Around Town

New places to eat and drink in Arlington and Falls Church this summer

From French bistros to fried chicken, dozens of new restaurants have landed across Arlington and Falls Church in recent months.

Here are some of the latest developments in the local dining scene this summer, along with some highlights of anticipated openings over the next few months.

Dinner and drinks

1983 Chinese Cuisine

Honey barbecue pork roll (staff photo by Ryan Cole)

This new restaurant at the Westpost shopping center specializes in Cantonese dim sum in a cool jade green interior, inspired by the water pig in the Chinese zodiac.

1101 S. Joyce Street, Pentagon City

Bar Colline

Wines at Bar Colline (courtesy of Mykl Wu)

A sister to Cafe Colline, this new bistro in Crystal City offers comforting French cuisine and $6 glasses of wine from 3-6 p.m.

269 19th Court S., Crystal City

Bar Chinois

Bar seating inside Bar Chinois in Crystal City (courtesy of David Madison Photography)

This RAMMY award winning restaurant opened for business in Crystal City this May, offering its popular 4-6 p.m. daily happy hour with $1 dumplings and half-priced cocktails.

 244 19th Court S.#105, Crystal City

Honoo Ramen Bar

Osaka tonkatsu shoyu ramen from Honoo Ramen Bar (staff photo by Katie Taranto)

A recent addition to a growing retail landscape in Falls Church, Honoo offers an expansive menu of sushi and customizable ramen.

153 W. Falls Station Blvd., Falls Church

La Posada

Hanging plant decorations at La Posada (staff photo by Katie Taranto)

Tex Mex is on the menu at La Posada, a new restaurant on the ground floor of Quimby on 23rd apartments. Highlights include street tacos, poblano braised beef ribs and frozen margaritas.

320 23rd Street S., Crystal City

Oasis: The Listening Bar

A look inside Oasis in Clarendon (staff photo by Katie Taranto)

This sushi bar and Japanese restaurant is currently soft opening in Clarendon, offering a limited menu until it receives liquor license approval. Its upcoming music program is inspired by Japan’s HiFi bar venues.

2940 Clarendon Blvd, Clarendon

Rooftop Recess

Greenery accent wall and televisions inside Rooftop Recess (staff photo by Katie Taranto)

Arlington’s newest rooftop restaurant and bar opened this past spring in Courthouse, serving classic American cuisine, brunch and over a dozen signature cocktails.

2424 Wilson Blvd, Courthouse

Westville

Salad from Westville (courtesy of Westville)

New Yorkers may recognize this new “veggie-forward” eatery. Westville recently landed its first location outside of the Big Apple in Clarendon, serving up its signature vegetable-filled market plates.

2800 Clarendon Blvd, Clarendon

Lunches and fast casual

Alshami Restaurant

Alshami Restaurant at 5216 Wilson Blvd (staff photo by Ryan Cole)

 Alshami opened its doors this spring, offering homemade Syrian cuisine where Ya Hala Bistro closed last year.

5216 Wilson Blvd, Bluemont

Banh Mi Oi

Lemongrass seitan banh mi at Banh Mi Oi (staff photo by Katie Taranto)

This family-owned banh mi shop with Boston roots is one of the Eden Center’s newest developments, serving over a dozen varieties of its namesake sandwich. It celebrated a grand opening earlier this month.

6795 Wilson Blvd, Falls Church

Capital Doner

Beef wrap with fries (courtesy of Capital Doner)

This new Rosslyn eatery is all about doner, a rotisserie-style meat dish from Turkey. It sells chicken and beef in sandwiches and gyros, along with falafel and classic Turkish desserts.

1731 Wilson Blvd, Rosslyn 

Five Guys

A Five Guys employee welcomes a line of customers into the chain’s new Columbia Pike location (staff photo by Katie Taranto)

This international burgers-and-fries chain recently returned to the Columbia Pike address where it all started, offering its classic burger joint fare and milkshakes.

3263 Columbia Pike, Arlington Heights

Grazie Grazie

Sandwich box from Grazie Grazie (courtesy of Rose Collins)

This D.C.-based sandwich shop is a foodie favorite, offering Philadelphia-inspired pizza, salads and Italian deli fare. It landed in Ballston this spring.

4121 Wilson Blvd, Ballston

Pop-Up District

A table of food from Pop-Up District vendors (staff photo by Katie Taranto)

Another Eden Center newbie, this food hall is home to vendors of Korean barbecue, Thai street food, coffee, pastries and more.

6763 Wilson Boulevard, Falls Church

SeoulSpice

SeoulSpice’s Classic bowl (courtesy of SeoulSpice)

This expanding fast-casual chain from D.C. is now open for business in Falls Church, offering its customizable Korean rice bowls, noodle bowls and salads.

156 W. Falls Station Blvd, Falls Church

Side Chick (Ellie Bird)

Side Chick chicken and sides (courtesy of Nina Palazzolo)

Fried chicken is the star of Ellie Bird’s new seasonal pop-up, with sides and dipping sauces that feature flourishes of Asian-American culinary influence. Think kimchi potato salad and miso mac n’ cheese.

125 Founders Avenue, Falls Church

Wonder

Food from Wonder (courtesy of Wonder)

Wonder opens for business today (Thursday) in Rosslyn with plenty of cuisines to choose from. The food hall hosts a variety of celebrity chef-partnered restaurants and eateries from across the country, available for dine-in, carryout and delivery.

1771 N Pierce Street, Rosslyn 

Cafes and dessert

Ice Cream Jubilee

Ice Cream Jubilee scoops (courtesy of Ice Cream Jubilee)

Popular D.C.-area ice cream parlor Ice Cream Jubilee opened a new spot in Falls Church this May, serving a variety of signature and rotating seasonal flavors.

151 W. Falls Station Blvd, Falls Church

Semicolon Cafe

Mango bingsoo and sandwich from Semicolon Cafe (staff photo by Katie Taranto)

Semicolon is the place to go to try out bingsoo, a specialty shaved ice dessert from Korea. The cafe also serves typical espresso beverages and signature handheld brioche sandwiches.

103 Founders Avenue, Falls Church

The Little Falls Cafe

Inside the Little Falls Cafe (courtesy of Anastasiya Algarme)

This quaint, vintage-themed creperie specializes in galettes, or savory buckwheat crepes. Decorated with thrifted finds, this cafe is the latest project by Anastasiya and Enzo Algarme, the owners of Pupatella.

106 Little Falls Street, Falls Church

Tous Les Jours

Cake slices and various macarons at Tous les Jours (staff photo by Katie Taranto)

This new French- and Asian-inspired bakery serves over a dozen sweet and savory pastries, along with breads, cakes and cafe drinks. It has two Arlington locations, including a new bakery that opened this spring in Pentagon City.

 1100 S. Hayes Street, Pentagon City

Highlights coming soon

Buffalo & Bergen

Bagel sandwiches from Buffalo & Bergen (via Buffalo & Bergen/Facebook)

This New York-style deli, bagel shop and old-fashioned soda fountain plans to open in Clarendon later this summer.

1028 N. Garfield Street, Clarendon

Dolan Uyghur

Dolan Uyghur’s bone-in hot chicken stew (courtesy of Dolan Uyghur)

This local mainstay for Uyghur cuisine hopes to open a new location by mid-September in Crystal City, joining La Posada and Lantern Restaurant & Bar at Quimby on 23rd apartments.

320 23rd Street S., Crystal City

El Mercat

Negra paella with squid ink sauce from El Mercat (via El Mercat Bar de Tapas/Facebook)

El Mercat hopes to open by mid-August at the Westpost shopping center, offering dozens of Spanish-style tapas plates.

1301 S. Joyce Street, Pentagon City

GrillMarX

GrillMarX’s restaurant space in Falls Church (staff photo by Katie Taranto)

This family-owned steakhouse from Maryland expects to open its first Northern Virginia location in Falls Church later this summer.

510 S. Washington Street, Falls Church

Lapu Lapu and Gwenie’s

Gwenie’s and Lapu Lapu in Pentagon City (staff photo by Katie Taranto)

These Maryland-based, family-owned restaurants will soon come together under one roof in Pentagon City, offering Filipino breakfast sandwiches and desserts.

417 South Fern Street, Pentagon City

Life Alive Cafe

A spread of dishes from Life Alive Cafe (courtesy of Scott Suchman)

This vegetarian-friendly cafe with roots in Boston hopes to open in September.

818 N. Quincy Street, Ballston 

Nettie’s Tavern

Nettie’s Tavern in Clarendon (via Nettie’s Tavern/Instagram)

Restaurateur Reese Gardner’s newest project promises a cozy atmosphere and scratch kitchen-prepared dishes with some Italian American and Appalachian influences. It’ll open next-door to Boe, a country-themed bar in the works where Coco B’s closed.

2854 Wilson Blvd, Clarendon

Scapegoat Beer Garden

Outdoor patios at 556 22nd Street S. (staff photo by Katie Taranto)

This upcoming beer garden on Restaurant Row hopes to serve pan-Asian comfort foods and a variety of brews.

556 22nd Street S., Crystal City

Scolapasta

Scolapasta’s planned new kiosk at Ballston Quarter (staff photo by Katie Taranto)

Fast casual and customizable meets Italian cuisine at this Tysons-based restaurant, which hopes to open a spot at Ballston Quarter this summer.

4238 Wilson Blvd, Ballston

Van Leeuwen

A Van Leeuwen employee scoops ice cream (courtesy of Van Leeuwen)

Two more Arlington locations are in the works for this ice cream franchise, with one expected to open in Clarendon later this year.

 2831 Clarendon Blvd, Clarendon, and 4075 Wilson Blvd, Ballston

About the Author

  • Katie Taranto is a reporter at Local News Now, primarily covering business, public safety and the city of Falls Church. She graduated from the University of Missouri in 2024, where she previously covered K-12 education at The Columbia Missourian. She is originally from Macungie, Pennsylvania.