After a year and a half of delays, a Clarendon nightlife spot with an upscale approach to dining and cocktails is targeting next month to finally open its doors.
Cielo submitted a liquor license application late last month and intends to open at 1137 N. Highland Street in mid-April, owner Michael Sina told ARLnow.
Cielo will occupy a second-floor space that formerly housed part of The G.O.A.T. sports bar and, before that, Hard Times Cafe.
“We are going to kind of try and bring back a little elevated experience to Arlington at the same time,” Sina said in August 2024. “We will be a nightclub at nighttime, so we will have that lounge effect, but we are trying to cater to a little bit more elevated crowd.”
That focus includes higher-end menu options than many nightlife spots, with options like tomahawk steaks, a French-style omelet with caviar and other non-fried bites.
Cielo’s drink menu will also take that approach, offering cocktails that strike a balance of flavors instead of hastily made rum and Cokes or gin and tonics that, in his view, are too common in the neighborhood.
“My personal special drink is a spicy mezcal margarita,” Sina said. “I want to be able to get that drink at 12:30 at night and have a nice environment where I can take my wife and we can spend a nice night out.”
“If I want to go to [Don] Tito’s or Clarendon Ballroom or some of those places I feel a little old,” he added, “and I want to be able to go somewhere where I can not be hit by four people in the face when I’m trying to walk through.”
Neither a finalized menu nor expected business hours have been made public ahead of Cielo’s expected opening, though it is expected to have hours similar to nearby nightlife attractions.
Cielo’s liquor license application, commonly one of the last steps an establishment takes before opening, is currently listed as pending.
