Fast-casual restaurant The Simple Greek has tabbed this coming Monday (June 11) for its grand opening in a shopping center near Rosslyn.
The restaurant, located at 1731 Wilson Blvd in the Colonial Plaza shopping complex, will be the first location of six for the chain in the D.C. region, according to a press release.
The store’s owners were previously hoping to open the Rosslyn location earlier this spring, but ended up pushing back those plans. The Simple Greek will serve customizable pitas and bowls, with “a build-your-own assembly line style set-up in an open kitchen,” according to the release.
The chain opened 15 locations across the country last year, and plans to open 30 more before the year is out.
Entrepreneur Marcus Lemonis founded the chain in 2015, in conjunction with a pair of Pittsburgh-based restaurant owners, while hosting the CNBC show “The Profit.” The episode was later the subject of a lawsuit.
(Updated, June 11 at 1:30 p.m.) A Fairfax dumpling restaurant will soon move into the space next to what was once the Arlington Diner in the Arlington Ridge Shopping Center.
District Dumplings, based in the Mosaic district, is planning to open a new location at 2923 S. Glebe Road, once the home of a Domino’s, according to a manager who answered the phone at the restaurant’s Fairfax location. She says the new eatery could be open as soon as next week.
The building’s landlord secured a permit for a 28-seat “fast casual restaurant” in early March, according to county records. One reader noticed signs advertising the change up at the location as of Monday (June 4).
The diner closed last May, after 32 years in business at the location. Its owner cited challenges in negotiating an affordable lease in his decision to close up shop.
The shopping center is also home to a Giant grocery store and a Gold’s Gym.
Sushmita Mazumdar — Business Honoree (photo courtesy Arlington Commission on the Status of Women)
Adrienne Griffen — Nonprofit Honoree (photo courtesy Arlington Commission on the Status of Women)
Lauren Stienstra — Government Honoree (photo courtesy Arlington Commission on the Status of Women)
Three Arlington women will be honored by the Arlington Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) at the 32nd annual Women of Vision award ceremony on June 26.
Local artist Sushmita Mazumdar will be recognized for her success in business, after she launched “Homemade Storybooks” in 2007, through which she sells personally crafted editions of original stories that are often drawn from her own life. Five years later, Mazumar founded Studio PAUSE, which provides a space for community members to engage in art and storytelling, sometimes concurrently.
Adrienne Griffen, founder and executive director of the nonprofit Postpartum Support Virginia, will be recognized for her work to support new mothers and their healthcare providers as they navigate postpartum depression.
Founded in 2009, PSVA provides resources including peer-led support groups, books and websites and training sessions, according to its website. When she experienced difficulties finding help after one of her children was born, Griffen became determined to help other women avoid similar challenges.
The group also plans to recognize Lauren Stienstra, senior manager for research and policy at the Arlington County Department of Public Safety, Communications and Emergency Management, for her work in government.
Stienstra launched HERicane Arlington in 2017, a program that “empowers women to pursue careers and leadership roles in emergency management,” according to its website. HERicane participants attend a weeklong summer camp and subsequently receive opportunities to volunteer, intern and engage with continued learning activities.
CSW selects honorees based on a system of point values, wherein successful candidates earn up to sixteen points — one point for residency in Arlington, five for the scope of their activity and 10 for their impact.
Other CSW initiatives include advocacy against sexual, domestic and street harassment, promoting state legislation that protects women’s social and economic interests and hosting educational workshops.
Linda’s Cafe along Lee Highway (photo by Alex Koma)
Linda’s Cafe along Lee Highway (photo by Alex Koma)
Linda’s Cafe along Lee Highway (photo by Alex Koma)
Longtime diner Linda’s Cafe is closing its doors and could soon be replaced by another Arlington institution: Bob and Edith’s Diner.
General manager Joe Ellian told ARLnow he heard from attorneys for the restaurant last Thursday (May 31), informing him that they’ve purchased the small space at 5050 Lee Highway from his landlord and giving him 30 days to move out. Bob and Edith’s did not immediately respond to a request for comment on their plans for the property.
“I’m going to miss all the customers and the neighborhood so much, it’s just very sad,” Ellian said. “It just isn’t enough time for a restaurant to pack up… I have bills to pay, food to sell, a family.”
Ellian says he’s run Linda’s out of the Lee Highway location for the last 20 years, and he’s heartbroken to be leaving the area. The restaurant was known for its all-day breakfast and burger offerings, as well as a sometimes colorful Twitter account.
“It was like a family here, we had good relationships with all the customers,” Ellian said. “As soon as we saw a car pull up, we knew who it was. We knew their order and had their food waiting for them.”
Ellian notes that he never had trouble making rent, but believes his landlord, Joe Djassebi, received a lucrative enough offer that he felt forced to sell. The property had an assessed value of more than $757,000 in 2018, according to county records.
Ellian isn’t sure what he’ll do next — he is hoping to bargain for more time to move all his equipment out of the Lee Highway location — but he may move Linda’s elsewhere in Arlington, if he can find the right spot.
“A good location is hard to find,” Ellian said.
Bob and Edith’s currently operates two diners in Arlington, with another in Alexandria and one in Springfield.
(Updated at 2 p.m.) A former D.C.-based sports bar is temporarily setting up shop in the space once occupied by Bistro 360 in Rosslyn.
Parlay Sports Bar and Lounge has set up a “pop-up” bar at the location at 1800 Wilson Blvd., according to one-time Bistro 360 owner Art Hauptman. He told ARLnow that the temporary takeover is set to last through the end of this week, though he said it could become a more long-term set-up.
Parlay was once located near Dupont Circle, before shutting down in April. The bar’s management posted on Facebook that it would be “doing events throughout the summer at various places” as it searches for a permanent home in D.C., and a Parlay banner is now draped over Bistro 360’s old signs.
“We will have game 6 on tonight so swing by and grab some wings #ParlayVA,” said one recent Facebook post, encouraging patrons to visit the pop-up. “Just look for the group that seems like they’re not from Arlington.”
Parlay’s owner did not immediately respond to a request for comment on his plans.
Bistro 360 had operated out of the space since the fall of 2014, but Hauptman said he decided to shutter the restaurant last week after receiving some lucrative offers for the space and losing his longtime chef and general manager. He’s since consolidated some of the restaurant’s wine and food options at the other Arlington eatery he owns: Cassatt’s Kiwi Café and Gallery, at the Lee Heights Shops off Lee Highway.
(Updated at 1 p.m.) Longtime Crystal City restaurant Cafe Italia is getting new life, thanks to some former employees and one prominent local restaurateur.
Freddie Lutz, the owner and namesake of Freddie’s Beach Bar at 555 23rd Street S., says he’s planning to revive the restaurant after it closed in April.
Lutz worked for 25 years as a waiter and maitre d’ at Cafe Italia (519 23rd Street S.), and he hopes to reopen it in the next few months as “Freddie’s Italian Cafe.” To do so he’s teaming up with a former Cafe Italia bus boy and chef, brothers Adolfo and Birtillo Urrutia.
“I’ve missed it all these years, so it’ll be sort of like coming home,” Lutz told ARLnow. “Freddie’s brought a lot of diversity to Northern Virginia and Arlington and I’m proud of that, but I feel like I left my heart in Cafe Italia.”
Cafe Italia first opened its doors in 1976, and Lutz believes the place became “part of the history” of Crystal City. Though he says its former owners struggled to afford rising rent prices, thus leading to its closure, the Urrutias approached him a few weeks back with a plan to “bring it back to its former glory,” and he jumped at the chance.
“In the day, it really was something,” Lutz said. “I would tell people, ‘There’s an hour and 45 minute wait tonight,’ and they’d actually wait. I just hope we can restore it back to the fun, romantic little Italian restaurant it used to be.”
Lutz says he finished up the paperwork on the sale on May 21 and he plans to give the space a bit of “loving attention” before it’ll be ready for diners once more.
“The basic skeleton and soul of the restaurant is there,” Lutz said. “And the good news is we’re all in agreement that we want to get it open as soon as we can.”
Lutz, who still lives in the South Arlington home he grew up in decades ago, says he’s even kept in touch with some of the former patrons of Cafe Italia, and excitement is already building in the neighborhood. As new restaurants continue to cycle into that section of Crystal City, Lutz expects the revival of Cafe Italia will help the neighborhood continue to attract more business.
“Cafe Italia was always very gay friendly, and Freddie’s is very straight friendly,” Lutz said. “So both businesses will complement each other.”
Memorial Day Closures — Arlington County offices, courts, schools, community centers and other facilities will be closed Monday for the Memorial Day holiday. Metro, meanwhile, will operate on a Sunday schedule on Monday. [Arlington County, WMATA]
Spraygrounds Opening Today — Arlington’s spraygrounds will open for the summer today. The water play areas are located at Drew Park, Hayes Park, Lyon Village Park and Virginia Highlands Parks. [Arlington County]
Flags in at Arlington Nat’l Cemetery — Members of the Old Guard from Ft. Myer completed their annual “flags-in” pre-Memorial Day tradition of placing a flag at every grave marker at Arlington National Cemetery yesterday. [Stars & Stripes]
Arlington Has Most Expensive Home Ever in D.C. Area — The priciest residential property ever to be listed in the D.C. area is partially located in Arlington. The Falls, the riverfront estate of late AOL co-founder Jim Kimsey, is on the market for $62.95 million. The 3.2 acre property on Chain Bridge Road straddles the Arlington-Fairfax line and includes an original Frank Lloyd Wright home as its guest house. [Preservation Arlington, UrbanTurf, Wall Street Journal]
County Hires New Assistant County Manager — Updated at 11:15 a.m. — Arlington County hired attorney Gurjit Chima to be the county’s Assistant County Manager for Human Rights and EEO. “[Chima] will be instrumental in advancing human rights and related initiatives across County government and in the Arlington community, consistent with our mission of diversity and inclusion,” said County Manager Mark Schwartz. [Arlington County, InsideNova]
Clarendon Company Named a Best Workplace in U.S. — Clarendon-based Enterprise Knowledge has made an Inc. magazine list of the Best Workplaces in 2018. The management consultancy has some of the “coolest company perks,” according to the magazine, including “tuition help, gym memberships, and company cellphones.” It also “reimburses employees up to $3,000 for the purchase of a hybrid car.” [Inc., Enterprise Knowledge]
County Touts Oak Grove Park Upgrades — “Through a Neighborhood Conservation project, Oak Grove Park recently underwent some major improvements to its playground equipment… The updates to the park include a ‘tot lot’ and a play area for older kids, an improved picnic shelter, site furnishings, a water fountain, many new trees, and biorentention for stormwater management.” [Arlington County, YouTube]
Marymount Farmers Market Starts This Weekend — The Marymount Farmers Market will kick off Saturday, serving the university and nearby North Arlington neighborhoods. The market will take place weekly through November. [Arlington Catholic Herald]
(Updated at 5:10 p.m.) A long-delayed Shirlington sports bar could open in late summer, as its owner revises his timetable once more.
Reese Gardner has been hoping to open Dudley’s Sport & Ale in a 12,000-square-foot space at 2766 S. Arlington Mills Drive. The bar would replace the former The Bungalow Sports Grill, which closed in June 2015, and Gardner envisions it including a 3,000-square-foot rooftop bar as well.
Yet the project has encountered persistent delays over the last few years, related to both construction and Arlington County’s permitting process. But these days, Gardner tells ARLnow that he’s “getting close” to finally finishing the restaurant.
He’s eyeing an August opening for Dudley’s, and he hopes to be able to formally set a date by early July.
Dudley’s also posted on its Facebook page that it received its “final steel delivery” on May 15. The material is largely reserved for the rooftop, which Gardner says will hold up to 300 people when it’s finished.
Gardner’s company also owns Copperwood Tavern in Shirlington and Irish Whiskey Public House in D.C. He’s previously said that Washington Nationals General Manager Mike Rizzo joined his ownership team for his restaurants.
An Alexandria-based Tex-Mex restaurant is gearing up to move into the space once occupied by Cantina Mexicana in Crystal City.
The owner of Los Tios Grill is planning to open their third Northern Virginia location at the space at 515 23rd Street S., according to landlord Stratis Voutsas.
German Mejia, the owner of Los Tios, didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on his plans for the location. But Voutsas expects that Mejia will have the new restaurant, which sits next to what was once Cafe Italia, open to customers within the next month or so.
Voutsas’ company controls many of the properties along 23rd Street S., and he says he and his wife, Georgia Papadopoulos, have been working for years to bring in more small businesses and “re-envision” his section of Crystal City.
“Bob and Edith’s was the first step to that,” Voutsas told ARLnow. “Los Tios is the second building block.”
Mejia currently runs two locations in Alexandria, and just opened a new restaurant in Leesburg, according to the Los Tios website. The restaurants specialize in fajitas, along with traditional Salvadoran dishes, and have extensive selections of margaritas and Mexican beer.
Los Tios will replace one of the area’s oldest restaurants. Cantina Mexicana closed its doors last December, after first opening under a different name in 1978.
The newly renovated interior of Goody’s in Clarendon (photo by Alex Koma)
The newly renovated interior of Goody’s in Clarendon (photo by Alex Koma)
A little more than a month after closing up shop, popular Clarendon pizzeria Goody’s is back open, with some big changes on the way.
New owner Glenda Alvarez says the shop reopened its doors for the first time last Monday (May 15) and is ready for customers once more. Nick and Vanessa Reisis ran the pizzeria since 2006, but decided to retire and sell the store to Alvarez in early April.
Alvarez says she won’t be changing the restaurant’s name, or much about its menu: pizza and subs are still the main things on offer. She added that Goody’s will still be open late at night on the weekends to cater to bar-goers and even Arlington County police officers.
However, Alvarez has recently completed a full renovation of the restaurant’s interior, replacing its well-worn floors and furniture, with more changes on the way.
“Little by little, we’re adding on to it,” Alvarez told ARLnow. “It’s a friendly atmosphere. It’s welcoming, it’s run by a family. We want to make it a family-oriented place.”
Alvarez says she went to culinary school in Paris and used to own a Mediterranean restaurant before moving to Arlington. She says she spent years as an Arlington County government employee, but had long been interested in getting back into the restaurant business.
Alvarez says she’d repeatedly spoken with the Reisis’s about taking over Goody’s someday, and they approached Alvarez and her husband (who works at the small jewelry store next door to Goody’s) when they decided to retire.
“My husband and I talked it over, and it just seemed like a new opportunity for us,” Alvarez said. “So we thought, ‘Let’s go ahead buy it.'”
Though Goody’s may have a different owner running things, Alvarez says patrons shouldn’t expect the food to be too different — she kept on two of the same cooks and plans to leave their pizza and sauce recipes untouched.
However, she is planning on hiring a new chef and perhaps expanding Goody’s breakfast offerings, and even starting up a catering service.
“We’ll just try it all out, and see what works,” Alvarez said.
The following was re-posted from the Envescent website. Envescent provides IT services to ARLnow.com.
We are extremely excited and honored to announce that Envescent has received the prestigious Best Technology Small Business award from the Arlington Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday, May 2.
Our company was among many amazing local Arlington businesses whom were chosen during what was described as a very competitive selection process.
According to the Arlington Chamber of Commerce, the main criteria for selection was providing an excellent customer experience, strong growth, environmental sustainability and stability. We are both thrilled and deeply grateful to be recognized for the achievements we’ve made as a company.
The award ceremony was held at the Key Bridge Marriott in Rosslyn. Envescent’s founder, Alexander Chamandy, accepted the award with a speech thanking our clients, our team, The Arlington Chamber of Commerce and Arlington County for Envescent’s past and current success.
We firmly believe that our success and this recognition of our company is directly related to putting our clients first. Winning this award has further strengthened our ambition to grow, improve our company and to do even more to give back to our local community.
