celebrity

Top Chef Spike Mendelsohn Scouting Out Crystal City?

By ARLnow.com

Is former Top Chef contestant Spike Mendelsohn planning on opening a restaurant in Crystal City?

An ARLnow spy spotted Mendelsohn and a man identified as his father dining at the Crystal City Chick-fil-A while chatting up the manager about foot traffic and sales.

“He is apparently opening a new restaurant (or planning to) in Crystal City,” the tipster said. A second source confirmed that Mendelsohn may be scouting out locations in Crystal City.

Mendelsohn is the proprietor of Good Stuff Eatery, a gourmet burgers-fries-and-ice-cream joint on Capitol Hill, and We, the Pizza, which is exactly what you think it is.

Good Stuff Eatery is in the midst of an expansion that is bringing it to new locales like Baltimore and Philadelphia. Might Crystal City be next?

Photo via Twitter

Bozzelli’s Now Serving Pizza in Crystal City

By ARLnow.com

The selection is a bit limited at the moment, but Bozzelli’s Italian Deli in Crystal City (2600 Crystal Drive) is now serving pizza.

The addition will bring Bozzelli’s, which opened in November, into direct competition with one of the few other street-facing quick-serve options on the southern end of Crystal Drive, Pizza Autentica (2450 Crystal Drive).

Bozzelli’s is serving plain cheese, pepperoni and veggie pizzas for now. Fancier options like the white pizza are still a few days away, an employee said. In addition to the pizza, Bozzelli’s is also now offering mini cupcakes and other sweets in Crystal City.

One repeat customer who may be sampling the new menu items is Crystal City resident and former presidential candidate Sen. John McCain. We’re told McCain has been known to swing by the restaurant on occasion.

Photo via Facebook

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Zimmerman Responds to HOT Lanes Criticism — County Board Chairman Chris Zimmerman is responding to attacks by Fairfax County Supervisor Pat Herrity and the Washington Post’s editorial board regarding Arlington’s lawsuit against HOT lanes on I-395. Zimmerman accuses Herrity and the Post of “distort[ing] both the reasons for the county’s litigation in the high-occupancy-toll (HOT) lanes case and its effects.” [Washington Post]

Bishop O’Connell Fight Continues — A group of residents is appealing the Arlington County zoning office’s decision to allow Bishop O’Connell High School to build a new athletic field. Separately, the county board will hear testimony next month about whether the school should be allowed to install stadium lighting around the new field. [TBD]

Artisphere Name Contest Coming to a Close — The deadline for suggesting names for Artisphere’s new restaurant is noon today. Have an idea? Use this form to submit it.

Surfing Legend Comes to Clarendon — Surfing legend turned author and inspirational speaker Shaun Tomson will be making an appearance at the South Moon Under store (2700 Clarendon Blvd) in Clarendon tonight. The South African will be introducing his new children’s storybook iPhone app and signing his best-selling book Surfer’s Code — 12 Lesson for Riding Through Life, starting at 6:00 p.m.

Photo courtesy Jack Garratt

Gallagher, Lovitz Coming to Arlington Drafthouse

By ARLnow.com

Two comedy legends will be coming to the Arlington Cinema Drafthouse (2903 Columbia Pike) in the next month.

Jon Lovitz, of Saturday Night Live and The Critic fame, will be performing a total of four stand-up shows at the Drafthouse on Friday, Feb. 25 and Saturday, Feb. 26. Tickets are $30.

The next week, on Friday, March 4 and Saturday March 5, the single-name comedian Gallagher will be bringing his unique brand of comedy to the Drafthouse.

Gallagher is best known for his 80s cable TV specials, in which he would smash watermelons and other objects with a huge mallet, to the delight of trash bag-wearing audience members. His stand-up act at the Drafthouse, however, will not include an appearance by the famous “Sledge-O-Matic.”

In the world’s most concise publicity email (total: 19 words), Gallagher’s promotional manager confirmed that the show will not include any fruit smashing.

“This means all comedy without the mess!” wrote Christine Scherrer. “It’ll be a great show.”

Tickets to the show are $25.

American Idol Contestant Hails from Arlington

By ARLnow.com

American Idol headed to San Francisco last night for another round of auditions. There they found 26-year-old Emily Anne Reed, a native of Arlington who moved to the west coast to, as she puts it, spread her wings.

Reed, who was working as a barista and had just lost her house to a fire one week before the audition, impressed the judges with her unique, jazzy vocals. The judges voted 2-1 to send her to Hollywood, with Steven Tyler dissenting and saying her melody left “a lot to be desired.”

If anybody knows Emily Anne from her Arlington days, could you tell us a bit more about her in the comments?

The Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger Performs at Iota Club

By ARLnow.com

Despite the weather and the fact it was Tuesday, a decent-sized crowd jammed into Clarendon’s Iota Club last night to see Sean Lennon perform with girlfriend, Charlotte Kemp Muhl.

Together, Lennon and Kemp Muhl comprise The Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger. Under low lights, the band performed their dreamy, acoustic folk rock as snowflakes fell outside — a fitting backdrop.

The stage was as bare and humble as the music. Lennon and Kemp Muhl vocalized while playing a variety of instruments, with the occasional commentary in between. The melodies were hard to memorize and the tempo decidedly slow, but the duo’s passion for their craft was evident.

If the audience was as into the music as the musicians were, count it a successful outing.

Sean Lennon to Perform at Iota Club Tonight

By ARLnow.com

Encountering musician Sean Lennon is a bit like encountering Jesus. He performs miracles, like dating smoking hot model Charlotte Kemp Muhl, and his gentle mannerisms and humble outward appearance belie the fact that he’s the son of a deity.

(It goes without saying, of course, that John Lennon and the Beatles were considerably more popular than Jesus.)

Lennon and Kemp Muhl will be performing at Iota Club in Clarendon (2832 Wilson Blvd) tonight with their band, The Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger.

The GOASTT, as the group is known, has been touring Europe and the U.S. They performed on NBC’s Late Night with Jimmy Fallon last Wednesday.

The band’s latest CD, Acoustic Sessions, was released in October.

Tickets for tonight’s show are $15. Brooklyn-based experimental vocalist Julianna Barwick is the opening act.

Bachelor Contestant from Arlington Booted Off First Show

By ARLnow.com

The Bachelor is back for yet another season, and this time around one of the contestants lives in Arlington.

Well, at least that’s what the on-screen graphic said during last night’s premiere. We didn’t really get to know Lauren, the 26-year-old high school teacher, because we really didn’t hear much from her. The most screen time she got was at the end, when she failed to get a rose from bachelor Brad Womack.

“This was a leap of faith that I made that didn’t work out for me, and that pisses me off,” Lauren told the camera. “He missed out on a really great woman who’s going to be an amazing wife, an amazing mother, who has — I think — a fantastic personality. So it’s his loss, obviously.”

Lauren’s official ABC biography reveals what bachelor Brad is missing out on. Lauren says she likes Lil Wayne, Taylor Swift and the Dave Matthews Band. She has no tattoos and her favorite holiday is Halloween. She owns a toy poodle named Gabby, and she’s a big fan of the history of Henry VIII and the Elizabethan era.

Arlington bachelors, care to share your thoughts?

Photo via ABC/Hulu

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

R&B Songstress Mya Spotted in Clarendon — Mya Harrison, of hip hop, R&B and acting fame, was spotted getting her hair and makeup done at Kavenchy Spa Salon (1025 North Fillmore Street) in Clarendon yesterday. Mya was getting ready to shoot a music video in the District, reports Yeas & Neas.

Real Estate Predictions For 2011 — Local Realtor Laura Rubinchuk has released her predictions for the Arlington real estate market in 2011. Expect flat prices, sluggish sales, fewer foreclosures and more groundbreakings, says Rubinchuk.

Ballston Shell Station Bites the Dust — The Shell station at Wilson Boulevard and North Randolph Street has been shuttered. It will be torn down soon, to make way for the Founders Square development. More from TBD.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Most Elaborate Christmas Display in Arlington? — Blue Virginia has a video of what may be the most elaborate Christmas display in Arlington. It’s located on North Quebec Street, between Lee Highway and 17th Street, in Cherrydale. Let us know if you’ve seen anything better.

Pentagon Row Sold — The collection of stores and apartments known as Pentagon Row has been sold for a relatively low $14.9 million. Vornado Realty Trust sold the complex to Federal Realty Investment Trust, which also owns the Shirlington Village shopping center. More from the Washington Business Journal.

Boy Scouts Collect Nearly 55,000 Pounds of Food — The Arlington Boy Scouts collected a whopping 54,791 pounds of non-perishable food donations through its annual Scouting for Food Drive. More from the Sun Gazette.

Travolta Drops by Falls Church — Pulp Fiction star John Travola skipped the dinner at the Kennedy Center Honors last night, opting instead to dine at the Peking Gourmet Inn in Falls Church. Local celebrity photographer Mark Wilkins was there to capture the scene.

Flickr pool photo by Team Rank

Redskins Portis, Orakpo to Visit Claremont Elementary

By ARLnow.com

Students at Claremont Immersion Elementary school in South Arlington will be immersed in a world of football and fitness tomorrow afternoon. The school has been chosen as the local winner of the NFL’s Play 60 Super School sweepstakes.

Washington Redskins running back Clinton Portis and linebacker Brian Orakpo will make a special appearance at the school around noon to talk to students about the importance of living healthy and active lifestyles that include 60 minutes of exercise each day.

Orakpo and Portis, who has been recovering from an injury, will then lead students in an Ultimate NFL Physical Education Class.

The Redskins stars will be joined by Tanya Snyder, wife of Redskins owner Dan Snyder. Mrs. Snyder will present the school with a $10,000 check, to go toward health and wellness programming or equipment.

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