Rhodeside Grill

Rhodeside Grill Plans Southern Shrimp Boil to Celebrate LSU-Alabama Saturday

By Alex Koma

The Rhodeside Grill near Courthouse is gearing up to celebrate the biggest college football game of the year, so far, with a watch party and shrimp boil.

The restaurant, located at 1836 Wilson Blvd, is planning to celebrate LSU’s clash with Alabama Saturday night (Nov. 3) in traditional southern fashion, according to a news release.

The spread will include plenty of shrimp, corn on the cob, Andouille sausage and red potatoes. The grill plans to prepare the boil outdoors and spread it “across a large, newspaper-covered community table before being served,” according to the release.

The bar will also offer up specialty cocktails to commemorate each team with “Tiger Claws” and “Alabama Slammers” up for grabs, in addition to beer specials.

The party will start around 6 p.m. ahead of the game’s 8 p.m. kickoff, which the bar will show with sound on both floors.

Guests can pay $14 for a small portion or $20 for a large. Anyone looking to reserve a table can do so by calling the Rhodeside Grill at 703-243-015.

Courtesy photo

Wilson Blvd Closure Catches Business By Surprise

By Ethan Rothstein

Rhodeside Grill during Wilson Blvd closureWilson Blvd between N. Rhodes Street and Courthouse Road was closed this weekend to remove a crane from the “superblock” construction site, and at least one business owner says he’s out thousands of dollars as a result.

Wilson Whitney, co-owner of Rhodeside Grill at the corner of Wilson and Rhodes, estimates he lost as much as $3,000 during the closure, largely because he wasn’t given proper notification of the closure.

“I was given no notice or warning this was going to take place,” Whitney wrote in an email. “This has virtually closed down our restaurant… I could have at least staffed and stocked accordingly or maybe even closed for some of our own improvements.”

Department of Environmental Services spokeswoman Laura G. Smith said the county granted a transportation right-of-way permit to Crane Rental Company to close that section of Wilson Blvd from 9:00 p.m. Friday to 5:00 p.m. Sunday.

“All permits are granted with the understanding that the company will notify all affected property owners in the adjacent work area,” Smith said. Crane Rental Company president Michael Scott told ARLnow.com that he was unfamiliar with the specific notification process undertaken.

Work on one of the under-construction apartment buildings on the “superblock” is expected to wrap up by year’s end. The other is expected to be complete by the spring of 2014.

Photo courtesy of Wilson Whitney

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Early Buds — Maybe Punxsutawney Phil was right. The photo above was taken by Flickr pooler Clio1789 near Rosslyn on Friday.

Dr. Dremo’s Site Set for Development — Construction could begin by the end of the year on the hallowed ground that once was home to Dr. Dremo’s and Taco Bell. The site, on the 2000 block of Wilson Boulevard, will house 154 residential units and 30,000 square feet of retail space. Meanwhile, a development on the 1800 block of Wilson Boulevard is still awaiting financing. The project — a 107,000 square foot office building — will eventually displace the Rhodeside Grill and Il Radicchio restaurants. [DC Mud]

Westover Beer Garden Forum Planned — A public forum has been scheduled to discuss the Westover Beer Garden. The meeting will take place at 7:00 p.m. on March 8, at the Westover Library. The forum will allow “all members of the community to come together to agree on common positions regarding the beer garden.” [Tara-Leeway Heights Civic Association]

Neighborhood College Program Accepting Applications — Arlington County is accepting applications for its “civic leadership development program.” The Arlington Neighborhood College offers a free, seven-week introduction to Arlington civic life and community participation. [Arlington County]

Flickr pool photo by Clio1789

Car Crashes Into Rhodeside Grill

By ARLnow.com

A two-vehicle collision at the intersection of Wilson Boulevard and North Rhodes Street resulted in one of the cars crashing into the front of Rhodeside Grill.

The impact shattered one of the restaurant’s plate glass windows and destroyed a planter. Shards of glass and soil from the planter could be seen scattered across part of the restaurant.

Airbags deployed in both vehicles — a red Honda Accord and a black Volkswagen New Beetle. The Accord narrowly missed a fire hydrant as is careened into the building.

No one inside the building or in the cars were hurt, police said.

Six customers were inside the restaurant at time the time of the incident — around 11:45 a.m. It was “loud and hectic,” a Rhodeside employee said.

The restaurant remained open for lunch. They expect to replace the window later today.