restaurant

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com
Ballston at twilight (Flickr pool photo by Tom Mockler)

Slight Dip in Apartment Rents — “The average rental rate for an Arlington unit over the past month was down 0.4 percent compared to the month before, according to figures reported Nov. 1 by Apartment List. Arlington’s rental rates averaged $2,032 for one-bedroom units and $2,460 for two-bedroom units. Arlington was one of 22 of the nation’s 100 largest urban areas to see pullbacks in rental rates over the month.” [Sun Gazette]

Federal Funds for Local Bridge? — From reporter Michael Lee Pope: “@RepDonBeyer #VA08 infrastructure projects requested: $9 million for renovating the bridge connecting Mount Vernon Avenue in #AlexandriaVA to Arlington Ridge Road in #ArlingtonVA” [Twitter]

Post Reviews Lyon Park Restaurant — “When not hawking food, she is a parking enforcement officer with the Arlington County Police Department… In September, she moved indoors when she took over El Fuego Peruvian Kitchen, an Arlington business that had already made the successful transition from street vendor to a bricks-and-mortar restaurant.” [Washington Post]

Wild Incident on Columbia Pike — “At approximately 9:30 a.m. on November 6, police were dispatched to the report of an assault just occurred and fire department units were also responding to investigate the smell of smoke and natural gas. Upon arrival inside the residential building, the suspect approached responding officers and began shouting. As the officers attempted to place the suspect into custody, he actively resisted and a brief struggle ensued before he was detained without further incident. The investigation determined that the suspect was allegedly acting irate and damaged the doors to multiple residential units.” [ACPD]

Parents Group Calls Out APS Calendar — “In prior years, APS aligned its calendar with neighboring (and vast) FCPS – an effort to support staff who worked and lived in different jurisdictions. This year’s calendar has a different start date and Spring Break than FCPS, and APS is off for five holidays when FCPS is not, which makes the schedule almost impossible for staff and working families to navigate.” [Arlington Parents for Education]

Rare Opening of Tomb Plaza — Updated at 9 a.m. — “Arlington National Cemetery will open up the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier Plaza Tuesday and Wednesday to members of the public and allow visitors to lay flowers for the first time in almost 100 years. The privilege is typically reserved for members of ‘The Old Guard,’ sentinels in the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment who stand watch constantly at the Arlington National Cemetery landmark, officials say.” [NBC 4]

It’s Tuesday — Today will be near perfect, with sunny skies and a high of 72. Sunrise at 6:44 a.m. and sunset at 4:59 p.m. Tomorrow will be sunny, with a high near 67. [Weather.gov]

Flickr pool photo by Tom Mockler

Soccer-centric restaurant Copa has closed in Ballston

By ARLnow.com
1/2

Time has expired for Spanish tapas restaurant and soccer-watching venue Copa Kitchen & Bar in Ballston.

The establishment at Ballston Quarter mall served its final brunches over the weekend after apparently failing to score with local diners. Of course, stiff opposition — in the form of the pandemic and a labor shortage — probably didn’t help.

Copa opened in March 2019, in a separate space adjacent to the Quarter Market food hall. It offered Spanish-inspired small plates, flatbreads, sangria from its “sangria garden,” outdoor seating and soccer matches on the bar’s TVs.

Late last month, however, Copa announced on its website it would soon close.

We’ve got some news to share about Copa Kitchen & Bar. We’re closing our doors and serving our last brunch on Sunday November 7th. We have had such a good time bringing you our Spanish inspired tapas and being a part of the Ballston Quarter family over the last two years. We want to thank every customer who has dined with us, watched games with us, followed our journey on social media or enjoyed a happy hour with us. We’d like to extend a special thanks to the customers who have supported us (and all restaurants) through the pandemic.

Today workers could be seen in the restaurant space, packing up items and removing some of the fixtures.

It’s the second time in just over a year that a soccer-centric restaurant has shuttered in Arlington. Summers Restaurant in Courthouse closed last fall ahead of a redevelopment project.

Peruvian Brothers stand closes ahead of Crystal City Water Park renovations

By Matt Blitz
Peruvian Brothers co-owner Giuseppe Lanzone with alpacas (Photo courtesy of Peruvian Brothers)

The Peruvian Brothers’ stand at the Crystal City Water Park has closed due to coming renovations at the park.

The last day for the fast casual stand known for their empanadas and peruvian coffee was Sunday, co-owner Giuseppe Lanzone tells ARLnow.

But the brothers went out in style, hosting a party on Sunday. There were Halloween costumes, free cookies, music, dancers, and alpacas.

“In Virginia, it’s much easier to bring alpacas,” says Lanzone, about the animal that’s native to the Andes and part of Peruvian culture. “Fewer regulations than D.C.”

Giuseppe and his brother Mario Lanzone are originally from Peru, but moved with their family to McLean in 1997. Before going into the food business together, Giuseppe was a two-time Olympic rower for Team USA.

The two started their first food truck in 2013. Soon, that one truck became two, then three. Next, the brothers started working with the Peruvian Embassy in D.C.

This got them enough attention to open their first outpost inside of the Latin market La Cosecha in Northeast D.C., next to Union Market. Soon, they were getting accolades from a number of local media outlets.

But then the pandemic hit.

It was at this time that Lanzone was living on Crystal Drive in Crystal City. He would often go for runs and walks “since there wasn’t much else to do” and passed the unoccupied stand (which was previously a rotating cast of pop-up eateries) at the privately-owned park.

“It was just an empty space. I kept think ‘what would be better than being able to stop outside and grab a coffee and an empanada,'” he says. “I didn’t want the space to go to waste.”

In April 2020, he and his brother partnered with National Landing Business Improvement District and made a deal with park owner JBG Smith to bring their Peruvian cuisine to Crystal City.

For the last 18 months, they’ve been serving out of the stand. But their contract is now up as renovations near.

“It was an incredible experience being part of the community,” Lanzone says. “National Landing BID and JBG were great partners to us.”

The 1.5-acre park at 1601 Crystal Drive is scheduled to undergo renovations during the winter, a spokesperson for JBG Smith confirms to ARLnow. It will reopen in the spring of 2023.

New vendor kiosks, an updated performance platform, a bar with a terrace, and restrooms will all be added. There will also be updates to the water feature, a widening of sidewalks, and improved walking and cycling connections.

What it won’t include, though, is the Peruvian Brothers — but that doesn’t mean they are disappearing from Arlington.

Lanzone said they are in discussions for opening a small brick and mortar in the neighborhood. While nothing is finalized and ready to be announced, there have been “talks” about opening up a new outpost that would be accessible to those who work at Amazon’s nearby HQ2.

“We are big fans of National Landing and Amazon and want to be part of the new development,” Lanzone says. In terms of the neighborhood, the feeling seems to be mutual.

“We have greatly enjoyed and appreciated our collaboration with Peruvian Brothers in National Landing,” said Amy Rice, Senior Vice President of Retail Leasing at JBG Smith. “We were thrilled to be able to offer them a temporary outdoor location during the height of the pandemic, and that setting proved to be a hit for National Landing residents.”

“As the transformation of National Landing continues, we are actively working with Peruvian Brothers to find a more permanent home with us in the neighborhood,” Rice added.

https://twitter.com/NationalLanding/status/1455964250996977674

Meanwhile, Peruvian Brothers fans can find them at La Cosecha in D.C. and at their catering headquarters in Alexandria headquarters. The brothers are also now offering an empanada subscription service, with frozen empanadas dropped off at doorsteps twice a month.

The brothers say they’re confident they’ll be back in Arlington soon.

“We love it here,” Lanzone said.

Sandwich shop Jimmy John’s is suddenly gone in Rosslyn

By Matt Blitz
Jimmy John’s in Rosslyn is now closed (Staff photo by Matt Blitz)

Jimmy John’s in Rosslyn has made its last sandwich.

The chain’s location at 1512 Clarendon Blvd in Rosslyn has permanently closed, the franchise owners tell ARLnow.

“Sales simply never recovered after the pandemic,” writes Jessica Manning, who owned the shop along with her father and her husband. “It was a difficult and incredibly emotional decision for us.”

Its last day was September 28, closing after lunch. The family also own the Jimmy John’s in Ballston on N. Quincy Street as well as a location in Woodbridge, Virginia. Both remain open.

Manning says that they were able to find all of their Rosslyn employees other jobs.

“Everyone is healthy and we were able to get all staff members another job immediately so that’s really all that matters,” she writes.

Rappaport Company, which is offering the retail space for lease, tells ARLnow that the space formerly occupied by Jimmy John’s is available and they “are actively marketing the space for lease.”

Jimmy John’s on Clarendon Blvd first opened in 2013, more than eight years ago, in what was then the new-Sedona Slate apartment complex.

That block of Clarendon Blvd has seen a number of openings and closings. Most recently, in 2020, barre fitness studio LavaBarre closed, with dog daycare Playful Pack taking its place this summer.

Zoup! in Ballston to Close This Week

By Matt Blitz
Zoup! Eatery in Ballston (Photo via Instagram/Zoup! Ballston)

Soup and sandwich purveyor Zoup! is serving its final bowls in Ballston this week.

Jim Beverley, owner of the franchised location at 4401 Fairfax Drive, tells ARLnow that Zoup! is closing this coming Friday, Oct. 15. It opened almost exactly two years ago, in October 2019.

“Regrettably, in the end the pandemic just took too large a bite out of our sales and staffing levels for us to survive,” writes Beverley.

Not only has hiring been difficult for the entire restaurant industry, but many office workers continue to work remotely amid Covid waves, shrinking a large potential lunchtime customer base for fast casual restaurants in business districts, like Zoup!

The restaurant tried to give back to the community amid tough times, providing free and reduced-price catered meals to area clinics, hospitals, and homeless shelters. This includes providing meals to Bridges to Independence and Historic Christ Church in Alexandria, Beverley writes.

The location had stayed open nearly the entire pandemic, but was closed on weekends this summer.

“During that time we were down to one person staffing the store at a time on weekdays,” Beverley notes.

The chain is known for its soups, mac and cheese dishes, and sandwiches. While there are other locations in the region, this is the only one owned by Beverley and the only Zoup! in Arlington.

The Zoup! in Sterling still appears to be open, but the one in Frederick looks to have also closed its doors.

Photo via Instagram/Zoup! Ballston

The Salt Line in Ballston Preparing to Open Next Week

By Matt Blitz
1/2

After a year-and-a-half delay, The Salt Line in Ballston is finally set to open a week from today.

The seafood spot was originally supposed to start serving in spring 2020. The pandemic pushed it to 2021 while construction delays shifted the opening from the summer to the fall.

A PR rep says The Salt Line will open on Tuesday, Oct. 19. Construction on the restaurant at 4040 Wilson Blvd — including its permanent outdoor bar, which was approved by the County Board in 2019 — appears to have largely wrapped up.

Ahead of the public opening, The Salt Line is hosting some private preview events this week. It has also been training staff.

“Any activity in the restaurant at this point is part of staff training” the rep said.

The Salt Line is located in the tallest building in Ballston and is the restaurant’s second location. The other is in Navy Yard and was the Washington Nationals’ unofficial party spot during their World Series run in 2019, perhaps related to possibly-soon-to-retire Ryan Zimmerman being an investor and part-owner.

The new 3,800-square foot space in Ballston will include “ample seating” with both indoor and “al fresco” (outdoor) dining. It will have a similar menu as the Navy Yard location, including lobster rolls, clam chowder, rockfish, and oysters. Also, according to a press release, there will be “house-made pastas, an expanded selection of crudos, and daily lunch service.”

The kitchen will be led by executive chef Matt Singer and Long Shot Hospitality chef/partner Kyle Bailey, who once was the executive at the Alexandria-based Neighborhood Restaurant Group.

Ballston Startup Launches New System to Improve Dining Experience

By Jo DeVoe

Sponsored by Monday Properties and written by ARLnow, Startup Monday is a weekly column that profiles Arlington-based startups, founders, and other local technology news. Monday Properties is proudly featuring 1515 Wilson Blvd in Rosslyn. 

Ballston startup GoTab, which facilitates QR code ordering in restaurants, has unveiled its new, all-in-one point-of-sale system for restaurants and bars.

The cloud-based system is designed to help restaurants and bars adapt to a growing preference for online ordering without erasing the personal connection of in-person service.

GoTab launched its contactless ordering technology in 2016, but experienced a huge boon in use during the pandemic when contactless ordering and payment became the norm. Today, it operates in restaurants, hotels, resorts, golf courses, festivals and the Capital One Arena in D.C.

And now, the startup is banking on restaurants seeing these technological changes not as pandemic-era adaptations, but as new fixtures of the dining experience. One way it aims to do that is by incorporating the benefits of QR code ordering — more guest control over ordering and paying — into a soup-to-nuts sales platform that works for eateries.

“With the GoTab all-in-one restaurant POS, operators can now easily tailor a guest-initiated experience or a server-initiated experience, enabling both parties to start and access the ordering tab and giving everyone flexibility to place orders however they wish,” the company says.

The all-in-one point of sale from Arlington-based startup GoTab (courtesy photo)

Having the information accessible both by servers and customers makes it easier for customers to communicate what they want and easier for servers to curate positive dining experiences, the company says.

It also means less work for servers, as the system eliminates the need to take down orders and modifications by hand and input them manually into a legacy point-of-sale system.

With GoTab, servers and managers can start and add to a digital tab, pass the tab to guests and update it later with order changes. Guests can then close out their tab on their phones with a credit card or mobile payment platform.

“Servers can be proactive and anticipate guests’ needs,” the release said.

And after the guests leave, GoTab’s cloud-based system remembers guests’ preferences, meaning restaurants can repurpose that information. The traditional system, meanwhile, only captures the information of the person paying, CEO Tim McLaughlin said.

“In a traditional restaurant — let’s say you have a table of four — a restaurant is lucky if they can capture a single diner’s data for loyalty, spending insights and marketing purposes,” he said. “With GoTab, operators have access to all four diners’ ordering details. So we provide an operator with exponentially more first-party data.”

With that information, he said, restaurants and bars can create loyalty programs and foster repeat customers.

Arlington Chamber of Commerce Restaurant Week Returns

By Dana Munro
Arlington Restaurant Week returns (via Arlington Chamber of Commerce)

For the third year in a row, the Arlington Chamber of Commerce is hosting Arlington Restaurant Week. All participating restaurants, bakeries and bars will offer discounts from Monday, Oct. 18 through Monday, Oct. 25.

Discounts will vary based on the restaurant, and some may offer discounts for both dine-in and carry-out options. Restaurant Week menus will be available on the chamber’s website.

“The Chamber is excited to have more than 40 of Arlington’s best restaurants already signed up and ready to showcase the diverse cuisine of Arlington,” said chamber CEO Kate Bates.

The current list of participating restaurants includes:

  • 15 & Eads
  • Ambar
  • Ballston Local
  • Bayou Bakery
  • Bell20 Restaurant
  • Celtic House
  • Colony Grill
  • Colony House Bar + Kitchen
  • Copa Kitchen & Bar
  • Delhi Dhaba
  • Domino’s
  • Fire Works Arlington
  • Freddie’s Beach Bar & Restaurant
  • Good Company Doughnuts
  • Heidelberg Pastry Shoppe
  • La Bettola Italiano
  • La Côte d’Or Café
  • La Moo Creamery
  • Lebanese Taverna
  • Los Tios Grill
  • Mah-Ze-Dahr Bakery
  • Mala Tang
  • Mussel Bar & Grill
  • Nothing Bundt Cakes
  • Olive Lebanese Eatery
  • Potomac Social Tavern
  • ROCKLANDS Barbeque and Grilling Company
  • SER
  • Sidekick Bakery
  • Slapfish
  • Smokecraft Modern Barbecue
  • Spice Kraft Indian Bistro
  • Superette
  • Sushi-Zen
  • Sweet Science Coffee
  • Tacos and Pina
  • Ted’s Bulletin
  • Thai Select
  • The Freshman
  • Top Thai Restaurant and Sushi
  • TTT Clarendon
  • Union Kitchen
  • WHINO

As it did last year, Amazon is sponsoring the event.

Bates says the chamber is eager to connect hungry locals to unique eateries across the county, especially as we emerge from the pandemic.

“Now, more than ever, it is important to support and highlight the local restaurant community and its importance in Arlington,” she said.

Glebe Road Divide in Ballston Gets Renewed County Attention

By Jo DeVoe
1/4

Since 1980, Glebe Road has been considered the border between central and west Ballston.

But in recent years, the dividing lines drawn in Ballston’s 40-year-old sector plan have become more stark, with businesses thriving in one area and struggling in another.

Today, Ballston contains the densest census tract in the D.C. area. As more apartments and retail are proposed and built, however, some argue that the county needs to address the impact of uneven development on either side of Glebe.

Many of the new business openings orbit the Ballston Quarter mall and the ground floor of Ballston Exchange, both in the central part of the neighborhood. But west of Glebe Road and north of Carlin Springs Road — which is technically part of the Bluemont Civic Association — there have been numerous high-profile closures.

Leaders in planning and business development have different ideas for improving west Ballston, but they do share an interest in making it welcoming, walkable and sustainable without getting into the weeds of a sector plan update. During a joint County Board and Planning Commission meeting this month, Planning Commission Vice-Chair Daniel Weir stressed the importance of re-examining Ballston in the near future.

“Glebe Road continues to become a wall that separates east and west Ballston, which are separate communities,” Weir said. “Pedestrians and people not in cars are unwilling to cross five to seven lanes of traffic to get a very excellent donut or to go to one of the many restaurants that have been circulating through some of the bays there.”

A map of Ballston from the Ballston Sector Plan, adopted in 1980 (via Arlington County)

Rather than rewrite the admittedly old sector plan, which county staff don’t have the capacity for, he said they ought to take “a more agile, nimble approach.”

“It doesn’t need to be completed in 2022, but it’s an opportunity we can and should think about, especially since, if done right, it could be a model for more agile sector planning going forward,” he said.

Ballston BID CEO Tina Leone agrees that Glebe Road is a problem. She says no other road elicits the same number of complaints, ranging from excessive vehicle speed to unnerving pedestrian crossings. She suggested extending the sidewalks, turning some parking spaces into parklets and widening the medians.

“We need to come together as a neighborhood and work with county to solve the problem,” Leone tells ARLnow. “There hasn’t been a plan — everyone does their own thing and no one is looking at Glebe Road as an entity.”

In response, Arlington County’s Department of Community, Planning, Housing and Development said it is using and will continue to use opportunities during development, capital improvements and county programs such as Vision Zero to improve Ballston’s walkability.

“Over the past two decades, we’ve worked with partners to make N. Glebe Road in Ballston safer and more attractive for all users and have better integrated the street within Ballston’s overall urban fabric,” CPHD Director Anthony Fusarelli, Jr. said. “The County will continue to make the most of similar opportunities in the future.”

“Enhancements have occurred thanks to the combination of infill development, streetscape improvements, signalized pedestrian crossings, intersection improvements, and curb space management techniques, all of which have collectively and significantly improved the experience of traveling along and across N. Glebe Road in this area,” Fusarelli added.

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Jaleo in Crystal City to Close, Making Way for Residential Development

By Jo DeVoe
1/3

Spanish tapas outpost Jaleo by José Andrés will be closing its Crystal City location, making way for a future redevelopment.

After more than a decade serving up Spanish small plates, Jaleo will serve its last meal on Sunday, Oct. 3, Eater DC first reported. ThinkFoodGroup, which represents José Andrés and the restaurant, confirmed the report in a statement.

“After 17 years of bringing the spirit and flavors of Spain to Crystal City, Jaleo by José Andrés will be closing its doors on October 3, 2021 in anticipation of the continued transformation of the neighborhood,” ThinkFoodGroup said. “We are incredibly grateful to our dedicated employees and for our friends and neighbors in the area for their support.”

Jaleo (2250 Crystal Drive) is not only set to close — the one-story building in which the restaurant is housed could be demolished as part of a JBG Smith redevelopment. The property owner proposes razing the building and the vacant, 11-story “Crystal Plaza 5” office building at 223 23rd Street S. In its place, it envisions two residential towers.

“We have a preliminary site plan submission on file to redevelop that site with two new 30-story residential towers containing 1,440 units, ground floor retail, and two new public open spaces,” said county planner Matthew Pfeiffer. “We expect that plan to be accepted very soon, after which we will work on scheduling the public review process.”

That is a change from what JBG Smith previously proposed for the site in 2019. At the time, the company had filed plans to replace the two buildings with one residential and one office tower, but that project is now listed as “on hold” while the county’s planning department reviews JBG Smith’s new plans, Pfeiffer said.

More details about the project will be published once the department accepts the plans, he said.

Jaleo may be leaving, but ThinkFoodGroup said it may return to Crystal City in light of this development as well as the ongoing expansion of Amazon’s Arlington presence.

“With Amazon HQ2 and JBG SMITH’s exciting development plans, we look forward to exploring possible new concepts that might be part of National Landing’s dynamic future landscape,” it said.

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