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A Korea-based coffee chain quietly opened its first permanent U.S. outpost in the Ballston neighborhood last month, drawing long lines and rave reviews.

Gute Leute Coffee Bar, located at 800 N. Glebe Road next to Mussel Bar & Grille, held its soft opening on Saturday, Dec. 23.


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Crumbl Cookies has its sights set on opening another location in Pentagon City, but the scent of freshly baked cookies might not fill the air for another year.

The new Pentagon City cookie outpost will be located on the ground floor of the 11-story, 253-unit Milton building at 1446 S. Grant Street — the second apartment tower in the multi-phase Pentagon Centre shopping center redevelopment.


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Bluefish Bistro Sushi & Kitchen, a new sushi restaurant, has quietly opened at Centro Arlington on Columbia Pike.

Located at the corner of S. George Mason Drive and the Pike, the 1,450-square-foot sushi restaurant celebrated its grand opening last month, taking up residence on the ground floor of the mixed-use development next to the Harris Teeter and the Vietnamese eatery Pho Saigon Pearl.


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(Updated at 4:05 p.m.) Like a phoenix rising from the ashes — or a Barnes & Noble returning to Georgetown — Panera Bread is making its triumphant return to Ballston.

The fast-casual bakery-cafe chain announced today that it is gearing up for a grand opening this Thursday (Dec. 21) near the Ballston Metro station, at the corner of N. Stuart Street and Fairfax Drive.


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A new Thai restaurant in Dominion Hills is set to open next week.

Located at 6035 Wilson Blvd, Soul Thai Kitchen & Bar stepped in to fill the vacancy left by Meridian Pint in late October. The local brewhouse had shuttered earlier this year due to financial struggles.


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A new restaurant specializing in traditional Honduran and Salvadoran cuisine is opening on Columbia Pike tomorrow.

Located at 3709 Columbia Pike, Variedades Catrachas is expected to welcome its first customers starting at 5 a.m. this Friday, the owner Jessica Canas told ARLnow.


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Six new businesses, including the popular chains Tatte Bakery & Cafe and Van Leeuwen, are setting up shop in Crystal City.

Promotional signs for the new shops are visible in the ground-floor windows of one of the two 300-foot residential towers at 1900 Crystal City Drive. Approved in 2020 and under construction by 2021, the towers — set to open early next year — will house 811 residential units and nearly 40,000 square feet of retail space.


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The aroma of freshly made corn tortillas is permeating the air in Westover.

Westover Taco, located at 5849 Washington Blvd in the pipestem-shaped retail space long occupied by the Forest Inn dive bar, announced via social media this week that it plans to officially open tomorrow (Saturday) at 5 p.m.


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After a several-month delay, 2910 Kitchen & Bar is gearing up to open next month on Columbia Pike pending final permit approvals, according to the restaurant owner.

The family-owned American-style eatery takes its name from its Columbia Pike address, previously the site of P. Brennan’s Irish Pub. The cavernous, two-level bar and restaurant closed its doors in 2017 and remained vacant until last year.


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(Updated at 9:15 p.m.) Booeymonger in Ballston will be replaced by a new full-service Nepalese restaurant this spring, according to the incoming tenant.

Booeymonger, known for its sandwiches, wraps, bagels and salads, closed its doors at its two locations in D.C. this year, including Friendship Heights and Georgetown.


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After 64 years of serving subs and pizza in Arlington, The Broiler has expanded into Maryland, per the company’s social media accounts.

The long-time eatery, a local institution that opened back in 1959 on Columbia Pike, held a grand opening for its second location, in Clinton, Maryland, in late October. It announced the move to Clinton, which is about a 20-minute drive east of National Harbor, earlier this fall.


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