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After 7 Years, Fire Works Pizza Wants You to Explore ‘the Other Side of the Menu’

Published October 17, 2017 at 6:00AM

After seven years, Fire Works American Pizzeria and Bar has gotten pretty good at the pizza side of the menu. What’s not to like? The wood-fired crust with the delightful savory char is the crispy thin bed for toppings ranging from Bakers farm sausage and grana padano to white sauce with shrimp and clams.

But in case you haven’t noticed, there’s another side to the menu. “That’s actually what we call it,” says Jason Silerto, the general manager of the Courthouse restaurant. “The Other Side of the Menu…We’re pretty confident that our pizza stands up to pretty much any place in the DC market,” he says. “But I think it’s time we reminded people we’re more than pizza.”

Opinion

A New Yorker in Arlington: An Outsider’s Perspective

By Katherine Berko

Published August 11, 2017 at 3:35PM

The beautiful drive past the Air Force Memorial.

When I first began my ARLnow internship, I knew nothing about Arlington. A native New Yorker, to me, Arlington was just some place across the river from D.C. I was a bit of a “big city” snob, so I expected very little from the area.

Three months later, as my internship comes to a close, my view could not be more different. After writing dozens of articles about Arlington, from covering the opening of a Clarendon tattoo parlor to a piece about the county’s decreasing homeless population, I’ve developed quite a fondness for the community.

Around Town

The Woman Behind Circa’s Beautiful Chalkboard Designs in Clarendon

By Katherine Berko

Published August 9, 2017 at 2:30PM | Updated August 9, 2017 at 2:52PM

One of the "Clarendon particularities" on this week's board.

It takes a special talent to make strangers pause and smile during the rush of their busy days. Yet Adrienne Ellis does it on a weekly basis.

Ellis is the general manager at the Circa restaurant in Clarendon (3010 Clarendon Blvd), and she also provides the witty, colorful quotes that adorn the chalkboard on the sidewalk outside. In fact, Ellis’s work is so popular, she created an Instagram account to showcase it.

Feature

Attorney William Robinson III Likes Getting Results, Getting Hands Dirty

By Buzz McClain

Published June 13, 2017 at 6:00AM

That’s a good thing, for himself and his clients, because Robinson is very often in front of a judge, trying cases for his areas of practice, which include criminal and traffic offenses, family law and contract disputes.

“I’m in the ‘people problem’ business,” he says. “Since I’m a solo practice law firm, I’m the one who always handles the case directly — and the client deals only with me. My business number is my cell number so I’m easy to get a hold of.”

Sponsored

For Fire Works, Opening in Arlington Meant Starting from the Ground Up

Published November 19, 2015 at 6:00AM

When Fire Works opened its first urban location, in the Courthouse neighborhood of Arlington, the owners thought it would be best to start from scratch, to create a space to suit the needs of both the restaurant and the community it’s in.

Fire Works was built from the ground up, taking the same ideas of the wood fired pizza restaurant’s successful Leesburg location, and going bigger, upscale and trendier. The construction included bars inside and out, a huge patio and glass windows.

Sponsored

Being Successful in Real Estate After a Mid-Career Switch

Published November 17, 2015 at 6:00AM

You may have heard the Sagatov name around Arlington, especially if you’re house shopping. It graces signs in front of new homes and work trucks traversing local streets.

The man behind the name is Lou Sagatov, but he’s no longer in charge of his eponymous design-build business. Lou passed the business to his son and has started a new career as a real estate agent.

Sponsored

Local Professionals are Making Big Changes in a Small Group

Published November 12, 2015 at 6:00AM

Do you wish you had a group of fellow professionals who could help you with your career and personal goals?

Alison Cardy did, and that’s why she started Belleconnecta.

Sponsored

ASAP Printing Mixes New Technology With Old School Customer Service

Published October 20, 2015 at 12:30PM | Updated October 20, 2015 at 3:38PM

ASAP Printing is small, no doubt about it. But that’s kind of what owner Mohammad “Mo” Shiekhy likes about it: he has to take responsibility for everything.

He says his customer service is what sets ASAP apart from the others. But with a decline in paper printing — there aren’t many others like ASAP.

Sponsored

Courthouse Dentist’s Philosophy: Give Patients Options

Published September 8, 2015 at 5:00AM | Updated September 20, 2015 at 8:18PM

For Dr. Mehdi Adili, being a good dentist is about being a thorough educator.

The founder and owner of Ideal Dental Solutions is a firm believer in teaching both his staff and his patients. For patients, he says, knowing about their options makes them feel the most at ease when it comes time to get work done.

Feature

ARLnow Profile: Top Shelf Design

By ARLnow.com

Published August 24, 2015 at 5:00AM | Updated August 24, 2015 at 9:17AM

When people think of graphic design, they might picture a single person in their basement designing printouts and posters, banners and brochures. But at Top Shelf Design (TSD) in Rosslyn, you’re more likely to see a team of designers and developers sitting at their computers, bouncing ideas off of each other and thinking of solutions to their client’s design problems.

This scene has changed in the past 11 years since the business opened its doors because the company does 70 percent web development work instead of 40 percent, as they did five years ago. Design in 2015 is about staying current and going mobile, says Gregg Hurson, lead developer at TSD.

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published June 25, 2015 at 8:00AM

Labor Protests in Rosslyn — Two labor unions, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and the Union Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners, held separate protests near the Central Place development in Rosslyn yesterday. The unions were protesting the use of non-union labor, and used an inflatable rat and an inflatable “fat cat” to underscore their complaints. [Twitter, Twitter]

Boundary Channel Bike Path Plans — Conceptual plans for a new bike trail from Long Bridge Drive to the Mount Vernon Trail have been revealed. The trail is set to be built as part of the reconfiguration of the I-395 and Boundary Channel Drive interchange. [The Wash Cycle]

Around Town

Yelp CEO’s Tech Career Started With Bike Rides to Ballston Mall

By ARLnow.com

Published April 30, 2015 at 10:55AM | Updated May 25, 2017 at 3:51PM

Stoppelman grew up in Arlington, near Military Road. He attended Taylor Elementary in the 1980s and swam on the Donaldson Run swim team. Though Stoppelman and his family later moved to Great Falls, where he attended Langley High School, it was those early days in Arlington that set him on the path to Silicon Valley stardom.

“I used to ride my bike to Ballston mall to buy video games… they had one of those little video game stores,” he told ARLnow.com in a phone interview. “I was always interested in technology and computers. It probably started early with my love of video games and fascination with how you build them and the machines they run on.”