locations in Maryland and Texas. ARLnow has reached out to the company for confirmation that it’s coming to the space but has yet to hear back as of publication.

The last few days have been very busy at Laura Cooks as word spread that she was retiring and closing the business.

“If it was always this busy, maybe I wouldn’t be retiring,” Hong says, chuckling.

While it’s somewhat sad for Hong, her daughters are happy. They are going to get see their mom a lot more now that she’s retiring.

“They don’t want me to work anymore,” she says. “They want me to spend more time with them.”

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Sunset along Columbia Pike near Dama restaurant (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Baseball Tourney in Arlington — “One area’s loss became another’s big gain in recent days when Arlington County was added as an emergency replacement site for this month’s American Legion state-baseball tournament. The eight-team competition, which will include local District 17’s Arlington Post 139 as the host team, will take place July 26-30 at the Barcroft Park and Wakefield High School fields.” [Sun Gazette]

Grant for Second Ballston Metro Entrance — From the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission: “[Arlington County] received $4.5M from I-66 Commuter Choice to construct a second entrance at Ballston-MU Station that will improve access to transit and support continued redevelopment in the area.” [Twitter]

More Whinos on the Way? — “Whino is a 6,300-square-foot bar, restaurant, art gallery and entertainment venue on the second floor of Brookfield Properties’ Ballston Quarter. While it’s only a year old, founder Shane Pomajambo has big expansion plans for his budding brand.” [Washington Business Journal]

Honor for Local Catholic Newspaper — “The Catholic Herald was named the best diocesan newspaper in its class — one of 36 awards received at the annual Catholic Media Association conference in Portland July 4-7.” [Arlington Catholic Herald]

Today in Dubious Data — “A new survey suggests that Virginia residents have a clear preference for their milkshakes. Chocolate? Nope. Vanilla? Negative. Strawberry? Sorry, Charlie. According to a statistical analysis of Google search data, Virginians are most enraptured by peppermint milkshakes, according to new data from RTA Outdoor Living.” [Sun Gazette]

It’s Monday — Clear throughout the day. High of 82 and low of 65. Sunrise at 5:54 am and sunset at 8:36 pm. [Weather.gov]

All About Burger is all but gone in Ballston Quarter

By ARLnow.com
1/3

All About Burger appears to have vacated its storefront in the Ballston Quarter mall.

“Completely cleaned out,” is how one tipster described the space, which is located between Slapfish, which closed this past December, and the still-open Mezeh, near the N. Glebe Road entrance to the mall.

The Ballston outpost of All About Burger opened in the spring of 2019 but never drew the consistently large crowds of its other nearby neighbor, Chick-fil-A. It could not be immediately confirmed whether the location is closed for good or may reopen later, though the removal of most of the interior furnishings and the fact that the phone number has been disconnected suggests the former.

All About Burger, which split off from Z-Burger after a legal settlement, has an existing location near Clarendon, at 3325 Wilson Blvd, that is still open today.

Hat tip to Chris T.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Rain on a living room window (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Tech Startup Moving to Ballston — “MarginEdge Co., a local tech startup with a restaurant management platform, is now reserving more headquarters space for itself. The 7-year-old company is shifting its home base from Fairfax County to larger Arlington digs at 4200 Wilson Blvd., MarginEdge co-founder and CEO Bo Davis told us. It’s building out the top floor of the office building, above Ballston Quarter mall, where he said the company will be closer to Metro and a central point to and from the District and suburbs.” [Washington Business Journal]

Update on Construction Projects — From Arlington County: “Multiple projects are in progress or have been completed around Arlington in the first half of 2022, with more on the way! Take a look at the latest edition of Projects to Watch.” [Twitter]

Goldstein Wants to Restore Trust — “Arlington’s new School Board chair for 2022-23 has tacitly acknowledged frayed relations between county leaders and the constituents they serve, and in remarks kicking off his tenure seemed to ask both sides to work toward repairing them. ‘I’ve seen community trust in our governing institutions erode,’ Reid Goldstein said during six minutes’ worth of remarks after being tapped as School Board chair July 1.” [Sun Gazette]

New Names for Ballston Beaver Pond — The Ballston Beaver Pond is being converted into a wetland and the four finalists for its new name were just revealed: Crossroads Wetland Park, Ballston Wetlands, Thaddeus Lowe Park and Wetlands Vista Park. [SurveyMonkey, Patch]

It’s Thursday — Updated at 7:45 a.m. — Cloudy throughout the day, with chances of showers. High of 81 and low of 74. Sunrise at 5:51 am and sunset at 8:38 pm. [Weather.gov]

Chopt set to open next week in Ballston

By ARLnow.com
Signs for a new Chopt location in Ballston (staff photo)

Salad purveyor Chopt is planning to open its new “eco-conscious” location in Ballston next week.

The chain said in a press release this morning that its shop at 4201 Wilson Blvd, in the Ballston Exchange complex across from Ballston Quarter, will officially open on Wednesday, July 13. We first reported on the new location, which is next to a Shake Shack, in November.

More from an ARLnow article last month:

It will feature “a more eco-friendly means of operating… the first of its kind for the brand, designed explicitly to have a reduced environmental impression,” according to a press release.

The eatery will also emphasize contactless ordering, much like its burger-oriented neighbor, with self-service kiosks and QR codes for ordering at the tables.

“At 1,912 sq ft, Ballston seats 16 guests total, 10 at the bar with views of the salad making station and 6 in a large booth,” said the release. “The storefront will be the first Chopt to go to complete contactless ordering with a variety of advanced ways to order its creative salads, wraps and warm bowls, including self-service kiosks and new QR code tableside ordering and delivery.”

Chopt will compete fellow salad chain Sweetgreen — located two blocks away, along Wilson Blvd — for the patronage of Ballston’s office and apartment dwellers.

In addition to a number of locations in the District, Chopt has existing locations in Rosslyn and McLean.

The new Chopt also plans to open for online and app orders on Tuesday, July 12 as part of a fundraiser for local nonprofit Real Food for Kids.

The press release about the opening is below.

Chopt Creative Salad Company, the NYC-founded fast-casual salad brand, is thrilled to announce the opening of its new sustainability-focused and contact-free store model in the Arlington area at 4201 Wilson Blvd Suite 0185, on the bottom floor of the Ballston Exchange, on Wednesday, July 13.

As is tradition, Chopt celebrates Chopt Gives Day prior to opening, where proceeds benefit a local nonprofit partner. For this Ballston opening, Chopt will partner with Real Food for Kids, the 501(c)(3) organization that advocates for positive change in school food policies and generates institutionalized support to reinforce its goal of highlighting healthy school food as a critical component of children’s wellness and academic success. To participate in the give back, guests are invited to order online or through the Chopt app on July 12 from 11:30 a.m. – 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. and 100% of sales from Chopt Gives Day will be donated to Real Food for Kids.

“Real Food for Kids and Chopt’s missions to support healthy eating habits align perfectly,” said Bonnie Moore, Real Food for Kids Executive Director. “We are honored to be selected as the Chopt Gives partner for their new restaurant opening in Arlington and excited that Chopt will bring access to more delicious, healthy options to the community.”

The Ballston restaurant features new QR code tableside ordering as well as self-serve kiosks, making this the first Chopt to offer guests a completely contactless experience. The latest ordering technology makes in-store pickup and delivery easy, quick and convenient for guests to “chop” the line.

“The model of this restaurant is a demonstration of our continued efforts to reduce our environmental impact by lowering our overall energy consumption, and potentially GHG emissions, with streamlined operations, a smaller spatial footprint, and energy efficient kitchen ware and HVAC system,” said Dennis Lee, VP of Development at Founders Table. “We hope that folks enjoy the outcome: an efficient and more sustainable restaurant experience.”

Chopt is open for regular hours Monday – Saturday from 10:30 a.m. – 9 p.m. and Sundays from 11 a.m. – 8 p.m.

Arlington accelerator aims to bring government technology to market

By Mavis Chan

Sponsored by Monday Properties and written by ARLnow, Startup Monday is a weekly column that profiles Arlington-based startups, founders, and other local technology news. Monday Properties is proudly featuring 1515 Wilson Blvd in Rosslyn. 

Ben Solomon didn’t have a STEM background when he graduated from Princeton University.

But now he runs a company that brings deep technology — such as artificial intelligence, robotics and other innovations — into the marketplace.

Solomon, the founder of FedTech, graduated with a history degree and worked as a news researcher for NBC Sports and Bloomberg News. But he wanted to work closer with the government and technology.

“I always have this motivation to be working more closely with government and partnering with technology,” Solomon said. “I ended up coming to business school down here in University of Maryland.”

That was the place where Solomon met staff that commercialized technology, which inspired him to start Ballston-based FedTech.

FedTech is an accelerator that provides programs for startups working in deep technology to found their companies and put their products into the commercial market.

“Before I started doing work in this field, I was surprised to see that the U.S. government is really the biggest research and development investor in history,” Solomon said. “A lot of times those technologies can be really breakthrough and game changing for both commercial industry and even government use.”

FedTech was founded in 2015 after being a part of the National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps program, according to its website. It also has offices in Austin, Texas, and Albuquerque, New Mexico, Solomon said.

Solomon based his company in Arlington because of its proximity to many government agencies, big companies like Amazon and local universities, graduates of which the company would “love to hire” as much as possible, he said.

Moreover, Arlington has large office spaces, like the company’s new 9000-square-foot office suite at 4401 Wilson Blvd, that are close to D.C. Solomon added that Arlington also has a “really good social scene.”

“We spent a lot of time as a company going to the bars and the restaurants for kind of team building,” he said.

The company connects smaller private businesses with bigger corporations and government agencies that can use their technology through partnerships.

It hosted a three-day technology summit for the U.S. Army in 2020, which showcased novel technologies that the Army could potentially use.

Will Dickson, Lead of FedTech’s accelerator program, at the technology summit in 2020 (courtesy of FedTech)

FedTech is currently working with around 200 startups and these partnerships are “deeper than an investor or like a Shark Tank-type of investor,” Solomon said.

His company not only runs programs for startups that provide mentorship and training, but it also seeks out new technologies still being researched and brings those to entrepreneurs.

“If we find an invention in a research lab, we’ll go and recruit the founding team who can license that technology out of the research lab and create a new company around it, and we help that company be successful,” Solomon said.

FedTech also helps startups find customers and access capital. Its working relationships with startups can sometimes last for years, Solomon said.

Past winners of the Army’s TechSearch competition held at FedTech (courtesy of FedTech)

FedTech usually does not own any stakes of the startups benefiting from its programs. It instead receives contracts from government departments like the Department of Defense and NASA, as well as other corporations like consumer goods company Proctor & Gamble and defense company BAE Systems.

(more…)

Ultramarathoner Michael Wardian is almost back in Arlington, after journey across America

By Matt Blitz
Ultramarathoner Michael Wardian on his journey across America (photo courtesy Michael Wardian/Instagram)

Ultramarathoner Michael Wardian has almost made it home to Arlington.

The 48-year-old local resident began his Forrest Gump-style run across America back on May 1. Fifty-eight days later, he’ll arrive in Arlington today (Monday) with only a little more than 100 miles left to go in his journey.

Wardian plans to make a pit stop at South Block in Ballston around 5:30 p.m. before continuing on to Rehoboth Beach and Dewey Beach in Delaware to dip his toes in the Atlantic Ocean. The aim is to get to the shore by July 1, several days ahead of his original July 4 goal.

“I’m so Team America right now,” Wardian told ARLnow from a West Virginia mountaintop, taking a quick breather from running to talk with a reporter over the phone. “Really, I’ve been impressed with just what a beautiful country we have and how much hospitality there is.”

He has run 50 miles every day, which takes him about 12 hours. He often starts at 6 a.m. and ends at 6 p.m. Besides a few blisters, he’s “feeling good” even after running a total of 2,600 miles over a nearly two-month period. He’s cataloged much of it on his Instagram account, as well.

There have been challenges, of course. Hundred-degree heat, road construction, rocky terrain, a tweaked hamstring, a hail storm, and even snow in Colorado all had to be navigated.

Ultramarathoner Michael Wardian running through the snow on his journey across America (photo courtesy Michael Wardian/Instagram)

There were also drivers trying to run him off the road and at least one flying hamburger.

“Someone threw a half-eaten hamburger at me two days ago,” Wardian says. “It hit the girl I was running with right in the chest.”

Overall, though, he’s been heartened by the experience. So far, Wardian has raised about $50,000 for World Vision, an organization that provides clean drinking water to families around the world. The goal is to raise $100,000, with all of the proceeds made during his visit to South Block today being donated to the cause.

Wardian has also been met on his journey by many looking to show their support or run alongside him. In Missouri, he had even had a special running mate — a dog.

“I ran 40 miles with a stray dog that I called ‘Yellow,'” he says. “He just followed me.”

The canine loved to drink out of streams and lay in puddles when it got too hot. But he would always catch up to Wardian. Eventually, “Yellow” was adopted by one of the people in the running group and was renamed “Miles.”

This is not Wardian’s first claim to fame, of course. He has run seven marathons on seven different continents, ran across Israel pre-pandemic, ran 260 miles in loops around Arlington Forest during the pandemic, and is becoming pretty well-known in the local pickleball scene as well.

Wardian actually planned to run across America in 2020, but Covid delayed the feat for two years.

He says he’s probably going to be “emotional” when he makes his way into Arlington later today after thousands of miles on the road.

“Running all the way home to Arlington has just been a lifetime goal,” Wardian says. “It just shows you like you just keep putting the work in and you’re consistent… everything is possible.”

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