reopening

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

County Opposes Second McD’s Drive-Thru Window — “Maybe, in the end, they can all sit down amicably over a Happy Meal. But the mood was decidedly unhappy when the Arlington County Board and representatives of McDonald’s recently tangled over redevelopment of the restaurant chain’s 60-year-old outlet in the 4800 block of Lee Highway.” [InsideNova]

Sloppy Mama’s to Reopen Today — “Sloppy Mama’s BBQ owner Joe Neuman also isn’t in a rush to open his dining room, though he is launching takeout at his Arlington restaurant on Friday. He received a Paycheck Protection Program loan, which has terms that reward businesses that rehire staff. Neuman closed Sloppy Mama’s on March 16, just as barbecue season beckoned.” [Washington City Paper]

Va. Trying to Ramp Up Testing — “As the state plans to reopen on Friday — though it will delay Northern Virginia’s reopening until after Memorial Day — the commonwealth is still not meeting Gov. Ralph Northam’s testing goal of 10,000 tests a day. This week, Virginia’s Department of Emergency Management signed contracts with three commercial labs in an effort to ramp up testing as the state gears up to reopen.” [DCist]

March Hotel Occupancy Rate Shows Big Drop — “Arlington hotel and motel occupancy took a pummeling in March as the COVID-19 pandemic began to take hold… March’s occupancy rate of 34.5 percent for Arlington resulted in a first-quarter occupancy rate of 52.3 percent.” [InsideNova]

GMA Profiles YHS Senior Photo Project — “In Arlington, Virginia, photographer Matt Mendelsohn has made it his mission to give the senior class of Yorktown High School the celebration they deserve… With the growing popularity of his project, which he’s named ‘Not Forgotten: The Yorktown Seniors of 2020,’ he’s enlisted the help from his daughter on shoots and a parent.” [Good Morning America]

Library Launches Virtual Career Services — “Arlington Public Library is offering virtual one-on-one appointments to job seekers who want career help or to improve their resume. All appointments are free and confidential. Appointments are available Mondays and Thursdays, 5:30-7 p.m., and Tuesdays, 9:30-11 a.m. No library card is required.” [Arlington County]

Signature Helps With Inn’s Mannequins — “Instead of letting tables sit vacant, the [Inn at Little Washington] chef plans to outfit his dining rooms with mannequins… The chef (who majored in drama in college) has been working with Shirlington’s Signature Theatre to get the faux humans costumed in 1940s-era garb. Servers will be instructed to pour them wine and to ask them about their evening.” [Washingtonian, Eater]

Ireland’s Four Courts Reopening for Takeout

By ARLnow.com

Ireland’s Four Courts will once again be serving shepherd’s pies and fish and chips, starting Friday.

The long-time Courthouse watering hole closed on March 15, devastatingly just before St. Patrick’s Day. But customers have rallied around the pub and donated nearly $35,000 via a GoFundMe campaign to benefit Four Courts and its laid off employees.

“The closing of the doors is like closing the doors on a family, placing unwelcomed economic burdens and stress on its members,” the GoFundMe page said. “So please raise your glass and give a donation in honor of Ireland’s Four Courts and its staff members that have given so much to this community. All donations will go directly to help support the staff during this time of uncertainty.”

Yesterday, a month and a half since the closure, came word on the fundraiser page that Four Courts will be reopening Friday for takeout.

“We are pleased to announce that everyone has been offered their position back and that we plan to open for to-go orders on Friday, May 8,” Four Courts manager Dave Cahill wrote. “We are awaiting further instruction from the our Governor in regards to reopening our bar and restaurant for dine in customers… Ireland’s Four Courts has served the people of Arlington for over two decades and we have never been more excited to open our doors again!”

The announcement comes amid a wave of restaurant reopenings around the D.C. area, though one prominent local restaurant owner cautions that many are due to business receiving PPP loans. The doors might not stay open past the Fourth of July, he suggested.

The full announcement from Four Courts is below, after the jump.

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Scoop: Nicecream to Reopen in Clarendon Tomorrow

By Vernon Miles

For Sandra Tran, preparing for tomorrow’s reopening of Nicecream in Clarendon feels like a jump back in time to seven years ago.

Nicecream, a handcrafted ice cream shop with four locations across Northern Virginia and D.C., is reopening its Clarendon (2831 Clarendon Blvd) and Shaw locations on Friday with ice cream scoops and pints to go. Featured flavors are planned to include honey lavender, salted caramel, Nutella, cold brew coffee, bananas and cream, and wild blueberry.

Tran and husband Gil Welsford say they plan to open with a “closed-door” style of service. A menu will be mounted outside the restaurant and customers can order and pay from their phones while workers inside make the ice cream. The items will then be placed out on a pick-up table, with no customers or delivery drivers allowed inside.

“It’s pretty enlivening,” Tran said. “I don’t know how other business owners feel, but it feels like we’re building it over again.”

Tran said this was the way it was seven years ago when she and Welsford started Nicecream. They were running around getting signs, figuring out how to put them up on the walls, handling small deliveries and tackling other tasks of that nature.

“We were meeting delivery drivers at the store because there was no one there to meet them,” Tran said. “It reminds me of the beginning again.”

With that, Tran said there’s a resourcefulness that comes with being a new business that gets lost over time as systems become routine.

“You develop new experiences as you become more seasoned, but you lose some of that scrappiness,” Tran said. “You create systems and operations to make everything more efficient. But when you’re starting like this, it’s like ‘who is the cheapest guy I can get to print this?’ It’s running around to figure out who is even open. It’s remembering how to be scrappy.”

That isn’t to say it hasn’t been tough for Welsford and Tran. Over the last few months, they had to lay off their entire staff, starting with eliminating their own pay, then to seasonal workers and full-time staff. Tran said they’ve worked to get proper resources for unemployment to their staff, but some of the seasonal workers are stuck without the full-year of employment history to help file for aid.

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Columbia Pike Goodwill to Reopen This Weekend

By Vernon Miles

If you’ve been fretting over where to find second-hand clothes, accessories and oddities on Columbia Pike, worry no more, the Goodwill retail store at 4714 Columbia Pike is scheduled to reopen this Saturday (Feb. 29).

The shop had been closed for renovations but will reopen with a celebration on Saturday. Throughout the day, anyone who spends $50 will get a $10 discount, according to the Goodwill website.

After the reopening, the Goodwill is scheduled to resume its usual schedule of 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Saturday, and 10 a.m.-6 p.m. on Sunday.

Photo via Goodwill of Greater Washington/Facebook

Stageplate Bistro Temporarily Closed But Plans to Reopen Next Month

By Vernon Miles
1/2

The lights are off at Stageplate Bistro (900 N. Glebe Road), but the tables are already set for the Ballston restaurant to reopen in March.

“We had to close to regroup to come back better than ever,” said general manager Mary Marchetti.

Marchetti said the restaurant had to close for hiring and staff training, as well as some internal reorganizing. It took a little longer than expected, she admitted, but they are planning for the reopening to coincide with the first day of spring on March 21.

Springing off that, Marchetti says there will be a new seasonal menu and she’s excited to open the patio back up for the warmer weather.

This isn’t the first time Stageplate Bistro, which opened in 2017, has had a brief hiatus. The restaurant was closed over the summer in 2018. Restaurants west of Glebe Road have lamented not getting the same attention as their eastern cousins, but Marchetti said she remains optimistic and is looking forward to reopening.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Arlington Rooftop Bar Reopens — After being shut down by county building inspectors, Arlington Rooftop Bar and Grill in Courthouse reopened Tuesday evening, just in time to watch the Nationals sweep the Cardinals in Game 4 of the NLDS, to advance to the first World Series in D.C. since 1933. [Twitter]

Housing Still Hot Near HQ2 — “The median sale price for all home types in the 22202 [zip code, which includes the Pentagon City and Crystal City area] jumped nearly 40% in September compared with the same time last year, reaching $685,000… That makes it nine straight months of home price appreciation for the 22202 area. Arlington County as a whole saw a modest 12% year-to-date increase, $590,000 for all home types.” [Washington Business Journal]

Retail Job Fair Next Week — “Fashion Centre at Pentagon City, Washington D.C.’s international shopping destination, invites job seekers to attend its Retailer Job Fair on Tuesday, October 22. From 11 a.m.-7 p.m., candidates can visit the Metro and First Levels to pick up applications, meet with store representatives and apply onsite.” [Press Release]

DCA Fee to Help Pay for Expansion Project — “Project Journey, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority’s $1 billion capital improvement effort well underway at Reagan National Airport, will be paid for in part by airline passengers. At its meeting Wednesday, the MWAA board will be asked to approve the submission of a new Passenger Facility Charge application… The $4.50 fee is collected by airlines as part of their airfare and remitted to the airport of origin.” [Washington Business Journal]

Caps Dogs Star in Arlington Photoshoot — “In the 2020 Capitals Canine Calendar, you will see 12 months of Washington ice hockey players posing with dogs of all sizes, ages and bark levels… There was plenty of four-legged mischief during the October shoot at the MedStar Capitals Iceplex in Arlington.” [Washington Post, Twitter]

Nearby: New Restaurant in Arlandria — “The new Taqueria Senora Lola is now open at 3901 Mount Vernon Avenue in Arlandria. Owner Oswaldo Salinas said the restaurant — adjacent to Salinas’ other eatery, Lilian’s Restaurant, opened two weeks ago and had a grand opening event this past Saturday.” [ALXnow]

Rebuilt Taco Bell Now Open on Lee Highway

By Vernon Miles
1/5

The long-awaited resurrection of the Lee Highway Taco Bell is finally at hand.

The drive-thru Taco Bell next to the Kentucky Fried Chicken reopened today (Tuesday) at 4923 Lee Highway.

The restaurant shut down in September to be torn down and completely rebuilt. The new interior features new self-checkout stations, where staff were helping walk newcomers through the ordering process today. The self-checkout stations feature a wider range of options and customization than what’s featured on the display menus.

Despite little advertising of the reopening visible from the street, the rebuilt Taco Bell still had a steady stream of customers around lunchtime — most of whom were too busy with their meals to indulge interview requests.

Local Businesses Reopen as Residents Donate Thousands

By ARLnow.com
1/14

A week after devastating flash flooding, the lights are coming back on for some affected businesses in Arlington.

SER Restaurant in Ballston, which was inundated by water coming through the ceiling during the Flash Flood Emergency, is planning to reopen at 5 p.m. today (Monday), co-owner Christiana Campos told ARLnow.

The reopening comes after the local community rallied to raise more than $10,000 for SER in a GoFundMe campaign. SER says the donations are being used to help fund needed repairs while the owners work through the insurance claim process.

“Thanks to our hard working staff, our construction crew who have been working around the clock to fix the damage and thanks to the humbling outpouring of support from the community, we are so thrilled to being opening today,” Campos told ARLnow. “The power of this community is truly incredible.”

In Westover, where floodwaters destroyed merchandise and knocked out power, the two hardest-hit businesses — Westover Market and Beer Garden, and Ayers Variety and Hardware — first reopened in a limited fashion on Wednesday. Over the weekend, Westover Market announced it was back on utility power and off generators.

“Finally! Regular hours going forward!” the store exclaimed on Facebook. “Limited fresh produce [and] meats have been delivered! Every day we’ll inch closer to 100%. Thanks so much for all the incredible support! We need it! And please send support and prayers to the other businesses affected by the storm!”

A GoFundMe campaign for the Westover merchants has raised more than $67,500.

Also in Westover, the weekly farmers market was held over the weekend, thanks to quick repairs to 18th Street N., which was damaged by the flooding. On Saturday, the director of the company that organizes the market wrote the following letter to Arlington County Manager Mark Schwartz, lauding the dedicated repair crews.

Mr. Schwartz —

I was notified late this afternoon that the emergency street repairs on 18th Street N. have been completed. Our nonprofit organization is very grateful for the County’s quick response to address the street damage caused by the torrential rain last Monday morning…

This section of the roadway serves on Sunday mornings as a key part of the Westover Farmers Market. We have been in contact with vendors all week regarding whether the Westover Farmers Market could take place, given the roadway damage caused by the storm. This evening I was able to send them an “all clear” message. So tomorrow morning’s market should run without a hitch. […]

Please send our thanks to the personnel in the Department of Environmental Services and to the contractors who assist them for a job well and quickly done. The neighbors who shop each week at this farmers market will benefit from their outstanding efforts this week.

Rob Swennes, Executive Director
Field to Table, Inc.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

VHC Land Swap Ready to Move Forward — “Nearly six months after a divided Arlington County Board approved a major expansion of Virginia Hospital Center, board members are set to take the next step.” [InsideNova]

Ballston IHOP Reopens — “Good news IHOP fans: the Ballston location is back open and serving customers. Here’s why it closed.” [Twitter]

DEA Finds Temporary Digs — “The Drug Enforcement Administration has found temporary space in Crystal City for its employees while its… headquarters in adjacent Pentagon City gets a major makeover. Representatives for the DEA recently applied to Arlington County for interior alteration permits to renovate three floors at 2200 Crystal Drive.” [Washington Business Journal]

Road Closures for Ballston 5K Race — “The 2019 Girls on the Run 5K Race will be held in the Ballston-Virginia Square area on Sunday, May 19, 2019. The Arlington County Police Department will implement the following road closures from approximately 8:15 AM to 10:15 AM to accommodate the event.” [Arlington County]

Carlee Defines the ‘Arlington Way’ — “‘In its most positive framing’ [the Arlington Way] means ‘engaging with the public on issues of importance or concern (not always the same) in an effort to reach community consensus or… a shared understanding and an opportunity for everyone to be heard,’ [former County Manager Ron Carlee] writes. ‘In its negative framing’ the phrase has been ‘derided as a way to talk everything to death so that ideas are killed or that people are so worn-down that by the end, they do not care what happens as long as it is just over.'” [Falls Church News-Press]

Photo courtesy @klk_photography11/Instagram

Ballston IHOP Aims for Weekend Re-opening

By Vernon Miles

With any luck, Ballstonians can get their pancake fix at the IHOP (935 N. Stafford Street) by the time the weekend rolls around.

The restaurant was closed after a fire on April 9 — the second fire since October. Renovations are now underway, making for the second such extended closure for construction since the first fire.

Among the visible changes: a new expanse of faux wood under the restaurant’s large blue roof. Staff at the IHOP said the remodeling is complete and the restaurant is expected to re-open in the next three to four days, pending final approval of permits.

Stageplate Bistro Closes Temporarily in Ballston, With Plans to Re-Open This Fall

By Melanie Pincus
1/3

Stageplate Bistro (900 N. Glebe Road) will be closed for the next few weeks, but has plans for a “grand reopening” Saturday, September 1.

“After almost a year of passionately pursuing our dream, we are taking a breath,” a posting to the door reads, in part. The notice is signed by proprietors Mary Marchetti and Nelly Gonzalez, the married duo who serve as the restaurant’s general manager and executive chef, respectively.

That “breath” means instead of pulling 100-hour-plus work weeks, Marchetti and Gonzalez will work from 9 a.m-5 p.m. on some updates, Marchetti said. That will include training, shaping their social media presence and updating the restaurant’s website.

Stageplate Bistro held its grand opening in October after a soft opening last August. Their menu primarily features American cuisine.

“Reflecting on the past year after opening our first restaurant has been really exciting, and one of the biggest takeaways we have is how wonderful this community has been,” Marchetti said.  “We’re so thankful to be in Ballston and we’re so thankful for the community support and our amazing guests.”

Final details about the re-opening will be available on Stageplate Bistro’s website.

“We’re going to finally get everybody together on [Sept. 1] and get our big scissors out and cut our ribbon,” Marchetti said.

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