Clarendon | ARLnow.com

Published April 15, 2011 at 2:23PM | Updated April 15, 2011 at 2:53PM

Adam Barnett — whose resume includes Liberty Tavern, West End Bistro in the District and The Inn at Little Washington in Washington, Va. — will take over as executive chef at the three-year-old Clarendon eatery.

The hiring of Barnett comes during a somewhat turbulent time for Eventide. General Manager Dave Pressley left the restaurant in December and chefs Miles Vaden and Justus Frank departed in February. With the exception of that “series of unrelated events,” however, Eventide co-owner Nick Freshman says not much else has changed.

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Ruffino’s Opening Today, BGR Hopes to Open Next Week

By ARLnow.com

Published April 14, 2011 at 2:37PM

Ruffino’s Spaghetti House (4763 Lee Highway) will tonight for the first time following months of renovations. An answering machine message says the restaurant will open at 4:00 p.m.

The new Clarendon location of BGR: The Burger Joint (3024 Wilson Blvd) is undergoing a final inspection today and hopes to open next week — perhaps as soon as Monday, if the inspection goes well. The restaurant’s interior is complete and employees are wrapping up preparations for the opening.

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New Chef to Bring New Menu to Mad Rose Tavern

By ARLnow.com

Published April 12, 2011 at 10:00AM

Holland was echoing the thoughts of many who had tried out the new Clarendon eatery and wondered what exactly it was trying to be. It seemed to be a mash-up of several restaurant concepts — a perception that was probably close to reality, given the differing visions of its initial management team and its owner.

The Clarendon eatery has gone through some messy management changes over the past month, including the recent departure of executive chef Johnny Nielson, and the new team is now trying to turn over a new leaf. To that end, Holland has hired a new chef — a fellow veteran of the Smith & Wollensky steakhouse in the District — and has embarked upon a complete revamp of Mad Rose’s menu.

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Rosslyn, Courthouse CaBi Stations To Open This Week

By ARLnow.com

Published April 11, 2011 at 11:42AM | Updated April 12, 2011 at 4:14PM

It’s official: four Capital Bikeshare stations will open in Rosslyn and Courthouse on Wednesday.

The long-anticipated CaBi roll-out along the Orange Line will eventually result in 30 stations and 200 bikes added by the end of 2011, according to Arlington County. Crystal City and Pentagon City are already home to 14 CaBi stations.

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Capital Bikeshare Expansion into N. Arlington Nears

By ARLnow.com

Published April 8, 2011 at 4:15PM

Capital Bikeshare stations are coming “very soon” to the Rosslyn, Courthouse and Clarendon areas, according to BikeArlington Program Manager Chris Eatough. Some sort of announcement about Capital Bikeshare’s expansion into North Arlington may come on Monday, Eatough hinted.

Previous reports have suggested that 20-30 Bikeshare stations may be installed along the Wilson Boulevard corridor by the end of the year. Crystal City and Pentagon City are already home to 14 CaBi stations.

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iPad 2 Still a Hot Commodity

By ARLnow.com

Published April 8, 2011 at 9:40AM

The Apple stores in Clarendon and Pentagon City are certainly no exception. Customers in Pentagon City started lining up as early as 5:00 a.m. this morning to get their hands on the coveted tablet. By the time the store opened at 9:00 a.m., the only iPads left were the 64 gigabyte version with Verizon connectivity — the most expensive model at $829.

Arlington’s Apple stores get iPad shipments every weekday, according to employees, meaning that the early morning scene at the store today gets repeated daily. Before the store opens, employees will hand out claim tickets for those in line, entitling them to no more than two specific models in stock.

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published April 8, 2011 at 8:13AM | Updated April 8, 2011 at 11:35AM

Ann Taylor Coming to Clarendon — An Ann Taylor store is coming to the Clarendon Market Common storefront formerly occupied by a Myer-Emco home electronics store. The new Clarendon Ann Taylor is expected to open on June 10, according to Market Common spokesperson Carol Nahorniak. [Clarendon Culture]

Tapas Bar Coming to Ballston — Upper Crust Gourmet (1000 N. Randolph Street) closed late last month for renovations. According to Eat More Drink More, the three-week project will transform the well-liked cafe into a tapas bar. [Eat More Drink More]

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published April 7, 2011 at 8:30AM | Updated April 7, 2011 at 10:13AM

McDonnell Gets Seat on Metro Board — Gov. Bob McDonnell “scored a major unexpected victory” last night when the state legislature approved a bill that will allow the governor to appoint a representative to the Metro board. The seat will come at the expense of one seat allocated to Northern Virginia jurisdictions. County Board member and Northern Virginia Transportation Commission chairman Jay Fisette blasted the legislature’s decision, saying McDonnell had “circumvented the process.” [Washington Post]

Slug Passenger Says McKinney Was “Angry and Belligerent” — Former Sgt. Maj. of the Army Gene McKinney was in Arlington County District Court Tuesday, accused of intentionally hitting a slug commuter with his Mercedes back in October. The commuter testified that he asked to be let out of the vehicle after McKinney started driving 95 miles per hour on the highway. After being let off in Pentagon City, the commuter said McKinney hit him with his car. [WTOP]

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Clarendon Patch Searches For New Editor

By ARLnow.com

Published April 4, 2011 at 12:38PM

Former editor Christian Pilling left the site last month, about five months after it launched. He is now working for a media technology start-up in Brooklyn, N.Y.

A job listing for the site was posted on Monster.com 11 days ago.

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For Lease: Former Quiznos Storefront in Clarendon

By ARLnow.com

Published March 31, 2011 at 1:00PM

The space used to house a Quiznos restaurant, which in September was replaced by a homegrown sandwich shop called Ganges Grill and Ice Cream. Ganges, which was plagued with problems from the start, did not last very long, and now the storefront is up for lease.

We hear that the rent is about $4,000 per month.

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Poll: What Would You Like to See Return to Clarendon-Courthouse?

By ARLnow.com

Published March 29, 2011 at 2:27PM

Clarendon and Courthouse have changed — a lot — over the past couple of decades.

The arrival of Metro in the late 1970s and early 1980s heralded the demise of many small mom-and-pop retailers and ethnic restaurants that once gave the area its unique character. It also helped speed along the end of large department and five & dime stores.

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List of Clarendon Streets Zoned Until the Wee Hours

By ARLnow.com

Published March 29, 2011 at 11:44AM

For those who asked, we now have a list of the Clarendon-area streets that impose zone parking until the early morning hours. Only residents — or anyone they give a temporary pass to — are permitted to park on the side of the street from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. on these blocks.

In order to obtain the extended hours, residents of each block had to go through the county’s residential permit parking process. First, at least 60 percent of residents signed a petition requesting zone parking hours be extended. Then, county staff studied whether cars from outside the neighborhood were parking on the block, in order to confirm eligibility for the extended hours.