Quarterdeck Restaurant Closing

The Quarterdeck Restaurant is closing after 31 years of serving seafood, beer and American cuisine in the Fort Myer Heights neighborhood, according to an email distributed to the Radnor / Ft. Myer Heights Civic Association.

Last week, it was reported that the restaurant had agreed to a 15-year lease renewal. But now owner Lou Gatti says that has fallen through.

Gatti wrote the following email about the impending closing.

After 31 years, the Quarterdeck Restaurant is closing. I was at the helm for the last 15 years. For the last 2 ½ months, I have been trying to get a new lease that we could live with. On numerous occasions, I understood that we had an agreement only to be surprised later with a lease that said otherwise. It’s a long story, but we are finished. The building, which is almost 70 years old, needs major repairs and updates; the landlord expects us to do them all. Not happening.

We will be closing soon and everything is for sale. We will be giving the food to a shelter of some sort. Might have a few extra key lime pies.

It was a good run, and I will miss all of you. I have a lot to do, so for this week, don’t call me, but send an email if you wish. You can call the restaurant if you wish…

Lou

Radnor / Ft. Myer Heights Civic Association President Stan Karson called the closure “sad news,” in an email to residents.

“The Quarterdeck has a long and proud history in our area,” Karson wrote. “We are losing an important neighborhood fixture.”

Update at 2:35 p.m. — Local food blog Capital Spice talked with the restaurant’s landlord, who says that the property will likely remain a restaurant, possibly even retaining the current seafood format.

“The only thing I know for certain is that a restaurant will remain in operation in some form” at the location, the property owner told the blog.