Grilled Chicken Restaurant Farmbird Opening Next Week in Ballston

Expanding, D.C.-based grilled chicken restaurant Farmbird is opening its new location in Ballston next week.

The restaurant at 4121 Wilson Blvd, in the Ballston Exchange development, is opening for customers on Tuesday, employees tell ARLnow. It replaces the Miami-based, health-oriented restaurant Dirt, which closed in January 2020.

Farmbird has existing locations at 625 H Street NE and in Penn Quarter in D.C. The company was founded in 2015 and first operated as a catering business for a year at D.C.’s Union Market. It aims to make fast-casual dining more healthy, humane and sustainable.

“Since its founding, Farmbird has strived to change the way people think about chicken by serving only the highest quality, never-frozen birds,” a PR rep said. “Farmbird’s chickens are humanely raised on regional farms with no antibiotics ever and fed an all-vegetarian diet. All of the food served, from salads and sandwiches to Farmbird’s signature grilled chicken plates and roasted vegetable sides, are prepared from scratch with fresh ingredients daily.”

“Farmbird has seen great success at its location on H Street and is ready to bring flavorful food with sustainable origins to Arlington where Ballston Exchange has reimagined the area’s streetscape,” the PR rep added “The space will feature indoor and outdoor seating, accommodating patrons in a safe and socially distanced manner.”

Neighboring businesses in Ballston Exchange — across the street from Ballston Quarter mall — include Philz Coffee, CAVA, and the yet-to-open Hawkers Asian Street Fare.

This morning Farmbird employees could be seen sitting outside the restaurant, sampling the food in anticipation of next week’s opening.