Since 2021, a local attorney has made a splash in the Arlington restaurant scene, exuding confidence even as the industry faces increasing setbacks.
Fitzgerald Lewis, the founder of Lewis & Associates in Falls Church, owns nearly 20 eateries in D.C. area and internationally, including the Green Pig Bistro, Buena Vida Gastrolounge, Dudley’s Sport and Ale and Barley Mac in Arlington.
With over a decade of experience, Lewis believes a diligent, positive approach to management, and a focus on quality food, are key to overcoming looming challenges for the region’s dining scene.
“I love meeting people and giving them good food,” he told ARLnow. “My belief is that the most important asset we have in our lives is the people around us.”
Still, he acknowledges, it’s “become much harder to survive in this industry.” The attorney’s restaurants were some of the hundreds of respondents in a recent Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington survey, which indicated that many D.C.-area establishments are struggling to stay afloat.
He approaches the economic challenges with optimism, offering encouragement to local restaurateurs.
“We will survive,” Lewis said. “Watch your costs, that’s the most important thing you can do … and optimize your menu. Try to consolidate your costs.”
Lewis’ entrepreneurial ventures started in 2013, when he invested in several Denny’s franchises across Virginia and Maryland.
Years later, he stepped up to lead the franchises when the managing member backed out. It was Lewis’ first of many ventures in hospitality, which would later include the likes of Stan’s Restaurant in D.C. and The Harbour Grille in Woodbridge.
He began making moves in Arlington in 2021, when many restaurants were forced to pivot or shut down during the pandemic.
“There were other people who saw this as an opportunity, that, ‘OK, I want to try this thing,’ and they got in,” Lewis said. “I was one of them.”
This entrepreneurial spirit comes at a price, he said. With 18 restaurants to look after, his management style is defined by dedication — requiring extra hours of work and heightened responsibilities.
“You have to be willing to sacrifice,” Lewis said.
A desire to help others also defines his approach to management.
Born in Pakistan, Lewis fled Christian persecution in 1980 to attend Miami Christian College (now Trinity International University). Today, he advocates for immigrants both in law and in business.
For instance, he has coordinated with international relief organization World Vision to help 87 Pakistani families immigrate to Arlington and surrounding areas. Many of them found jobs at his restaurants.
“I’m very grateful to the American people because they helped me go to school,” Lewis said. “Now that I have the ability to help, I always try to.”
These days, most of Lewis’ time is spent overseeing his law firm. When he isn’t working there, he’s in management meetings, visiting restaurant sites or spending time with family in Clifton.
Reflecting on his restaurant experiences, Lewis joked about a time when someone once told him, “If you don’t like yourself, you get into restaurant business, and if you really, really don’t like yourself, you buy a Denny’s.”
“I don’t know how true it is,” Lewis said. “But I think the people who are in this business, they love what they do.”
