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Barbecue Restaurant and Bar from A-Town Owners May Replace Hard Times

Published September 26, 2016 at 1:30PM

A new barbecue restaurant and pub may replace the now-closed Hard Times Cafe in Clarendon.

The owners of A-Town Bar and Grill in Ballston, Don Tito in Clarendon and Barley Mac in Rosslyn are planning the thus-far unnamed venue in Hard Times’ two-story space across from the Clarendon Metro.

The plans were revealed during a County Board review of a site plan amendment for A-Town (see below).

“We’re soon to take over Hard Times,” Mike Cordero, a partner in the restaurants, told the County Board. The new venture was described as “a really big barbecue restaurant or pub” that may be sports-oriented.

The restaurant could open as soon as next spring or summer, although a source says the deal to take over the Hard Times space has not been finalized.

Meanwhile, a fight prompted a big police response at A-Town (4100 Fairfax Drive) on Sunday night.

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Crime Report: Cell Phone Request Leads to Fight

By ARLnow.com

Published May 5, 2016 at 11:30AM | Updated February 27, 2020 at 4:22PM

Two teens were punched in the face after refusing to lend a cell phone to another group of teens, police say.

The incident happened last night around 6:30, at or near the Pentagon City mall.

Police say the group of teens that asked for the phone chased the other group, which took off running after declining the request. The assault then ensued.

The crime is being described as an attempted robbery — no belongings were stolen. The four teen suspects were all described as slender, 6’0″ tall black males.

From the Arlington County Police Department crime report:

ATTEMPTED ROBBERY, 160504044, 1100 block of S. Hayes Street. At approximately 6:35 p.m. on May 4, a group of juveniles approached a separate group of juveniles and asked to borrow a cellphone. The juveniles declined and took off running. The initial group of juveniles who asked to use the cellphone chased after them and struck two juvenile victims in the face. The suspects fled the scene after the assault without any of the victim’s belongings.

UPDATED: Fight Outside Columbia Pike McDonald’s

By ARLnow.com

Published December 2, 2015 at 4:45PM | Updated December 2, 2015 at 5:19PM

(Updated at 5:20 p.m.) Arlington County Police responded to a fight outside of a Columbia Pike shopping center Wednesday evening.

The fight was reported around 4:30 p.m. outside of the McDonald’s at 5005 Columbia Pike, in the Columbia Pike Plaza shopping center parking lot.

Initial reports suggest there was an active fistfight between two men, surrounded by about 20 people watching the fight.

At least one of the fighters has reportedly been detained by police, while officers are still searching for the other.

County Fair Closes Early Friday After Fights Break Out

By ARLnow.com

Published August 10, 2015 at 11:35AM

The Arlington County Fair is generally a fun, family-friendly event, but violence prompted police to close it early Friday night.

Officers assigned to provide security at the fair called for backup around 10:15 p.m. Friday after several fights involving groups of teenagers broke out.

Police arrived, detained several teens and made the decision to shut it down before the 11 p.m. closing time.

“Due to the fights and the threat to the public, the fair was closed about half an hour early,” said Arlington County Police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck. “Officers escorted patrons off the fairgrounds. The crowd was dispersed and there were no additional incidents.”

The teens who were detained by police were banned from the fair and turned over to their parents, Sternbeck said.

Police continued to maintain “a visible presence at the fair” over the weekend as planned. No other incidents of note occurred Saturday or Sunday, according to Sternbeck.

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Where to Watch the Fight and the Derby in Arlington

By Ethan Rothstein

Published May 1, 2015 at 10:10AM | Updated May 1, 2015 at 10:52AM

(Updated at 10:50 a.m.) One of the biggest sports days of the year is tomorrow, with two major events sure to fill up bars across the county: the Kentucky Derby and the “Fight of the Century.”

The 141st running of the Kentucky Derby will start around 6:30 p.m., and Circa at Clarendon (3010 Clarendon Blvd) is hosting Arlington’s watch party. Fancy hats are encouraged and mint juleps will be served for $7.

Welterweight champions Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao — long considered the two biggest names in boxing, but who have never fought before — will face off later that night (sometime around midnight, in all likelihood). The pay-per-view cost to view the fight is $99, which means bars in the area will ask viewers for cover charges to watch the most anticipated fight in years in their businesses.

Mad Rose Tavern (3100 Clarendon Blvd) is holding its own watch party, with women admitted free and men charged $20, with the price to escalate closer and closer to the opening bell. Just a few blocks away, Bracket Room (1210 N. Garfield Street) is charging a $30 cover to watch on their dozens of big-screen TVs.

In Courthouse, the freshly reopened Summers Restaurant (1520 N. Courthouse Road) is also showing the fight, expecting to charge between $25 and $30, depending on capacity. Nearby Courthaus Social is also showing the fight, with a cover charge of $5 for women and $10 for men.

As if the fight and the race weren’t enough, the Washington Capitals will face the New York Rangers for game two of their playoff series tomorrow. Numerous local bars are expected to show the 12:30 p.m. game.

Know anywhere else to watch the fight and the Kentucky Derby in Arlington tomorrow? Let us know in the comments.

Rumble Outside Bronx Pizza

By ARLnow.com

Published April 28, 2015 at 10:05AM

A man was bleeding from the head and another lost a tooth after a large fight erupted outside Bronx Pizza in Clarendon over the weekend.

The brawl started around 1:45 a.m. early Sunday morning, in front of 3100 Clarendon Blvd. Police say one of the victims was just trying to stop the violence.

“A male victim sustained a laceration to the head and a second victim sustained a broken tooth when he tried to break the fight up,” according to the Arlington County crime report. “The suspect is described as a white male, approximately 5’9″ to 6’2″, wearing blue jeans and a white button down shirt. He fled prior to police arrival.”

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Snowball Fight Turns Violent Outside Carpool

By ARLnow.com

Published March 9, 2015 at 2:45PM | Updated November 18, 2016 at 3:02PM

Police had to break up a fight outside Carpool (4000 N. Fairfax Drive) over the weekend after some snowball throwing turned violent.

Police say two men in their mid-20s were chucking snowballs near the entrance to the Ballston bar early Sunday morning when a couple approached.

The male half of the couple asked twice that the men stop throwing the snowballs so he and his girlfriend could safely enter the establishment.

“[Expletive] your girlfriend, and [expletive] you,” was the reply, according to Arlington County Police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck.

At that point, one of the suspects threw a snowball that pegged the woman in the back. The boyfriend, 30, and the snowball tosser then came face-to-face, police say, at which point the suspect “threw a haymaker” at the boyfriend. The boyfriend responded by dodging the punch, then landing a punch of his own, breaking the suspect’s nose, Sternbeck said.

The suspect’s acquaintance, who moments earlier tried and failed to break up the fight, then allegedly stepped in and attempted another wild punch. The boyfriend dodged that punch, as well, then “body slamed suspect No. 2 to the ground,” according to Sternbeck.

Shortly thereafter, Arlington police officers arrived and broke up the fight.

Neither suspect required an ambulance ride to the hospital, Sternbeck said. All parties involved declined to prosecute and were subsequently released without any charges being filed.

Late-Night Rumble Outside Whitlow’s Broken Up by Police

By Ethan Rothstein

Published February 13, 2015 at 4:30PM

A brawl involving more than a dozen people broke out in the street outside Whitlow’s on Wilson in Clarendon early this morning.

About a dozen squad cars arrived to the 2800 block of Wilson Blvd at about 1:15 a.m. today to more than a dozen people in the street fighting with each other, ACPD spokesman Dustin Sternbeck said.

Police tried to disperse the crowd and “urged everyone to get into cabs and leave,” Sternbeck said, but witnessed one person urinating in the bushes. Before police could apprehend him, he jumped in a cab where his friends were waiting, and the taxi drove off.

Police caught up with the taxi, Sternbeck said, when a female occupant got out and started cursing at officers. She was arrested and charged with drunk in public.

“We tried to send people on their way, but ultimately they got mouthy,” Sternbeck said. “We were trying to do the right thing.”

No injuries were reported from the brawl, and no other arrests were made, Sternbeck said.

Crime Report: Birthday Party Gone Bad

By ARLnow.com

Published September 18, 2014 at 3:30PM | Updated January 16, 2018 at 2:16PM

An early morning birthday party took a turn for the worse Sunday, when a fight broke out and a guy was struck in the head with a bottle.

The fight took place in a hotel in Courthouse, two blocks from Arlington County Police headquarters.

From this week’s Arlington crime report:

MALICIOUS WOUNDING, 140914015, 1200 block of N. Courthouse Road. At 5:30 am on September 14, a physical altercation broke out at a birthday party in a hotel room between intoxicated subjects. The dispute continued outside where police encountered several subjects attempting to flee. A male victim sustained a laceration after being struck in the head with a bottle. Celina Berrios, 21, of Lorton, VA, was arrested and charged with malicious wounding. She was held without bond.

Meanwhile, in the Nauck neighborhood on Saturday, a man suspected of domestic violence bit a police officer several times and tried to disarm another, according to police.

MALICIOUS WOUNDING, 140913040, 2400 block of S. Lowell Street. At 2:30 pm on September 13, officers responded to a residence for a suspect in a domestic assault incident. The subject attempted to flee through a rear door and was confronted by police. The subject struck and bit the officer several times. He also assaulted and attempted to disarm a second officer as he was being taken into custody. Mark Wanzer, 24, of Arlington, VA, was arrested and charged with malicious wounding of a law enforcement officer, resisting arrest, providing false information to avoid prosecution, assault & battery of a law enforcement and attempting to disarm an officer. The suspect also had an outstanding warrant out of Fairfax County. He was held without bond.

The rest of the crime report, after the jump. All named suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty.

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Crime Report: Rumble in the DoubleTree

By ARLnow.com

Published February 20, 2014 at 8:30AM | Updated January 9, 2018 at 3:52PM

Police responded to the DoubleTree hotel in Pentagon City on Sunday afternoon for a large fight.

According to this week’s Arlington County crime report, as many as 10-20 people were fighting in the hotel lobby.

ASSAULT BY MOB/MALICIOUS WOUNDING, 140216011, 300 block of S. Army Navy Drive. On February 16 at 3:20pm, police responded to a report of approximately 10 to 20 people fighting in a hotel lobby. Four victims were at the scene when police arrived. One victim was transported to Virginia Hospital Center. One suspect is described as a black male with dreadlocks, but otherwise there is no further suspect information. The investigation is ongoing.

The rest of this week’s crime report, after the jump. All named suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty.

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Weekend Crime: Alcohol-Related Incidents in Clarendon, Crystal City

By ARLnow.com

Published July 1, 2013 at 1:55PM

Intoxicated bar- and pool-goers kept police busy over the weekend.

On Saturday, Arlington County police made 13 alcohol-related arrests in Clarendon during the All-American Bar Crawl, according to ACPD spokesman Dustin Sternbeck. Among the arrests were two for assault on a police officer and one for a man who attempted, unsuccessfully, to throw a chair through the front window of a business.

Sternbeck said calls for police in Clarendon were “steady” throughout the evening, up until about midnight. “Multiple” fights were reported during that time.

On Sunday, meanwhile, police were called to a pool on the 1600 block of S. Eads Street — at the Crystal Towers apartment complex — for an intoxicated man who allegedly exposed himself.

The 29-year-old Arlington resident exposed himself to about 25 people, including children, while sitting in a chair poolside, Sternbeck said. A lifeguard asked the man to leave, and police arrested him for indecent exposure at his apartment.