Arlington native Scot Harlan owns the restaurant and serves as a chef. His co-chef, Will Sullivan, also hails from Arlington.
Harlan has traveled around the world in an effort to perfect his culinary skills and has worked in kitchens of famed chefs like Gordon Ramsay. He made his way back to the area to work at notable local establishments such as 2941 and Inox, but now wants to try his hand at running a restaurant in the community his family has called home for many years.
A tipster sent along this design rendering, which was posed to Facebook earlier today. Bronx Pizza, on the ground floor of 3100 Clarendon Boulevard, will feature New York-style pizza, subs and pastas. It’s expected to serve food “all day,” including breakfast, lunch, dinner and late night. It’s also expected to offer a delivery service.
There’s still no word on when work will finally get underway at Bronx Pizza — which has been little more than an empty storefront with a “coming soon” sign in the window since early 2011. Building permits for the restaurant were issued last spring but have apparently not been utilized yet. A Bronx Pizza website, meanwhile, is still “under construction.”
Oby Lee Coffee Roastery had several locations along the Delaware shore before owner Oby Lee (real name) decided to close up shop. In 2010, the store’s marquee Rehoboth Beach — winner of several “best coffee” awards in the local press — was put up for auction.
Now Lee is planning to open a brand new Oby Lee location at 3000 Washington Boulevard in Clarendon, with a special emphasis on wine. The shop will serve wine from its Italian estate vineyard, as well as charcuterie, tapas dishes, and espresso and coffee roasted on-site. Oby Lee will have customer seating indoors and on an outdoor patio.
The pair decided to go all-in with their brother Au (and three other partners) and launch a Cajun crawfish restaurant in Westlee called “Chasin’ Tails: Cajun Seafood and Bar.”
Located at 2200 N. Westmoreland Street, in the former Bear Rock Cafe space, Chasin’ Tails aims to be the go-to local hangout for seafood and sports fans. The restaurant opened to the general public for the first time this afternoon.
The eatery is expected to open for business at or just after 4:00 p.m. This week Paciugo (pronounced “Pah-Choo-Go,” per a sign on the wall) will be serving gelato, cakes and other desserts, coffee and espresso drinks. Next week, the store plans to introduce breakfast and lunch items, including sandwiches.
The company says their sometimes eclectic gelato flavors (from standards like sea salt caramel or stracciatella to the interesting — but currently unavailable — organic maple caramelized bacon or black pepper olive oil) are made on-site daily. Paciguo is a Texas-based chain, but the owner of the Clarendon store lives in Northern Virginia, we’re told.
The wine shop traded its former location at 4056 Campbell Avenue — now a Cheesetique wine and cheese store — for a much bigger location a couple of blocks away, at 2900 S. Quincy Street (next to the Energy Club). The larger, sunnier space has allowed owners Suzanne McGrath and Katie Park to to reinvent their store as “The Curious Grape Wine, Dine & Shop,” complete with a sit-down restaurant, coffee and wine bar, and fresh, house-made pastry selection. As before, The Curious Grape also sells wine, beer, cheese and other gourmet items retail.
The Curious Grape restaurant — which quietly started serving diners last night — is helmed by executive chef Eric McKamey, whose resume includes PassionFish in Reston, 2941 in Falls Chuch, and Central, CityZen and Proof in D.C. McKamey’s menu offers “an eclectic selection of seasonal starters, small plates and entrées,” with ingredients “sourced from the Mid-Atlantic region whenever possible.” A press release listed some menu specifics.
El Manantial III, a Guatemalan/Mexican restaurant apparently associated with the El Manantial restaurant in Lyon Park (2618 N. Pershing Drive), is expected to open in the Las Delicias space soon.
County inspectors were spotted parked outside the restaurant earlier today. It’s unclear when exactly the restaurant is going to open, though. A woman who answered the phone at the Lyon Park El Manantial restaurant referred us to a phone number that went straight to voicemail.
Located at 933 N. Quincy Street, on the ground floor of the Quincy Plaza Apartments in the former Daily Grind coffee shop space, Naked Pizza is expected to offer its signature all-natural pies to dine-in, walk-up and delivery customers. In July 2011 the Arlington County Board approved a site plan amendment that will allow the restaurant to operate a delivery service.
According to the building permits, the new Naked location — the fast-growing company’s second in Arlington County — will have 28 interior seats. That’s in contrast to the existing Naked Pizza store in Pentagon City, which offers carryout and delivery but has little to no indoor seating space.
Building permit applications are in for Black Lime Mediterranean Cafe, which will be built on the ground floor of 2450 Crystal Drive, near Jimmy John’s. According to a menu on the restaurant’s website, customers will choose a base — either a pita, a salad bowl or a baked potato — then add a protein — chicken, steak, shrimp, falafel or grilled veggies — followed by a selection of toppings and sauces. Side dishes include eggplant fries, sweet potato fries, roasted veggies and chips and hummus.
Per the name of the restaurant, the website explains:
According to a Craigslist ad, the soon-to-open restaurant, which promises to serve “obscure” cuts of meat in the style of a rustic French bistro, is looking for “only those with serious food passion.”
“Don’t expect to find loins, micro greens and baby veg here,” the help wanted ad says. “Think sous vide. Think obscure cuts of meat in their finest form — food that is hearty, not heavy; sustainable and with proper technique above all.”
The restaurant will be located in the Crystal Gateway Marriott (1700 Jefferson Davis Hwy) and will open to the public at 6:00 a.m.
“We are excited to present Einstein Bros. Bagels to the Crystal City neighborhood,” said Crystal Gateway Marriott General Manager Sharon Lockwood in a press release. “With over 2,000 guests walking through our lobby each day, we are proud to provide them with a quick and convenient meal.”
The original application requested a permit for live music and dancing from 7:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. every day. However, after receiving advice from county staff, the permit request was revised to be in line with other similar permits around the county. It now says live entertainment would run until 12:00 a.m. Sunday through Wednesday, and until 1:30 a.m. Thursday through Saturday, with exceptions on certain holidays.
The application also requests outdoor seating on the sidewalk along N. Glebe Road. A separate application was filed for a 70 square foot canopy sign.
