(Updated at 11/30/23) After a 2-year wait, the much anticipated restaurant Surreal in Crystal City is “tentatively” scheduled to open this Friday, according to a restaurant spokesperson.
While a firm opening date is not confirmed, the spokesperson told ARLnow everything is ready and they are “just waiting for one final inspection.”
Located at 2121 Crystal Drive, Surreal — described as an ‘elevated diner’ — was announced in 2021 by developer JBG Smith, which is also behind Crystal City Water Park, a 1.6-acre outdoor food hall and park close by. (A previous version of this article referred to Surreal as a Latin American restaurant.)
The restaurant — co-founded by acclaimed D.C.-based chef Enrique Limardo — anchors JBG Smith’s plans to create a venue inspired by nature.
“Designed as a landscape itself, the interior blurs the line between the indoors and outdoors to create a unique dining-in-the-park experience,” per a press release.
Limardo and his business partner, Ezequiel Vázquez-Ger, manage several restaurants in the D.C. region, including Michelin-starred Imperfecto, under the umbrella of their restaurant group, Seven Reasons Group.
Surreal will be open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, seven days a week. The menu includes a variety of dishes, including a Latin-inspired shakshuka for breakfast and items like swordfish carpaccio, gnocchi and a “twisted foot-long hotdog” for lunch and dinner.
Those in the mood for an adult beverage have several options, such as a piña colada made with two kinds of rum or a negroni topped with a “floral and fruity foam,” the release says.
The park is situated in one of the county’s multiple “sip and stroll” zones, meaning guests can take their drinks on the go and enjoy them in the park.