Rosslyn is finally getting a restaurant that serves pizza by the slice.
Wiseguy NY Pizza is opening a location, at 1735 N. Lynn Street, in the former Quiznos Subs location. In October, Wiseguy owner Tony Errol told Eater.com that the shop should open “in about three months or so.” So far, Wiseguy has not replied to a request for comment from ARLnow.com.
The pizza place’s first location is on 3rd Street and Massachusetts Ave. NW in the District, where it has received plaudits for coming close to replicating authentic New York-style pizza. It claims to make its pizza with “New Yorkinized water” thanks to a “special filter system.”
The eatery also offers garlic knots — a rare sight in the District — and cheesecake from New York staple Junior’s Cheesecake.
(Updated at 3:40 p.m.) Pizza Vinoteca, the latest restaurant flocking to Ballston, is planning to open next Thursday, Dec. 11.
The restaurant, at 800 N. Glebe Road, is still waiting for its liquor license — it expects it to arrive early next week — but CEO Ari Malcolm of the New York-based business was able to give ARLnow.com a tour of Pizza Vinoteca’s second location.
“The concept is trying to elevate fast-casual,” he said. “We’re first and foremost a dine-in restaurant, but it’s pizza — we want people be relaxed and have fun here.”
The pizzas are grilled, Providence, Rhode Island-style, made for one and cost between $10 and $14.50. There are 36 wines, all available by the glass and mostly on tap in their custom-designed system, which uses argon gas to keep wines fresh. All of the glasses cost $10 or less and are available in half-glasses. There will also be seven craft beers available and house cocktails, include a frozen vodka, prosecco and lemon sorbet creation.
Pizza Vinoteca will also deliver and offers takeout.
Malcolm got his start working his way up from server to the business side of the restaurant industry, and the native New Yorker said he takes his restaurant “very seriously, but we don’t take ourselves too seriously.” He said his favorite item on the menu is the jowlciale pizza, which is a smoked, cured pork cheek from a Virginia farm accompanied by spicy chili pesto, fontina cheese, pistachio and honey.
“Composed thought goes into all our pizza,” he said. “I wanted to hate our Hawaiian pizza because I think canned pineapple and ham. But ours has fresh pineapple, prosciutto and peppers. It’s unfortunately really tasty.”
The pizzas are made on a grill that Malcolm helped design, which uses three kinds of heat, including infrared, to grill the whole wheat flatbread pizzas in less than three minutes. The grill can get as hot as 800 degrees when fully cooking, Malcolm said.
When the restaurant opens next week, Malcolm said he’s confident it will find its niche despite competition nearby from Pupatella, Rustico and Il Forno.
“Our product is so different from what the people in this neighborhood are doing,” he said. “We like the competition, because it just means more people are coming to Ballston to eat.”
Pupatella is getting accolades for its Neapolitan style pizzas. A recently released list puts it at the top, compared to all other pizza joints in the state.
FlipKey.com, a TripAdvisor company, put together a list of “Best Pizza Worth Traveling For” and chose one pizza place for each of the 50 states. Arlington’s own Pupatella received the honors for Virginia.
A representative for FlipKey said the winners were chosen based on market research and traveler feedback.
The full list of the best pizza worth traveling for in each state is available online.
Last year, Pupatella won another ABBIE for being named the best pizza place in Arlington, and also made the Washington Post’s list of “40 dishes Washingtonians shouldn’t live without in 2013.”
Silver Line Now Open for Business — Metro’s Silver Line opened Saturday, with local officials, reporters and curious residents crowding the new stations in Reston and Tysons to get a ride on the first Silver Line trains. So far this morning, on the first big commuting day of its debut, the Silver Line seems to be functioning normally, without incident. Over time, the Metrorail line is expected to bring further economic development to Tysons and Reston. [Reston Now, Washington Post, InsideNova]
Nation’s Oldest Female Vet Visits Arlington — The nation’s oldest female veteran, 108-year-old Army Staff Sgt. Lucy Coffey, visited the Women in Military Service for America Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery over the weekend. [Stars and Stripes]
Pizza Vinoteca Opening Delayed — Pizza Vinoteca, a New York City-based gourmet pizza restaurant, will not be opening in Ballston this month, as originally planned. The pizzeria is now expected to open at 800 N. Glebe Road by the end of August, according to a PR rep.
SpinFire Pizza, the 90-second pizza concept coming to 1501 Wilson Blvd in Rosslyn, is planning a fall opening.
The restaurant, co-owned by Washington Redskins receiver Pierre Garçon and Paisano’s Pizza owner Fouad Qreitem, is on the ground floor of the building that also houses Heavy Seas Alehouse and Roti.
The restaurant will use a rotating oven to cook personal pizzas for customers in less than two minutes, it says in a press release. The 2,300-square-foot eatery will also serve salad, gelato and “a robust beer and wine selection.”
The location will be SpinFire’s second when it opens; there’s another being built in Ashburn, a few miles from the Redskins’ practice facility.
“We are very excited to build our second SpinFire location in Rosslyn with its compelling resident demographics, strong daytime office population, and a true 24/7 live, work and play environment,” Garçon said in the release.
We, The Pizza, the pizza shop launched by former Top Chef contestant Spike Mendelsohn, is now open in Crystal City.
Located next to TechShop in the Shops at 2100 Crystal Drive, the pizza shop has only been open “a couple of days” according to a manager in the store, and it was still crowded for lunch at 1:30 p.m. today. The shop has signs posted alerting customers “Staff is training (Be Gentle).”
The shop is open from 11:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. daily and serves slices of 16 custom pizzas, including a chicken poblano spicy Mexican pie, a Mortadella pico de gallo pie and a Cajun chicken and andouille pie. Slices of each pie cost $4 and a cheese slice costs $3. A medium full pizza of any style costs $18 and a large costs $20.
The restaurant also offers wings and salads, and boasts that many of its ingredients are sourced from local farms in Maryland, West Virginia and Pennsylvania. Mendelsohn also owns the Good Stuff Eatery burger shop two doors down from We, The Pizza.
A new restaurant that boasts serving pizzas “freshly-baked in 90 seconds” appears to be moving to Rosslyn at 1501 Wilson Blvd, next door to Roti.
Spinfire Pizza is planning on opening one of its first two locations in Rosslyn — the other is expected to open in Ashburn, Va. — but there’s no indication of when the restaurant will open its doors.
The signage on the restaurants window indicate that the pizzas will be Neopolitan-style, made-to-order, and customers will be able to choose from 50 toppings. It appears Spinfire will also offer salads, beer and wine.
A virtual tour online of the concept gives the restaurant the look of a “fast casual,” assembly line-style of eatery, which is burgeoning in Rosslyn with Roti, Chipotle, Chop’t and Tom Yum District.
The HomeMade Pizza Company store in the Lee Heights Shops has closed.
The store closed suddenly on Friday as part of a company-wide shutdown. The Chicago-based company had nearly 40 stores in the Chicago, Minneapolis, New York and Washington areas, all of which are now shuttered, according to Crain’s Chicago Business. The Arlington store, at 4514 Lee Highway, opened in 2009.
The company sold freshly-made pizzas that customers could take home to bake, in additions to salads and desserts.
Rosslyn Startup to Be Featured on ‘Shark Tank’ — Rosslyn-based startup Zoobean will be featured tonight on ABC’s “Shark Tank.” Zoobean, which describes itself as “a web service that recommends apps and books for children,” will pitch itself to a panel of wealthy investors, including billionaire Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban. The show airs at 9:00 p.m. on ABC. The company will also be profiled as part of ARLnow.com’s “Startup Monday” feature next week. [PR Newswire, Des Moines Register]
Pentagon City Mall Expansion Imminent — Work is expected to “begin soon” on a planned 50,000 square foot expansion of the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City. The expansion will add two new levels of retail, restaurants with outdoor seating, new elevators and escalators, and an expanded food court. Mall owner Simon is also expected to announce some of the new restaurants and retailers coming to the mall “shortly.” [Washington Business Journal]
We, The Pizza Eyes ‘Late Spring’ Opening — We, The Pizza, the pizza restaurant helmed by celebrity chef Spike Mendelsohn, will be opening soon in Crystal City. No specific date has been set, but a spokeswoman said the restaurant is expected to open in “late spring.” Mendelsohn also operates burger restaurant Good Stuff Eatery in Crystal City.
‘Miss Gay Arlington’ Pageant Tonight — The Arlington Gay and Lesbian Alliance and Freddy’s Beach Bar in Crystal City (555 23rd Street S.) will host the annual Miss Gay Arlington pageant tonight. Four contestants will compete in four categories: presentation, talent, evening gown, and on-stage question. The event starts at 8:00 p.m. and admission is $10. [AGLA]
Enterprise CarShare Launches in Rosslyn — A car sharing service from Enterprise Rent-A-Car has launched in the D.C. area. Two of its car share parking stations are located in the Rosslyn area. [Enterprise CarShare]
Paisano’s, the local pizza, pasta and sandwich chain, is coming to the ground floor of the recently-built apartment complex at 2201 N. Pershing Drive.
The eatery plans to sell wine and beer, according to a permit application.
No word yet on an opening date for the new restaurant, which is located in Lyon Park. Paisano’s has one location in Arlington — near Crystal City — in addition to two in Falls Church and one in Alexandria.
GGW: Arlington Is Losing a Smart Growth Advocate — Chris Zimmerman’s announced departure from the Arlington County Board means the county is losing a true smart growth advocate, says Greater Greater Washington writer Canaan Merchant. “Whoever hopes to replace them will have big shoes to fill as Mr. Zimmerman’s influence will loom large in Arlington and greater Washington for years,” he writes. “Smart growth or public transportation advocates have their work cut out for them if they want to support a candidate in Arlington who is dedicated to those issues as much as Zimmerman has for the past 18 years.” [Greater Greater Washington]
New Building Tech Hinders Emergency Communication — The technology that’s helping to make new buildings stronger is playing havoc with police and fire department radios. Arlington County is trying to lead by example by requiring a special antenna system in all new county buildings. The system allows communication among first responders and dispatchers indoors in buildings where radios would otherwise not work. [WJLA]
Piola Introduces Unlimited Pizza Brunch — It your brunch plans would be enhanced by an unlimited supply of pizza, Piola in Rosslyn (1550 Wilson Blvd) now has a deal for you. On Saturday the restaurant is debuting a “‘No Limit’ Pizza Brunch,” with unlimited helpings of more than 10 different pizzas. Pitchers of sangria and sparkling drinks will also be offered. The brunch deal will run from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays.
Former Arlington Police PIO Joins Alexandria — Crystal Nosal, the former Public Information Officer of the Arlington County Police Department, will be joining the Alexandria Police Department in the same role on Nov. 18. During her tenure as Arlington’s PIO, Nosal was a familiar face on local news broadcasts when a significant crime or accident happened in the county.
