Ballston

A Ballston Mediterranean cafe is broken into for the second time in a year

By Matt Blitz
1/6

For the second time in less than a year, Olive Lebanese Eatery in Ballston is cleaning up broken glass after a break in.

On Tuesday night (Feb. 22) at about 9:15 p.m., according to the police report, a witness spotted a man attempting to break in through the front door of the restaurant at 1100 N. Glebe Road. At the same time, a security camera was also recording the burglary in progress.

When the man couldn’t break through the front door, he threw a brick through the restaurant’s glass window. Then, he walked through the broken window, broke the cash register on the floor, grabbed approximately $50 in cash, and fled on foot. The suspect also damaged the glass front door of an adjacent business, the police report notes, but didn’t force entry.

The crime will cost the family-owned restaurant thousands, as its business continues to recover from the pandemic.

Arlington police caught up with the suspect a short time later, a few blocks away at N. Glebe Road and Washington Boulevard.

Police arrested an Arlington man and charged him with burglary, petit larceny, destruction of property, and identity theft for providing false information to police. He was already wanted by the Arlington County Sheriff’s Office for failing to appear in court and violating a condition of an earlier release, confirms ACPD spokesperson Ashley Savage.

From the crime report:

The investigation determined that at approximately 9:16 p.m., a witness observed the suspect force entry into the business by throwing an item through the window, breaking the glass. The suspect then allegedly damaged the cash register and stole an undisclosed amount of cash before fleeing the scene on foot. No other items were reported stolen. During the course of the investigation, it was determined the suspect also damaged the glass front door to an adjacent business, however no entry was believed to have been made inside. During the course of the investigation, the suspect provided false identifying information, however,  the officers were able to subsequently properly identify the suspect. [The suspect], 58, of Arlington Va., was arrested and charged with Burglary, Petit Larceny, Destruction of Property (x2), and Identity Theft. He was also served with outstanding warrants out of the Arlington County Sheriff’s Office. He was held on no bond.

The previous warrants are related to a misdemeanor charge from earlier this year, according to court records.

While the suspect only made out with about $50, the damage caused by the break-in could cost upwards of $7,000, owner Yvonne Risheq tells ARLnow. Besides the window, front door, and cash register, the suspect also damaged tables, chairs, the point of sales system, and the floor.

“This was just a single guy… who wanted easy cash,” Risheq says. “The money wasn’t much… because nobody pays in cash anymore. And, after the last time, we don’t keep any cash in the register.”

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Ballston at twilight (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Big Raise for Ballston Startup — “Federated Wireless, the leader in shared spectrum and CBRS technology, today announced that it has secured $58 million in Series D funding. An affiliate of Cerberus Capital Management, L.P. led the round, with existing investors Allied Minds and GIC, Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, also participating.” [Federated Wireless]

Library Spotlights Segregation History — “A new window display at Aurora Hills Library spotlights efforts of some local residents to promote education and literacy during a time of rigid racial segregation across Virginia. The display focuses on the Henry L. Holmes Library, which was founded by Arlington’s African-American community in 1940 and served as the only library resource for the community until the county’s library system was integrated in the late 1940s.” [Sun Gazette]

Bakery Ramping Up for Mardi Gras — “Chef David Guas at Bayou Bakery is ready for Mardi Gras serving up his famous King Cake… The deadline to order your King Cakes is this Saturday.” [WJLA]

It’s Wednesday — Scattered showers before 10 am. Cloudy, then gradually becoming mostly sunny, with wind gusts up to 21 mph. High of 67 and low of 42. Sunrise at 6:50 am and sunset at 5:56 pm. [Weather.gov]

Asian street food eatery Hawkers looking to open in Ballston this summer

By Matt Blitz
1/2

Hawkers, a growing Asian street food restaurant chain, is looking to start serving in Ballston this summer.

First announced in July 2020, Hawkers had hoped to open its first Arlington location by the spring of 2021. But equipment and supply chain challenges delayed that goal by nearly an entire year, a Hawkers spokesperson tells ARLnow. The eatery is now targeting a June 2022 opening.

The restaurant, which applied for a Virginia ABC permit earlier this month, is located at 4201 Wilson Blvd — on the ground floor of the Ballston Exchange office complex, across from Philz and next to the new El Rey taqueria, which just started slinging tacos in December.

There will also be a walk-up takeout window, a first for Hawkers.

“We think it will be a fun and engaging option that caters to the heavy foot traffic within the Ballston neighborhood,” said the spokesperson.

Orlando-based Hawkers has nearly a dozen open locations, a majority of which are concentrated in Florida. There are also locations in North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, Texas, and — nearby — in Bethesda. That location opened in late 2020, marking the first in the D.C. region.

The menu highlights Asian street food, including dim sum, baos, pad Thai, noodle dishes, fried rice, and crispy pork belly.

Hawkers in Ballston is also currently hiring, particularly for management positions.

Capitals Iceplex in Ballston to host a pro women’s hockey tournament next month

By Matt Blitz
1/2

The Washington Capitals are hosting a women’s hockey tournament and a series of clinics at the Capitals’ practice facility in Ballston next month.

The four game showcase from the Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association (PWHPA), part of the association’s “Dream Gap Tour,” will take place from March 4-6 at the Medstar Capital Iceplex on N. Glebe Road. It will feature teams from Minnesota, Boston, Calgary, and Toronto. This is the sixth stop for the tour, but the first time in the D.C. area.

The intention of the tournament is to bring attention to the “dream gap” that exists for young girls who want to play hockey.

“Essentially, a boy can lace up his skates and dream of playing in the NHL one day whereas young girls don’t have a league that pays a livable wage where they can solely focus on hockey to dream about,” a PWHPA spokesperson tells ARLnow about why this is an important program. “There’s a dream gap that exists that we’d like to close for girls.”

This is also part of the Capitals’ ALL CAPS ALL HER initiative with the aim of providing access and support for female hockey players across the region. There are 5,332 registered youth hockey players in Virginia, according to statistics provided by the Capitals, with only about 12% of those players being female.

“The Capitals are committed to continuing to grow the game at all levels, which includes youth and female hockey. The D.C. region has seen phenomenal interest and growth in hockey participation over the last decade-plus, and we’re proud to play a part in that development through initiatives like the PWHPA’s Dream Gap Tour,” Peter Robinson, the Caps’ director of youth hockey development, wrote in a statement.

Tickets for the Saturday and Sunday game are as low as $15. The game will be streamed on the official Capitals Facebook and Twitter accounts, as well as on the Monumental Sports Network.

Hockey clinics will also be held at the Iceplex in Ballston for both youth and adult female players on March 3-5. The clinics will include work on and off the ice and will feature PWHPA athletes, coaches, and Caps youth hockey development staff. Participants will receive a complimentary weekend pass to the games.

The PWHPA features approximately 125 of the world’s best female hockey players and was specifically formed to create a women’s hockey league that pays a living wage to players while provideing elite-level resources like trainers, marketing, and facilities.

“We wanted to partner with the Capitals because of their involvement in the community & girls’ hockey,” a PWHPA spokesperson said. “Particularly, the launch [of] their ALL CAPS ALL HER initiative. It’s important for us to partner with organizations who want to grow the women’s game, which the Capitals definitely do.”

The 137,000-square-foot Medstar Capital Iceplex, which got a new name in 2018, opened 15 years ago. In addition to offering a venue for public skates and local hockey clubs, it serves as the Capitals’ practice facility and team headquarters.

Ballston cafe with an, ahem, unusual logo is now shuttered

By Matt Blitz
1/4

A Ballston business with a logo that raised eyebrows for more than a decade due to its resemblance to a certain male appendage has closed.

Market Place & Cafe at 901 N. Glebe Road is now shuttered, its refrigerator cases and hot buffet both empty.

While some may miss the lunch buffet or the convenient drink options, the business is perhaps best known for its unusually phallic logo. Located near the corner of N. Glebe Road and N. Vermont Street since at least 2009, Market Place was inexorably linked to the logo, which features an especially tall chef’s hat with a rounded and slightly bifurcated top, and a similarly tall face that’s bulbous at the bottom, between a stylized, curled moustache.

The odd choice of logo did not escape the attention of Yelp reviewers over the years.

“Welcome to Dong Deli. Despite the ridic logo, the food isn’t that bad,” reads one 2011 review.

Eight years ago, when ARLnow went to inquire about how and why the business went with this logo, the reporter was thrown out of the store even before getting the question out.

Earlier this week, ARLnow visited the corner cafe again, but signs on the door noted that the business was closed. The listed phone number was also out of service.

“We are… closed,” the signs said. “Thank you!!!”

It may forever remain a mystery why this particular logo design was chosen and kept despite the obvious comparisons to the male anatomy, but customers will still have fond memories of the glory days.

“For all I care, the logo could be a vagina with tentacles and false teeth, I’d still eat here for breakfast,” said a 2014 review.

Hat tip to Peter G.

Wine bar and restaurant Pirouette Cafe opening this summer in Ballston

By Matt Blitz
1/2

Pirouette Cafe, a new wine bar and restaurant, is set to open this summer on the ground floor of J Sol apartments in Ballston.

Pirouette is from the wife and husband team of Philippe and Jackie Loustaunau, residents of nearby Virginia Square who currently own a technology consulting business together.

The wine bar at 4000 Fairfax Drive will aim to have a “casual feel” that will focus on a variety of wines that takes the “intimidation” out of wine, Philippe and Jackie tell ARLnow.

The menu will be an assortment of small plates, desserts, and a few entrees that will focus on global cuisine. Vegan and vegetarian dishes will be offered. The head chef is Autumn Cline, who previously was at Rappahannock Oyster Bar and Rose’s Luxury in D.C.

A few dishes expected to be on the menu include bluefish rillettes with housemade pickles, duck confit with Japanese fermented fruit, and a vegan meaty red beet entree. While the wines and menu may be global, the focus is local.

“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,” says Philippe. “This is a neighborhood environment, which I think creates community and connects people.”

Philippe is originally from France, so the idea of a neighborhood wine bar is familiar to him. Prior to having children, Jackie worked in the local restaurant industry. She has also volunteered at the Arlington Food Assistance Center (AFAC) and worked at Fresh Impact Farms.

They have long dreamed of opening a restaurant and wine bar together.

“Every time a new mixed-use building would go up [in our neighborhood] and the first floor is open, we’d be like ‘Maybe, maybe there’ll be some wine bar… or a good place to get a bite to eat,'” says Jackie. “And that never happened.”

So, they went for it, signing the lease in November. They are starting the interior build-out now and expect Pirouette to open in the summer, barring no further supply chain delays.

With a child in school, it was important to Philippe and Jackie to own a restaurant that was close by, within walking distance of their home together.

“With having a sixth grader, we wanted to do it in a way that [Pirouette] fits our life,” says Jackie. “We don’t need to build in time for a commute. We’re two blocks away and that makes a big, big difference.”

Grace Community Church to fill huge space in Ballston Quarter mall

By Jo DeVoe
Ballston Quarter in the snow (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

(Updated at 3:55 p.m.) Grace Community Church has its sights set on a new home: Ballston Quarter.

The church would occupy about 23,280 square feet of space on the second floor of the mall. It will be across the atrium from WHINO, the art gallery, wine bar and restaurant, and next to the Macy’s.

Next month, the Arlington County Board is set to hear the church’s request to operate in the mall. If approved, Grace Community Church Pastor John Slye says construction on the indoor mall space will begin shortly after and the congregation could move in between July 1 and September of this year.

Ballston Quarter would be a big change from Grace Community Church’s current meeting place — the Thomas Jefferson Middle School auditorium at 125 S. Old Glebe Road. For most of its 20-year history, the church has held worship services at Key Elementary School and later TJ, which Slye attended as a kid. (For office space, Grace Community Church did for a time use a church at 11th Street N. and N. Vermont Street — being redeveloped as apartments.)

“We’ve really enjoyed our time and our partnership [at TJ]. They have been absolutely fantastic,” Slye said. “We’ll be sad to go.”

But a permanent, dedicated home has always been the goal, one the church has started pursuing seriously in the last four years, Slye says. It chose the Ballston Quarter location in 2020, signed a lease and assembled a construction team shortly after that.

The future location of Grace Community Church in Ballston Quarter (via Ballston Quarter, with circle added by ARLnow)

While the space will seat 200 fewer people than TJ’s auditorium, the trade-off is that the church will have a space customized to its needs for the first time.

“Our name is Grace Community Church, so we’re really into community, and we do a lot of stuff around food and fun,” Slye said. “We’ll do some concerts — not just Christian — but partnerships with the community, conferences, all kinds of fun things that, we believe, will be a help in some way, shape or fashion in the community.”

An architectural drawing of the new Grace Community Church, planned for Ballston Quarter Mall (via Arlington County)

The church will have two Sunday services, one at 9:30 and another at 11 a.m., with each bringing in about 480 worshippers, as well as a Thursday service at 7 p.m., according to an application filed with Arlington County. The conferences and concerts will take place on Friday evenings and during the day and evening on Saturday.

Nick Cumings, a land use lawyer representing the church, writes in the church’s application to the county that the regional shopping center “can easily accommodate the expected number of worshippers” as well as their cars in the Ballston Quarter garage.

Religious uses are allowed under the zoning code for the mall, but the church is required to get a site plan amendment approved by the County Board to operate, per the application.

Ballston Quarter’s amenities, its centrality and proximity to the Ballston Metro station will increase the church’s profile, Slye says. That will allow the church to amplify its partnerships with local organizations, such as Arlington Food Assistance Center.

It will also introduce more people to what he says is the “vaccine” to modern malaises such as anxiety, loneliness and purposelessness: the Biblical mandate to love the stranger through community organizing and volunteering.

“We’ve got anxiety running wild, frustration, meaningless, purposelessness,” he said. “We have a vaccine for that: loving-kindness… We need these principles introduced to make a difference to our lives and to the world — and they just work.”

NEW: Two arrested after incorrect order leads to violence at local McDonald’s

By ARLnow.com

An employee at a local McDonald’s was beat up over an incorrect order last night.

The alleged incident happened around 11 p.m. Monday on the 5000 block of Wilson Blvd, in Arlington’s Bluemont neighborhood, west of Ballston.

Police say they were dispatched to “the report of a dispute at a business” when they spotted a vehicle matching the description of a vehicle involved in the dispute. They were trying to pull the car over, at the busy intersection of N. Glebe Road and Wilson Blvd in Ballston, when “the driver accelerated and proceeded through two red lights before coming to a stop.”

“The passenger, Suspect Two, then attempted to flee on foot but was located by officers and taken into custody,” said the Arlington County Police Department, in a crime report this afternoon “The driver, Suspect One, remained in the vehicle and was taken into custody.”

According to ACPD, the incident stemmed from an incorrect order the suspects received at a restaurant drive-thru.

“The investigation determined that the two suspects had become involved in a verbal dispute with an employee after receiving an incorrect order through the drive-thru,” said the police department. “Suspect One allegedly threw a water bottle through the window, before parking the vehicle and entering the business. Suspect One continued the dispute with the employee before the two suspects began physically assaulting and striking the employee.”

The employee was taken to a local hospital with what are described by police as non-life threatening injuries. Though ACPD generally does not name businesses that are victims of crimes, the only late-night drive-thru on that block of Wilson Blvd is the McDonald’s.

The suspects who were arrested, a man and a woman, are both in their mid-20s.

The woman, a D.C. resident whose first name is Justice, is charged with Malicious Wounding and Eluding Police. She was previously convicted of petty larceny in Arlington in 2018 and had her entire sentence suspended, but never paid the fine, according to court records.

The man, a resident of Capitol Heights, Maryland, is charged with Assault and Battery and Felon in Possession of a Firearm. His previous felony conviction was not in Arlington.

Both suspects are set to be in court for a bail hearing tomorrow.

County seeks more funding for Ballston Metro western entrance project

By Jo DeVoe

Arlington County is applying for a $4.5 million grant to further offset a proposed west entrance to the Ballston Metro station.

On Saturday, the County Board is set to approve this request for funding from the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission (NVTC), which would come from I-66 toll revenues.

This is the latest application from the county, which is trying to offset the $140 million project with regional and state dollars even as some of these sources have dried up due to the pandemic.

The entrance would be located at N. Fairfax Drive and N. Vermont Street, almost a quarter of a mile west of the existing entrance. The county previously said this second entrance would greatly expand access to the station, increase Metro’s capacity and make it more efficient.

Map showing potential location of new Ballston Metro entrance (via Google Maps)

If all the funding comes through, designs could be completed next year and construction could start in 2024 and end in 2027, Department of Environmental Services spokeswoman Claudia Pors tells ARLnow.

“The team is looking to finish the 35% design update this year and procure design-build services in 2023, pending funding from NVTA,” Pors said. “Construction is projected to start in 2024 and we anticipate a construction period of 3 years.”

The $4.5 million represents a revised request to the NVTC. Arlington had previously applied for $10 million from the same program in January 2020 but — despite being “the top scoring project” — the project was cut from the funding round due to a drop in toll revenue caused by COVID-19.

“Following a request from NVTC staff, the County withdrew its application for the Ballston-MU West Entrance in August 2020,” the report said. “I-66 Commuter Choice Program revenues have still not fully recovered from the effects of the pandemic, and so for Round Five the County has lowered its funding request from $10 million to $4,500,000.”

And while available funding is scarce, the cost to build the second entrance is increasing. A 2019 estimate put the project at $130 million; a 2021 estimate puts the project at $140 million.

“The use of the known information on items such as station entrance layout and elevator location from the design updates instead of previous assumptions in the 2019 cost estimate, along with the impact of inflation, are the two drivers of the cost increase,” the report said.

More than half of the project’s costs could come from a pending application with the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority (NVTA) for $80 million. The county says this sum would cover the rising costs as well as the loss of funding from NVTC and the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation, which also lost revenue for new projects during the pandemic.

Pors said the NVTA will make a funding decision later this spring or in the early summer months.

Meanwhile, Arlington County intends to increase how much it’s budgeting for the project, from $25 million to $30 million.

Arlington’s Transportation Commission — while supportive of the project — is sounding the alarm on the $5 million increase at the local level.

“The Commission is concerned specifically about: 1) The appropriateness of making a change this large in how capital funding is being allocated completely outside of the CIP process and seemingly hidden within grant applications,” chairman Chris Slatt said in a letter to the County Board. “2) The high overall cost of the project and whether it still represents a good ‘bang for our buck’ in increasing access to transit for Arlington residents.”

He said $30 million could be used locally to bring every bus stop in Arlington into full compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, increase Capital Bikeshare’s 10-year capital budget or cover the costs to design and build more local projects intended to lower traffic congestion and improve public transit.

Map via Google Maps

Korean rice dog eatery looking to open in Crystal City next month, Ballston in March

By Matt Blitz
1/3

It still may be another month or two before Korean rice dog eatery Oh K-Dog and Egg Toast opens in Arlington.

In November, we reported that the fast casual franchise was set to open two new locations in Arlington, one in Crystal City and one in Ballston, perhaps as soon as December, as part of the franchise’s country-wide expansion.

However, it appears both locations are now delayed in opening, restaurant spokespeople tell ARLnow.

The Crystal City location at 509 23rd Street S is now aiming for a mid-February opening while the Ballston Quarter one at 4238 Wilson Blvd is looking at March.

ARLnow has asked for any reasons behind the delay, but has not gotten a response to that inquiry as of publication.

The Crystal City eatery is moving into the space formerly occupied by Taj of India and in the neighborhood’s restaurant row. Last month, a significant fire caused nearly $2 million in damage to restaurants next door. It remains unknown if this had any impact on Oh K-Dog and Egg Toast’s opening there.

The Ballston Quarter location is taking over the lower level stall that was formerly Mi & Yu Noodle Bar, which closed about a year ago.

Korean rice dogs are comparable to corn dogs, but more elaborate. The deep fried treat is quite popular in South Korea and is now enlisting fans in the United States as well.

“Unlike a typical hot dog, we specialize in using a stick to deep fry our signature item until it crips golden brown,” says the Oh K-Dog’s website. “It’s the perfect snack filled with your choice of mozzarella cheese, squid-ink, rice cake, potato, and more.”

Oh K-Dog and Egg Toast will also serve egg toast, another Korean speciality that’s reminiscent of a breakfast egg sandwich.

Capitals watch parties start at Ballston Quarter this week

By Matt Blitz
Ballston BID is hosting Washington Capital watch parties (logo courtesy of Ballston BID)

The Ballston Business Improvement District is hosting a series of Washington Capitals watch parties as the local hockey team closes in on another playoff spot.

Beginning this Thursday (Jan. 20), the Ballston BID is partnering with the Capitals and Ballston Quarter for seven “home-away-from-home” watch parties at Quarter Market Plaza at 4238 Wilson Blvd. The series of parties will run through the end of hockey’s regular season, which is April 29 for the Capitals.

There’ll be high-definition jumbo screens set-up outdoors and indoors, plus food, drinks, and music from a DJ. There’ll also be giveaways like Caps tickets, branded stadium seat cushions and autographed items.

“We are proud that Ballston is home to the Caps’ practice facility, naturally we’re thrilled to celebrate our hometown team even when they’re on the road! This inaugural event series will be the new place to watch Caps away games,” Ballston BID CEO Tina Leone wrote in a press release. “Everyone from the Caps superfan down to the general passerby will find a great reason to sit down, watch the game, support our team and support our local businesses.”

Ballston has been home to the team’s practice facility and headquarters since 2006.

“We are excited to partner with Ballston BID to offer away-game Capitals watch parties at Ballston Quarter for the remainder of the regular season,” the Capitals’ vice president of marketing, Amanda Tischler, also noted in the release. “With Ballston serving as the location of our practice facility MedStar Capitals Iceplex, we are thrilled that area fans will be able to cheer on the team from a unique home environment.”

The Washington Capitals are once again skating toward the playoffs, led by one of the greatest goal scorers in NHL history, Alexander Ovechkin. Even with the season only about half over, it appears that the team is well on its way to making the playoffs for an eighth straight season.

The Caps won the team’s first – and, so far, only – Stanley Cup championship in 2018, celebrating in Clarendon.

More details about the parties, including what local eateries and businesses will be participating, are set to be announced via social media as it gets closer to the events, organizers tell ARLnow.

For those who are not hockey fans, also in Ballston on Jan. 20, there’s a screening of the James Bond classic “License to Kill” complete with a DJ live scoring the film. That’s taking place at WHINO and part of a six-month series highlighting James Bond movies put on Shaolin Jazz.

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