food

Morning Notes

By Alex Koma

Georgetown Condo Development Could Further Stymie Gondola Push — Work seems to be moving ahead on an effort to redevelop a former Exxon station in Georgetown into 21 condos, which planners have long eyed as a key property in the development of a Rosslyn-Georgetown gondola. The development could further imperil a project already broadly viewed as a non-starter among Arlington’s leaders. [Urban Turf]

Rosslyn “Pop Up” Store Opens for Business — “The Alcove,” backed by the Rosslyn BID and a variety of other community partners, held a grand opening yesterday (Wednesday). Located at the corner of 19th Street N. and N. Moore Street in Rosslyn’s Central Place Plaza, the store will be open through end of September. [Twitter]

Arlington Food Assistance Center Looking for Fresh Produce Donations — The center is asking local gardeners and farmers for some help this summer, and will accept donations at three locations around the county. [InsideNova]

Flickr pool photo via Tom Mockler

Lead Your Healthiest Life with Complete Nutrition in Clarendon

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Regardless of your fitness goals (slimming down, bulking up or maintaining your best health), Complete Nutrition offers great solutions for everyone, no matter where you are in your fitness journey.

Offering free services, Complete Nutrition isn’t your traditional nutritional supplement company. Based on the ideals of hydration, recovery, balanced nutrition and exercise, their success coaches can provide you with advice on these areas in addition to a supplementation plan that will help boost your results.

To begin, customers receive a free body composition analysis (BodyComp) to measure not only your weight, but muscle mass, body fat and water. It can even calculate the number of calories your body burns at rest in one day. Using this technology can tell you exactly what you need to do to achieve your desired goal.

After this baseline measurement, customers can continue with free BodyComps to see exactly how diet, exercise and supplementation plans are working. The accountability helps beginners stick to a new routine and helps seasoned athletes fine-tune their existing routines.

Come and enjoy a delicious smoothie while you take a look at what Complete Nutrition has to offer. All of their products are cGMP certified in a FDA registered facility and tested for quality and purity to meet the industry standard Certificate of Analysis (COA). The company even goes a step further to verify the COA against an independent 3rd party lab.

Complete Nutrition is located along Washington Boulevard and 10th Street. Check out the company’s website for details on a wide assortment of sports nutrition, weight management and general health supplements.

Rooftop Spot Now Open at Le Meridien Hotel in Rosslyn

By Melanie Pincus
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Located on the fourth floor of Le Meridien Arlington (1121 19th Street N.) is a new rooftop restaurant aiming to be a “food truck on steroids,” in the words of general manager Calvin Ware.

The Yard celebrated its grand opening Friday (July 13) with a DJ and Washington Redskins cornerback Greg Stroman. The venue is open to both hotel guests and members of the public.

Weekly specials include Margarita Mondays ($6 margaritas) and Taco Tuesdays (buy one, get one tacos). This Tuesday (July 24), they’ll celebrate National Tequila Day with $5 “Yardaritas” from 4-6 p.m. Menu offerings include sliders, tacos and frosé (frozen rosé), and games like cornhole are set up for patrons.

Ware envisions eventually adding artificial grass to make the venue feel more like a backyard.

For now, they “definitely want to be the place to be in Rosslyn,” Ware said. The Yard is open Monday through Friday from 4-1o p.m.

Rustico Ballston to Host Crawfish Boil, Open New Beer Garden Saturday

By Melanie Pincus
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Louisiana flavor is coming to Arlington tomorrow (June 16) with Rustico Ballston‘s (4075 Wilson Boulevard) second annual Bluegrass & Crawfish Boil.

The event will run from 12-7 p.m. and feature craft beers from four Virginia breweries, live music, games like table tennis and corn hole and plenty of fresh Louisiana crawfish for $15 per pound.

Saturday’s festivities will also include the launch of Rustico’s new beer garden, General Manager Ryan Cline wrote in an email to ARLnow. The lounge area will include 124 additional seats and provide a venue for live music on Fridays and Saturdays in the future, Cline added.

Rustico isn’t the only local restaurant commemorating crawfish season — Bayou Bakery (1515 N. Courthouse Road) has held two crawfish boils this spring and plans to host another on Saturday, June 30.

Jaleo Crystal City (2250 Crystal Drive) will join the cohort of restaurants organizing summer food festivals on Monday (June 18) from 5-8:30 p.m. with a kickoff party for its 16th annual Paella Festival.

Spanish chef Quim Márquez will join Jaleo’s team to prepare five rice dishes for all patrons who purchase a $35 ticket. Márquez will remain with Jaleo for the duration of Paella Festival, which runs through July 1.

Raise a Glass to Arlington Nonprofits at Taste of Arlington

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The 31st Annual Taste of Arlington presented by Courthaus Social, the signature event of BallstonGives, returns to Ballston on Sunday May 20. Come eat, drink and support local charities and nonprofits from 12-6 p.m.

This year’s festival features 60 local restaurants and food trucks, beer and wine gardens, live music on two stages, a dedicated KidZone and a pop-up dog park. For the first time in Taste of Arlington history, the festival will feature spirits from award-winning regional and internationally renowned distilleries in the main beer and wine garden and in the VIP lounge.

Sip and sample refreshing libations such as handcrafted cocktails mixed with spirits including Hennessy Black, Captain Morgan and Ketel One Vodka.

For those who prefer to pair their tastes with beer, Arlington’s New District Brewing will be pouring their beloved brews, as will Devils Backbone, SweetWater and Troegs.

Taste of Arlington will also feature a robust lineup of wines and ciders, featuring selections from Ruffino, Robert Mondavi, The Dreaming Tree, Bold Rock and many others.

Beverage tickets will be sold at both festival entrances off Wilson Boulevard at N. Monroe Street and N. Randolph Street, as well as in the main concert stage beer and wine garden. One beverage ticket gets you an 8 ounce pour of beer, wine or cocktail.

Each year BallstonGives donates a portion of event proceeds to local non-profits. This year’s donations will benefit the Animal Welfare League of Arlington, Arlington Food Assistance Center, Arlington Arts Center, Arlington Chamber of Commerce, Leadership Center for Excellence, Volunteer Arlington and Arlington Street People’s Assistance Network.

Thirsty yet? Head over to www.tasteofarlington.com to get your tickets today.

New Korean-Vietnamese Restaurant Coming to Arlington Ridge

By Bridget Reed Morawski

An organic Korean-Vietnamese food truck is opening up a brick-and-mortar location in Arlington Ridge.

Kovi Kitchen will be opening a location at 2921 S. Glebe Road, near the Arlington-Alexandria border. The restaurant teased the news on Twitter and Facebook over the weekend, but did not announce an estimated grand opening weekend.

The food truck, which has parked in Rosslyn for the lunch rush, serves $3 tacos, rice bowls and bahn mi.

The restaurant will be run by Vi Nguyen, who, according to the truck’s website, has at least 29 years of hospitality industry experience.

A voice mail left at the food truck’s listed number was not immediately returned.

Photo via Kovi Kitchen

A Southern Cuisine Food Truck Is Rolling into Arlington

By Anna Merod

Bootheel Catering started cooking Southern-style cuisine nine years ago in Arlington, and now it’s expanding to a food truck.

The truck will begin selling food to locals in late May or early June, said Bootheel Catering owner David Newton.

Newton is from Southeast Missouri, a location described as the “boot heel” of the state, which inspired the catering company’s name.

Newton said he wanted to open a food truck to make catering more convenient by having a mobile kitchen on hand for events.

“It makes our lives easier. It makes the food fresher,” he said. “I just want to get more of our stuff out to people, because people really like it.”

The food truck’s menu will include barbecue, brisket, pulled chicken, jambalaya, gumbo, grits, fried chicken and more. Prices will from $8 to $12, Newton said.

The truck will be traveling throughout Clarendon, Rosslyn, Crystal City and possibly Ballston. Newton said the truck may even go out to the Tyson’s Corner area.

Photo via Facebook/Bootheel Catering 

Bayou Bakery to Hold Annual Crawfish Boil this Weekend

By Anna Merod

Courthouse’s Bayou Bakery (1515 N. Courthouse Road) will host its annual crawfish boil on Saturday (April 28) from 4-6 p.m.

The crawfish boil coincides with the beginning of New Orleans’ Jazz Fest and will feature live music along with traditional Louisiana nibbles. New Orleans native and Bayou Bakery owner and chef David Guas will host the event.

Customers will be able to buy a bundle of food that includes Louisiana crawfish with sweet corn on the cob, new potatoes, coleslaw, “muff-a-lottas,” and cornbread.

Bayou Bakery will offer drink specials, and second plates may be filled if there is additional food available.

The restaurant will hold two more crawfish boils later this spring and summer, on May 26 and June 30.

Photo courtesy of Bayou Bakery

Barley Mac to Host Second Annual Oyster Festival

By Anna Merod

Barley Mac will be holding its second annual oyster festival on Saturday (April 21) from 1-5 p.m. on its patio, weather permitting.

Festival attendees can dig into unlimited oysters alongside a cigar rolling station, an oyster shucking instructional station, an oyster eating contest, and a live musical performance.

Tickets, ranging in price from $49 online to $59 at the door, will also include two drink tickets and a stemless wine glass.

Barley Mac will be serving raw oysters, oysters Rockefeller, grilled oysters, fried po-boys, oyster stew, fried buffalo batter oysters and oyster ceviche.

The oyster and wine festival will be open for all ages, though those 21 and older will receive a wristband to drink.

Photo courtesy Barley Mac

Istanbul Grill Expected To Replace Ballston Area’s El Ranchero

By Bridget Reed Morawski

A new Turkish restaurant is coming to the Ballston area, replacing long-time restaurant El Ranchero.

Istanbul Grill will offer up traditional Turkish food, with kebabs served with rice and vegetables, and “traditional special appetizers,” according to its owner.

The restaurant, which has applied for a license to sell wine and beer, is aiming to seat between 101-150 people at a time, according to the license application.

Istanbul Grill’s owner, Turgut Yiğit, wrote to ARLnow that he “is aiming and hoping to open” May 1 at 4617 Wilson Boulevard, which is just west of Ballston in the Bluemont neighborhood.

The Istanbul Grill in Arlington, Va., does not appear to have a website at this time, and is not the same as the Istanbul Grill in Arlington, Texas.

Photo via Google Maps

Two Farmers Markets Kick Off Season This Week

By Bridget Reed Morawski
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At least two Arlington farmers markets — in Crystal City and Ballston — are kicking off for the season this week.

In Crystal City, the farmers market at 1900 Crystal Drive will kick off tomorrow (April 3). The market, open from 3-7 p.m. every Tuesday, will have over 20 regional farmers, producers, and vendors.

Mexican street food vendor Manos de Maiz and the grass-fed beef hot dog and hamburger food truck Swizzler will be among this year’s new offerings.

Shoppers can also pick up “conventional and certified organic fruits and vegetables, grass-fed meats and pastured poultry and eggs, sweet and savory baked goods, handmade pastas, honey, jams, and jellies, hot sauces and pickles, and delicious prepared foods,” according to FRESHFARM, the nonprofit market organizer behind both Crystal City and Ballston markets.

The farmers market at Ballston’s Welburn Square is set to open on Thursday (April 5). Among other goods, shoppers can find “ice cream, sweet and savory baked goods, Virginia-made wines, cold-pressed juices, handmade soaps and lotions, wood-fired pizza, [and] hot pressed sandwiches” between 3-7 p.m. every Thursday.

New Ballston vendors this year include strudel stand Little Austria, and Number 1 Sons with their fermented pickles, krauts, and kimchis.

On the first Thursday of each month, the Ballston market will host a beer and wine garden, music, and giveaways.

Both the Crystal City and Ballston farmers markets accept SNAP and WIC program benefits and offer matching dollars for what is spent through those programs.

The farmers market outside Clarendon’s Metro station is opening April 11, with listed hours of 3-7 p.m., according to Clarendon Alliance director Matt Hussman.

Other farmers markets in the county, with listed hours, include:

In addition, a new farmers market has been proposed for Barrett Elementary School.

Photos via Arlington County

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