business closing

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Dorsey Hasn’t Returned Union Donation — Arlington County Board and WMATA board member Christian Dorsey, “who promised three months ago to repay a $10,000 campaign donation that violated the board’s ethics policy, has not yet refunded the money and is likely to be replaced as Virginia’s representative on the regional board. Dorsey said Wednesday that he is working on a wire transfer to return the money to a transit union that routinely negotiates with Metro.” [Washington Post]

Beyer Slams Impeachment Trial — “Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA) issued the following statement… ‘Today Senate Republicans ended their impeachment show trial. It will go down as one of the most craven events in American history.'” [Press Release]

County Board Race Fundraising Update — “The two Democrats vying for Arlington County Board entered 2020 with roughly the same amount of cash on hand, according to figures from the Virginia Department of Elections. Incumbent Libby Garvey had $16,823 in her campaign kitty as of Dec. 31, while challenger Chanda Choun had $16,155, according to data reported after the Jan. 15 filing deadline.” [InsideNova]

West Glebe Road Bridge Open House — “The deteriorating West Glebe Road Bridge, on the Arlington border near I-395, will be the topic of an open house next week. The bridge is currently closed to large vehicles weighing more than 5 tons due to structural deficiencies. It’s set for a major rehabilitation project, likely starting later this year.” [ALXnow]

Forum to Discuss Repealing Second Amendment — “Encore Learning will present a forum on ‘Repeal the Second Amendment: The Case for a Safer America’ on Monday, Feb. 10 at 3 p.m. at Central Library. The speaker, American University professor Allan Lichtman, will discuss his perspectives on gun safety and will argue for national legislation and the potential revision of the U.S. Constitution.” [InsideNova]

Dirt Closes Restaurants in Miami, Too — “On Thursday at 11 p.m., employees were told via a text message from DIRT Regional Director of Operations Aaron Licardo that both the Sunset Harbour and Brickell locations were closing for good. The two Miami spots closed on the heels of the Virginia location shuttering; that restaurant, located in Ballston, lasted less than a year. The message employees received claimed the company ‘found no other way to keep these locations open.'” [Miami Herald]

Abercrombie, Swatch Close at Fashion Centre at Pentagon City Mall

By Shreeya Aranake
1/2

Young adult fashion retailer Abercrombie & Fitch and watch shop Swatch are no longer open in the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City.

A mall employee told ARLnow that both stores shuttered this week. The closures come amid a rash of retailers closing up shop, in part because of the rising popularity of e-commerce, dubbed by some as a “retail apocalypse.”

Earlier this year, jeans company True Religion also left the mall, an employee at a True Religion store in Maryland said. Greeting card and stationery store Papyrus, which is closing all of its stores, is currently holding its final sale at the Fashion Centre.

Nearby at Tysons Corner Center, several chain retailers and restaurants have left recently, including Lord and Taylor, BareMinerals, Armani Exchange and Brio Tuscan Grille.

Stores have also been closing with alarming regularity outside of malls. A Pier 1 home furnishings store is closing in Rosslyn and a World Market store at Pentagon Row closed last fall.

Hat tip to @calebfiles

Billy’s Cheesesteaks, Bistro 29 Closed Indefinitely

By ARLnow.com
1/3

A pair of local restaurants along Lee Highway in Cherrydale has closed, at least temporarily.

Billy’s Cheesesteaks and Bistro 29, located side-by-side in a small shopping center on the 3900 block of Lee Highway, closed earlier this month, tipsters tell ARLnow.com.

In a brief phone interview, owner Kostas Kapasouris said he’s “trying to make the restaurants better” and that they will “remain the same restaurant,” but said he’s not sure when the restaurants will reopen.

Billy’s namesake and former co-owner Bill Hamrock — who opened the restaurant in 2011 — said he has “been out of those businesses for over 4 years.” He currently owns Hamrock’s Restaurant in Fairfax City.

Billy’s closed temporarily in 2014 after a fire. Kapasouris made headlines in 2015 after leasing a space in a nearby shopping center he owns to a gun store, before reversing the decision.

Healthy Scratch: Quick End for ‘Dirt’ Eatery?

By ARLnow.com
1/2

After opening here last year, Dirt has closed its Ballston outpost, at least for now.

The small, Miami-based restaurant chain opened its 4121 Wilson Blvd location to fanfare last April, touting its health-oriented and vegetarian options. It joined an increasingly crowded Ballston restaurant scene that has seen numerous openings since the Quarter Market food hall in the renovated Ballston Quarter mall opened in early 2019.

Below the slogan “EAT CLEAN” in the window, a sign posted over the weekend said “we’re sad to inform you that DIRT is closing their doors on Sunday the 26th.” Another small sign posted on the storefront today said simply “sorry, we are closed!”

It was not immediately clear whether the closure is permanent. No one answered the restaurant’s phone line this morning. A key lockbox could be seen hanging from the locked front door.

In May a kitchen flash fire, reportedly caused by a can of cooking oil placed too close to the stove, seriously injured an employee and prompted a temporary closure of the restaurant.

Pike Pizza Restaurant 1000 Degrees Flames Out

By ARLnow.com
1/2

(Updated at 10 a.m.) Just over three years since it first opened, 1000 Degrees has served its last customer.

The quick-service Neapolitan pizzeria at 3400 Columbia Pike shut its doors within the past few of days, posting a note in the window that reads: “Dear customers, We apologize for any inconvenience but we are permanently closed.”

While 1000 Degrees is a chain, with locations from Connecticut to Texas, the Pike location was owned by a “long-time, local entrepreneur,” according to a press release from its October 2016 opening. The pizzeria offered customers the ability to design their own thin-crust pizzas or order a variety of special pies, including a barbecue bourbon chicken pizza, a Philly cheesesteak pizza and a classic margherita pizza.

The restaurant also offered wings and salads.

Acclaimed, local Neapolitan pizza restaurant Pupatella recently opened a half mile away from 1000 Degrees’ now-former location.

Hat tip to @MZappa777

Rite Aid in Crystal City Shops to Close Next Month

By Vernon Miles
1/4

If the shelves are looking a little bare in the underground Rite Aid at 1671 Crystal Square Way, it’s because the store is set to close next month.

A sign at the front says the pharmacy is scheduled to close Monday, Feb. 17, and staff at the store said the full store is planned to close sometime later that month.

“The rest of it is being liquidated,” a store manager said. “It’s likely to close by the end of February.”

Signs at the store told visitors that their pharmacy records will be transferred to the Walgreens at 1301 S. Joyce Street.

The store, located at the north end of the sprawling underground complex, was still in fairly heavy use yesterday (Thursday) with visitors taking advantage of scattered discounts across the store. It’s closing despite the arrival of Amazon’s HQ2 in the area.

While the store is slowly getting rid of its inventory, many of the shelves further back in the store with toiletries and other goods are still well-stocked, along with a plentiful supply of beer and White Claws.

A-1 Cleaners in Clarendon is Closing and Can’t Promise You’ll Get Your Clothes Back

By Vernon Miles
1/3

(Updated at 9:40 a.m.) Staff at A-1 Arlington Clarendon Valet — a dry cleaner at 3110 Washington Blvd. in Clarendon — said a financial dispute has led to the store closing next month.

The store is closing because a person who purchased the business was defaulting on their payments, an employee said. The original owner is now back running the business, but planning to close it, we’re told.

There was also a sign taped to the front desk explaining the closure and cautioning that customers who dropped off items under its previous ownership might not get their clothes back. The contents of the sign — minus the names of the parties involved, who ARLnow was not able to reach for comment — are below.

A1 Clarendon Valet was sold to [REDACTED] on 13 October 2018 on a five-year payment plan. He appointed his nephew… to operate the business and after only one payment, the business defaulted on their payments. On Wednesday 8 January 2020, the Arlington County Sheriff’s Department executed the Court ordered eviction and changed the locks.

Since 9 January 2020 we have been trying to locate your items. If we cannot locate your missing items, you should lodge a direct complaint to [REDACTED]. Please understand that while we are making every effort to locate your items, we are under no legal obligation for items that were left in their care between 13 October 2018 and 8 January 2020. We will continue our efforts to find those missing items until 12 February 2020, after which A1 Clarendon Valet will close its doors.

The store also offers leather and shoe repairs, key duplication, and other services.

A-1 isn’t the only dry cleaner to close over the last year. Family Dry Cleaners on Columbia Pike closed last July and Georgetown Valet dry cleaners closed last January.

Pier 1 to Close Rosslyn Store

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 2:20 p.m.) Just over six years after it first opened, the Pier 1 Imports store in Rosslyn is closing.

The 11,000 square foot urban outpost of the national home décor chain, at 1717 Clarendon Blvd, is on a list of nearly 450 Pier 1 stores nationwide that are closing, according to Business Insider. The company is shuttering roughly half of its stores as it struggles to remain in business amid sagging sales and competition from e-commerce options like Wayfair.

Two stores are also closing in Alexandria, including the location at Potomac Yard, as well as the Pier 1 in Bailey’s Crossroads.

This morning the Rosslyn location had “store closing” and “everything on sale” signs in the front window, advertising 20-40% off storewide.

Papyrus Closing All Stores, Including at Pentagon City Mall

By ARLnow.com
1/2

(Updated at 2:15 p.m.) Greeting card and stationery store Papyrus is expected to close soon at the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City, the latest victim of a brutal business environment for bricks-and-mortar retailers.

The parent company of Papyrus is closing all of its more than 250 stores, news outlets reported last week, and a liquidation firm has been hired to help the chain sell off its remaining merchandise. It’s unclear when exactly the stores will close.

A 20% off sign could be seen in the Pentagon City store Tuesday afternoon.

The closure comes as Amazon, the biggest force behind shoppers shifting their spending from physical stores to e-commerce, moves into its second headquarters a few blocks away.

Greeting card shops are something of an endangered species, particularly in Arlington. A Hallmark store closed at Pentagon Row in 2012. Among greeting card purveyors that are still open, recent Ballston Quarter arrival Steadfast Supply has greeting cards and stationery, while a Hallmark store in Alexandria, near Fairlington, remains in business (despite this incident in 2016).

Cosi Closes Two Additional Locations in Arlington

By ARLnow.com
1/4

Two more Cosi locations have closed in Arlington.

The Cosi restaurants in Crystal City (2011 Crystal Drive) and Virginia Square (3503 Fairfax Drive) appear to have closed.

The closures follow the shuttering of the chain’s Ballston location late last month. Additional Cosi closures have been reported in D.C.

As of today (Monday) the Cosi in Rosslyn was still open.

Gone Today, Here Tomorrow: Local Openings and Closings in 2019 and Beyond

By Kalina Newman

Goodbye Mister Days, Clarendon Ballroom, Java Shack — and hello food halls, outdoor beer garden, and more restaurants than we can count.

It’s no secret that Arlington has had quite the 2019, and as 2020 gets underway, here’s some of what’s opened, what’s closed, and what’s to come in 2020. For those keeping score, Ballston appears to be the hot spot for new restaurants, in part thanks to the opening of the renovated Ballston Quarter mall.

Closing Time

Some of Arlington’s most iconic businesses closed in 2019, including:

  • Clarendon Ballroom announced it would be closing after 20 years in business, following one last New Year’s Eve bash
  • Cosi closed in Ballston.
  • A heavily-frequented Starbucks at Lee-Harrison closed in December, replaced by the county’s first drive-through Starbucks nearby.
  • Blümen Cafe abruptly closed in December, with a new cafe said to be coming soon.
  • Java Shack served its final mugs of coffee in October, but will be replaced by another coffee shop.
  • Hawaiian restaurant Hula Girl Bar and Grill closed in September.
  • The Real Housewives of Potomac-owned Oz Restaurant shuttered in June.
  • Three area Subway sandwich restaurants bit the bullet in Clarendon, Cherrydale, and Ballston.
  • Pete’s New Haven Apizza closed its Clarendon eatery in August.
  • Family Dry Cleaners on Columbia Pike shuttered in July — temporarily taking its customers clothing with it.
  • Ballston lost its Cheesetique in June (but the Shirlington location expanded).
  • Also in June, Ray’s The Steaks sizzled out, and a long line of customers showed up for its last service.
  • Fiona’s Irish Pub closed suddenly in Crystal City, later replaced by McNamara’s Irish Pub.
  • Citizen Burger Bar flipped its last patty in June.
  • On Columbia Pike, Josephine’s Italian Kitchen closed in May.
  • Rosslyn sushi bar Kona Grill rolled out in April.
  • Also in Rosslyn, Bean Good Coffee Pub brewed its last cup in April.
  • Who could forget Mister Days, which shuttered its doors in April after 40 years in business.
  • Williamsburg spot Backyard BBQ had its last cookout in February.
  • Rosslyn pizzeria Piola shut down in January.

New Faces 

Throughout the year, Arlington got everything from a fast-casual soup eatery to a healthy gelato shop:

  • Arlington welcomed its second Pupatella location, which opened on Walter Reed Drive in December.
  • Restaurant Open Road Grill and cocktail lounge Salt opened at Central Place in Rosslyn in December.
  • Happy Endings Eatery opened in Rosslyn, with some criticizing its provocative name.
  • East West Coffee and Wine opened its second location in Clarendon in December.
  • In November, a new health-focused gelato shop opened in Pentagon Row.
  • Rock-and-roll themed taco restaurant Taco Rock opened in Rosslyn in November.
  • We, The Pizza opened in Ballston with customizable pies and gelato shakes.
  • Poké it Up opened in Ballston in October.
  • The Renegade replaced Mister Days in October.
  • Arlington got its first indoor running studio in October.
  • Another fitness studio, BASH Boxing, opened in Ballston in the same month.
  • Italian restaurant Sfoglina opened in Rosslyn in October.
  • Zoup! Eatery opened in Ballston in October.
  • A new Harris Teeter opened on Columbia Pike in October, as part of the Centro development.
  • Bronson Bier Hall opened in Ballston in August.
  • South Block expanded into Rosslyn in August.
  • The cafe and Asian eatery Open Kitchen opened in Rosslyn in August.
  • Nepalese restaurant Namaste Everest touched down in Pentagon in July.
  • Sloppy Mama’s Barbeque started roasting in July on Lee Highway.
  • After some drama, The Lot beer garden opened in July.
  • Stone Hot Pizza opened in Clarendon in June.
  • Ted’s Bulletin and Sidekick Bakery welcomed customers to Ballston in June.
  • Clarendon got the three-level bar/restaurant TTT, Buena Vida, and Buena Vida Social Club over the summer.
  • Acme Pie started slicing up on Columbia Pike in June.
  • Takeshi Sushi and Ramen opened next to Delhi Dhaba in Clarendon in May.
  • All About Burger opened in Ballston Quarter in May.
  • Nearby, True Food Kitchen had its grand opening in Ballston in May as well.
  • Ballston continued to get healthy with the opening of Dirt in April.
  • Turkish and Mediterranean restaurant Maya Bistro opened on Lee Highway in April.
  • Veteran-owned Good Company cafe and donut shop Good Company opened in April.
  • Craft beer bar Rebellion on the Pike opened — surprise — on Columbia Pike in April.
  • Ballston Quarter started rolling out its first food hall options in March.
  • South Block said what’s up to Ballston Quarter in March as well.
  • Los Tios opened its doors in Crystal City in March.
  • Smoking Kow took over from Backyard BBQ in February.
  • Idido’s Coffee House and Cafe started pouring on Columbia Pike in February.
  • Thai Treasure opened in Virginia Square in February.
  • Old Dominion Pizza company opened on Lee Highway in January.

(more…)

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