local business

Toy Store, Massage Therapist Set to Return to Ballston Quarter

By Alex Koma
1/2

A pair of stores that once called the old Ballston Common mall home will soon re-open in the development’s new reincarnation, Ballston Quarter.

Curious Kids Toys and Refresh Therapeutic Massage have both posted signs announcing plans to return to storefronts on the development’s ground floor.

Both stores were forced to close when Ballston Common, located at 4238 Wilson Blvd, shut down in 2016. Developer Forest City has since been hard at work refreshing the mall, luring a host of new restaurants and businesses to the development.

But some shops from the old mall are gradually returning to the location — Chick-fil-A just opened in a brand new space a few weeks back, after the restaurant was long one of the most popular dining options in Ballston Common.

Curious Kids offers a selection of “board games, dolls, trucks, electronic games and more,” according to Ballston Quarter’s website. The store also operates a location in the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City mall.

Refresh will “help you de-stress, unwind, or work out a tight spot,” the development’s website says. The new location appears to be the only one in Arlington.

A variety of shops in Ballston Quarter have begun opening to customers over the last few months, though much of the development remains a work in progress. A newly revamped food court still seems set to open sometime next month, according to signs posted around the mall.

Jerry’s Subs and Pizza in Courthouse Appears to Have Closed

By Alex Koma
1/2

Jerry’s Subs and Pizza in Courthouse appears to have shut down.

The restaurant, located at 2041 15th Street N., was not open during normal business hours yesterday (Monday).

Workers also seem to have broken down the shop’s counter, and construction materials are strewn about the restaurant. The phone number listed for the location has been disconnected.

The lone Jerry’s location in Arlington, which sits directly across from the county courthouse and jail, previously closed for remodeling in September 2017. It reopened a few months later under new management, according to a series of Yelp reviewers.

Anyone looking to get a hold of the chain’s pizza or sandwiches won’t have to go too far, however.

Jerry’s also operates a pair of restaurants in Alexandria, and one in Reston as well, though that location recently closed due to a small fire.

New Men’s Barbershop Bound for Ballston Quarter

By Alex Koma

A high-end barbershop for men will soon join the new Ballston Quarter development.

The Grooming Store is “coming soon” to the revamped Ballston Common mall (4238 Wilson Blvd), according to the company’s website and Ballston Quarter’s online directory.

The shop applied for a building permit at a 1,300-square-foot space in the development back in November, county records show, though it’s unclear where in the mall it will be located.

The barbershop offers hair cuts and beard trims with online reservations available, according to its website. It also sells a whole host of skincare and haircare products.

The Ballston location will become the company’s second overall: the other is located in Ashburn.

The Grooming Store becomes the latest retailer to join Ballston Quarter, with stores in the development slowly opening to customers over the course of the last two months.

The mall’s new upscale food court is set to open sometime next month, and developer Forest City hopes to have the bulk of stores in the development open by this spring.

Vegetable-Heavy Eatery The Little Beet Could Soon Expand to Pentagon City Mall

By Alex Koma

The vegetable-focused fast casual eatery The Little Beet could soon open a new location in the Pentagon City mall.

The restaurant applied for a permit to bring a new eatery to the first floor of the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City in late December, according to county records.

Andy Duddleston, the chain’s founder and chief brand officer, confirmed that he is indeed “considering a location” at the mall.

“Stay tuned,” Duddleston told ARLnow.

A spokeswoman for the mall’s management company said they’re “unable to share information on businesses rumored to be joining the center.”

The Little Beet opened its first Arlington location in Rosslyn in the fall of 2017 in the Central Place development. The restaurant also operates a D.C. eatery, with a variety of other locations in New York City, where the company got its start.

Its menu is largely dominated by salads and bowls, with a whole host of vegetarian and vegan options for diners.

H/t Chris Slatt

New Soup-Focused Restaurant On the Way in Ballston

By Alex Koma
1/3

A new soup and salad-focused restaurant is on the way in Ballston.

Signs posted at the base of an office building at 4401 Fairfax drive advises all “soupies and foodies” that “Zoup! Eatery” plans to open in the space soon.

The restaurant could open its doors as soon as spring 2019, according to Zoup’s website.

The chain, which offers dozens of different soup, salad and sandwich options, operates locations across the country.

Yet the Ballston space would be its first in Arlington, and second in the Northern Virginia area — there’s another Zoup! out in Sterling.

The building set to welcome the restaurant was once home to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, one of a variety of federal agencies to leave Arlington over the last few years.

Jumping Joeys Children’s Gym Looks Bound for Market Common Clarendon

By Alex Koma

The Jumping Joeys children’s gym looks set to re-open in Market Common Clarendon, after closing in Virginia Square in 2017.

Jumping Joeys applied for a building permit at 2800 Clarendon Blvd late last year, according to Arlington Economic Development records.

It’s not immediately clear where the new gym would be located. But there’s currently only one vacant space on the second floor of the building at 2800 Clarendon Blvd, not far from the Pottery Barn store.

Representatives for the gym, which offers all manner of bounce-house-style activities for kids, didn’t respond to a request for comment on their plans.

Jumping Joeys currently operates another location at 402 W. Broad Street in Falls Church, and once had a space in an office park across from (the newly renamed) Washington-Liberty High School as well.

But that location shut down in November 2017, as the county eyes new uses for its much-discussed “Buck property,” where the gym was located. School officials are still studying the prospect of someday building a new school on the site, or perhaps new office space for staff. Deliberations on the matter very much remain ongoing.

As for Market Common itself, the development has seen a whole host of changes recently, and will eventually be part of a wider redevelopment of the block.

Newly Renovated Wendy’s Now Open on Columbia Pike, With Plans for Big Giveaway

By Alex Koma
1/7

(Updated at 2:25 p.m.) A new and improved Wendy’s is now open on Columbia Pike, and the fast food chain is holding a major giveaway to celebrating the restaurant’s grand opening next weekend.

The Wendy’s at 3431 Columbia Pike shut down for extensive renovations a few months ago, and re-opened for business today (Thursday).

The new location includes an all-new dining area, complete with TVs, music, free Wi-Fi and a faux fireplace. The fireplace in particular seemed to surprise some customers today; at least one person in line pointed at it and said she did not expect a Wendy’s to look so “fancy.”

A company spokesman says the restaurant will hold a “grand re-opening event” next Saturday (Jan. 19).

Wendy’s plans to offer the first 100 customers in line for the event by 10 a.m. free food for a year.

The chain operates three restaurants around the county in total.

New Hot Pot Restaurant Coming to Clarendon

By Alex Koma
1/3

A new Chinese hot pot restaurant looks to be on the way for Clarendon.

Signs posted at a space at 1028 N. Garfield Street say that “Riverside Hotpot Bar” will soon set up shop there, and is currently hiring employees.

The restaurant will take the place of Bowl’d, a fast-casual eatery that shuttered back in 2017, just a few blocks away from Clarendon’s main drag.

Riverside also operates a location in Gaithersburg, though another Riverside restaurant in Fairfax appears to have closed recently.

The eatery offers all-you-can-eat hot pot dining, according to its website, with a full array of vegetable, meat and seafood options to cook table-side.

The county has yet to issue any permits for the new restaurant, but records show that Riverside did apply for a building permit for the space in August.

Old Dominion Pizza Company Opens Along Lee Highway

By Alex Koma
1/3

Lee Highway officially has a new pizzeria.

The Old Dominion Pizza Company opened its doors in the Lee Heights shopping center last Thursday (Jan. 3), owner John Rodas told ARLnow. The restaurant replaces Upper Crust Pizzeria, which shuttered in the space at 4514 Lee Highway back in July.

Rodas says he’s envisioning this initial period as a “soft opening” for the restaurant, after he first started working to get Old Dominion open this fall.

But Rodas, who also helps run The Spirits of ’76 bar in Clarendon, says that the eatery is fully ready for customers, and even recently earned a state license to sell and deliver beer and wine.

Old Dominion now offers both traditional, “New York-style” pizzas and square, “Grandma-style” pieces, according to its menu.

The restaurant also serves up pizzas with cauliflower crust for anyone hoping for a gluten-free option, in addition to a small selection of sandwiches.

Photo 1 via Instagram, photos 2 and 3 via Facebook.

Hair Salon, Dry Cleaner Shut Down in Market Common Clarendon

By Alex Koma
1/3

A pair of businesses in the Market Common Clarendon development have shut down in recent weeks.

Signs posted at Nolas Salon and the Georgetown Valet dry cleaners, located in the same building at 2700 Clarendon Blvd, inform would-be patrons that the shops have now closed permanently.

A sign posted on the salon’s window says that “while we are sad to be closing this store location, our employees will continue to serve your needs at other salons in the area.”

Some will be moving to Salon by JC in Ballston at 3865 Wilson Blvd, while others will head to Salon Lofts Clarendon at 3001 Washington Blvd.

Meanwhile, the sign posted at the cleaners says the shop shut down on Dec. 15.

According to its website, Georgetown Valet operates six locations in D.C., but no other shops in Arlington. The chain once operated a location in Virginia Square, but that shut down back in 2011.

The entire Market Common development has seen several new businesses move in over the course of the last few months, and will eventually be part of a major redevelopment of that section of Clarendon.

Harry’s Smokehouse in Pentagon City Mall Shuts Down

By Alex Koma
1/3

Harry’s Smokehouse, a burgers and BBQ restaurant, has now shut its doors in the Pentagon City mall.

Signs posted at the eatery, located near the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City’s Metro entrance, indicate that it’s now permanently closed.

“Thank you for many years of patronage,” the signs read.

Readers told ARLnow that the restaurant has been closed since at least Thursday (Jan. 3).

The restaurant has long been a fixture of the mall’s lower level, starting out as a Harry’s Tap Room before rebranding to a more BBQ-centric menu back in 2011.

There’s no indication yet of what might replace Harry’s in the space.

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