St. Patrick’s Day isn’t just for the Irish at one local watering hole.
On Saturday, Quincy Hall at 4001 Fairfax Drive will hold its first “St. Paw-trick’s Day” adoption event with Arlington-based nonprofit Lucky Dog Animal Rescue and some adoptable furry friends from 3-5 p.m.
“We have so many neighbors with pups walking by and sitting on our patio that an adoption event with Lucky Dog Rescue was something that we thought would unite our community in support of their noble cause,” said Will Carter, general manager of Quincy Hall.
The pizzeria and beer hall plans to support the cause by donating $1 to the nonprofit for every beer pitcher and spiked shamrock shake sold. The hall will also sell pizza and a wide variety of beer from 40 different taps.
The Ballston-area restaurant invites guests to come out with their little tail-waggers to enjoy the festivities on the patio and get some holiday attire for their pups.
While this is the first time Quincy Hall has hosted a dog adoption event, Carter told ARLnow that he hopes it will not be the last. He is looking to make the adoption event an annual tradition, joining other themed nights the venue has hosted, including a country night and an adult-friendly Easter egg hunt.
Clarendon’s newest comedy venue is in the basement of a Balkan restaurant.
Starting next Thursday, the speakeasy-style bar underneath Ambar, called BABA, will host free bi-weekly comedy shows.
The “Elite 11 Closed Mic” show with the Savage Gentleman Club will feature seven local comics performing 11-minute skits. For the inaugural show next week, doors open at 6:30 p.m. and the show starts at 7:30 p.m.
The comedy show is free but BABA will offer Ambar’s unlimited Balkan dinner menu for $49.99 per person, with the small plates available à la carte as well, and discounted wines. Registration is recommended but not required.
Comedy is not the only way that BABA has been blending dining and experiences, in an effort to maximize use of the restaurant’s basement space. It also hosts “Dine in the Dark,” a blindfolded dining experience in which guests eat relying solely on their taste and smell.
Guests are given a secret three-course menu that caters to their preferred source of protein. This sensory-based experience occurs on most Tuesday evenings but an updated schedule can be found on the website. Registration for this dining experience is required before attending.
Then on Fridays, BABA opens up the dining area for live music from 8-10 p.m.
While Ambar tests out different ways to attract potential patrons to its subterranean space, several other restaurants and nightlife spots in the neighborhood have struggled to stay open.
Over the last year, Clarendon saw the closures of new arrivals Bar Ivy and Chicken + Whiskey as well as more established destinations, including Pamplona, Cava Mezze and The Pinemoor.
This weekend the Arlington County Police Department is reminding motorists of the dangers of drunk driving.
The police department will host “Don’t Press Your Luck,” an anti-drunk-driving event that will highlight the impacts of alcohol when behind the wheel, this Saturday from 8-10 p.m. at the intersection of N. Irving Street at Wilson Blvd.
The free event, on St. Patrick’s Day weekend, aims to ensure that anyone celebrating the holiday does so safely.
“Impaired driving is 100% preventable and why the Arlington County Police Department is working with NHTSA to remind drivers that drunk driving is not only illegal, it is a matter of life and death,” per the press release.
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Safety Administration, or NHTSA, reported 272 drunk-driving-related deaths during the St. Patrick’s Day holiday period between 2017 and 2021, the release said.
Meanwhile, the Washington Regional Alcohol Program (WRAP) and Lyft will offer free rides home from St. Patrick’s Day celebrations on Sunday, March 17 from 12 p.m. to midnight as part of its SoberRide program. WRAP notes in a new report that the number of alcohol and drug-related traffic fatalities increased nearly 13% in the D.C. area between 2021 and 2022, per the most recent NHTSA data available.
ACPD has hosted anti-drunk driving events for other holidays, including Halloween and Christmas last year. A similar event for St. Patrick’s Day was cancelled last year due to inclement weather.
Photo via NHTSA
The day of the Irish is approaching and spots around Arlington are planning to paint the town green next week.
From community events to live music at local pubs, there will be a steady stream of events leading up to and on St. Patrick’s Day.
The festivities start bright and early this Saturday — St. Paddy’s eve — at 8:30 a.m. with a 50-minute “Fun Run” that will start and finish at Ireland’s Four Courts (2051 Wilson Blvd). The Courthouse pub reopened last year after rebuilding after a fiery crash.
Those who prefer a slower start to the day can head to O’Sullivan’s Irish Pub in Clarendon (3207 Washington Blvd) at 9:15 a.m. Saturday to watch a championship rugby game between Italy and Scotland, followed by a match between Ireland and England at 11:45 a.m. This game will be shown at O’Sullivan’s and Four Courts.
That evening, Mattie & Eddie’s Irish Bar and Restaurant in Pentagon City (1301 S. Joyce Street) will have a live performance from the Boyle School of Irish Dance at 7:30 p.m.
And those are just a few of the planned happenings.
St. Patrick’s Day weekend has a packed slate of events, beginning Friday, March 15:
- A social at the Walter Reed Community Center (2909 16th Street S.) from 12-2 p.m with music from the Sunshine Gang and light refreshments.
- A luncheon with Irish music at the Aurora Hills Community Center (735 18th Street S.) for guests 55 and older from 12:30-2:30 p.m. Registration for the $15 event is required.
- Live music at Ireland’s Four Courts begins at 8 p.m.
- McNamara’s Pub & Restaurant (567 23rd Street S.) will have Irish karaoke from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m.
- Mattie & Eddie’s will have a whiskey tasting at 5 p.m. and celebrate Arthur Guinness’s birthday from 7-10 p.m.
The festivities continue Saturday:
- Ireland’s Four Courts will open at 8:30 a.m. with a day of Irish dancing and live music.
- Punch Bowl Social (4238 Wilson Blvd) will host the “St. Patty’s Palooza” at 11 a.m. complete with Irish whiskey-based cocktails, bowling, karaoke and a scavenger hunt, among other activities. Registration is required but admission is free.
- Inca Social (1776 Wilson Blvd) will serve Peruvian and Irish fusion dishes and green beer for its celebration and will have a St. Patrick’s Day special until the following Monday. Tickets can be purchased online.
- Clarendon Ballroom (3185 Wilson Blvd) is partying from 3 p.m. to 2 a.m. with live performers, giveaways, green beer and other activities. Tickets can be purchased online.
- St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church (4000 Lorcom Lane) will host a St. Patrick’s Day Dinner from 7-8:30 p.m. complete with singing wait staff, a raffle and a limerick competition. Doors open at 6 p.m. and tickets can be purchased upon arrival.
- McNamara’s will have live music from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m.
- Mattie & Eddie’s will serve Guinness pints with customized foam, using a ripple machine, starting at 1 p.m. The Boyle School of Irish Dance returns at 7 p.m.
The pace of events winds down on Sunday, March 17 — actual St. Patrick’s Day — with these events:
- Ireland’s Four Courts will be open at 8:30 a.m. and have live music throughout the day.
- Live music at Mattie & Eddie’s begins at 2 p.m. with a modern take on Irish music followed by acoustic music from 5-9 p.m.
Lyft and SoberRide, meanwhile, will be providing free rides to area residents who are 21 and older on Sunday.
Residents need to download the Lyft app and enter SoberRide code in the payment tab to receive a ride at no cost. The free ride will be available starting at noon Sunday until midnight. The SoberRide promo code will be posted at 11 a.m. that day.
Photo by Patrick Fore on Unsplash
Spring is just around the corner and so is the Easter Bunny.
The folkloric rabbit will hop over to the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City (1100 S. Hayes Street) starting next week, for photo opportunities all month long.
The mall encourages guests to reserve a 15-minute slot for photos with the bunny now and “make it an Easter tradition.”
The spring hare will be hopping around the first level in Nordstrom court on the following days and times, according to the reservation website.
- Friday, March 15: 2-7 p.m.
- Saturday, March 16: 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
- Sunday, March 17: 12-6 p.m.
- Monday, March 18: 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
- Tuesday, March 19: 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
- Wednesday, March 20: 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
- Thursday, March 21: 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
- Friday, March 22: 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
- Saturday, March 23: 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
- Sunday, March 24: 12-6 p.m.
- Monday, March 25: 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
- Tuesday, March 26: 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
- Wednesday, March 27: 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
- Thursday, March 28: 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
- Friday, March 29: 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
- Saturday, March 30: 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
Before photos on March 17, children with special needs and their families can visit with “Caring Bunny” during a “sensory-friendly event” from 9:30-10:30 a.m. Reservations are required for the event.
Photo via Fashion Centre at Pentagon City/Facebook
This spring, tackle cleaning out that junk drawer full of electronics or the garage with leftover paint and old lightbulbs.
Next month marks the return of Arlington County’s Environmental Collection and Recycling Event (E-CARE). On Saturday, March 23, residents can safely dispose of old electronics and household hazardous materials.
This biannual event will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Wakefield High School (1325 S. Dinwiddie Street). There will be several collection areas where Arlington residents can drop off their unwanted items.
Residents are asked to bring proof of Arlington residency and to pack their vehicles in reverse order, with electronics going in first and hazardous materials afterward.
Below is a list of items that will be accepted and not accepted, per the county website.
- Automotive fluids
- Batteries
- Care care products
- Compact fluorescent light bulbs
- Corrosives (acids/caustics)
- Fire extinguishers
- Flammable solvents
- Fluorescent tubes
- Fuels/petroleum products
- Household cleaners
- Lawn and garden chemicals
- Mercury
- Paint products (25-can limit)
- Photographic chemicals
- Poisons
- Printer ink/toner cartridges
- Propane gas cylinders (small hand-held or larger)
- Swimming pool chemicals
Items containing mercury, such as thermostats and thermometers, will also be collected.
Metal items, bicycle donations and business and commercial waste will not be accepted, along with these items:
- Asbestos
- Explosives and ammunition
- Freon
- Medical wastes
- Prescription medications
- Radioactive materials
- Smoke detectors
Residential trash, recycling and yard waste customers can request request free curbside removal of computers, keyboards, copiers, scanners, printers, cell phones and televisions online or by calling 703-228-5000. There is a small fee for picking up for older cathode ray TVs and computer monitors, the county website says.
Arlington County residents and employees who miss the event can drop off their hazardous household materials year-round at a recycling center at 530 31st Street S., near Crystal City.
Scrap metal, appliances and electronics can be dropped off at the Earth Products Yard in Shirlington at 4300 29th Street S. or scheduled for pickup for a fee. Inert material such as cement can also be taken to the Shirlington facility.
Unsure of where to dispose of something? Look up specific disposal instructions using this county tool.
Photos via Dept. of Environmental Services/Flickr
Love is in the air and in National Landing.
This week and next, several events in Pentagon City and Crystal City will celebrate the day of love with specials and experiences for attendees spending the day solo or with a loved one.
Kick off Valentine’s Day this evening by saying goodbye to old loves — whether it is an ex-partner, a job or that bag of clothes you’ve been meaning to donate — at the Museum of Contemporary Art Arlington Innovation Studio + Store, which opened last month in Amazon’s second headquarters in Pentagon City.
The pre-Valentine’s Day event today from 5-7 p.m. at 525 14th Street S. features drop-in activities include writing goodbye letters on burning paper and making sage bundles to burn, plus snacks and tea.
Then, on Valentine’s Day (Feb. 14), wine and dine a loved one, or yourself, at local restaurants in the area.
Say “I love you” with old-school Italian dishes such as salmon piccata, veal saltimbocca and clams casino, paired with wine, at La Bettola Italiano (558 23rd S.). The cozy, not overly formal restaurant is only offering its special Valentine’s Day menu with wine pairings on Feb. 14. Be sure to make reservations, which can be done on the website.
Next up on the food tour is Surreal, with its oasis-like outdoor dining experience suitable for both singles and couples.
The gourmet diner, which opened late last year in Crystal City (2117 Crystal Drive) is offering a three-course menu for single diners starting at 7 p.m. in the private dining room.
For couples, Surreal is open for both lunch (12-2 p.m.) and dinner (4-10 p.m.) with classic chocolate lava cake service and inventive options, such as a crispy tuna poke pillow. Reservations can be made on Surreal’s website.
Those seeking a more intimate atmosphere can head to Beauty Champagne & Sugar Boutique (576 23rd Street S.) where, on Valentine’s Day, just two couples will get to have the wine room to themselves. For $250 per pair, the wine bar will serve cocktails, wine, champagne, small bites, a main course and dessert. Couples can nab either the 5:30-7:30 p.m. slot or the 8-10 p.m. slot.
Outside these slots, the wine bar will be open regular hours for a more low-key Valentine’s or Galentine’s Day, with sparkling wine, light bites and treats. RSVP by Saturday, Feb. 10.
National Landing has a few kid-friendly Valentine’s Day activities, too.
On Monday, from 5:30-7:30 p.m. families can bowl and play arcade games at Bowlero while raising money for the Leadership Center for Excellence. The organization helps local leaders “expand their network and access quality leadership development,” the website says.
Tickets, sold on the center’s website, include two hours of bowling, shoe rental, a $5 arcade card plus food and drinks.
On Wednesday — Valentine’s Day — children and adults can get crafty at a card-making pop-up co-hosted by MoCA Arlington and Amazon in Met Park from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
In the mood for a tragedy? Head to Synetic Theater (1800 S. Bell Street) for its rendition of “Romeo and Juliet,” a tale of star-crossed lovers, a bitter family feud and a romantic yet ill-fated destiny. Its wordless production from Feb. 9 to March 14 is a “unique and stunningly visual interpretation of a classic story, capturing emotion with every movement,” the website says.
Tattoo lovers from all over are expected to gather in Arlington next weekend for the DC Tattoo Expo.
The 13th annual event, beginning on Friday, Feb. 16, has been “completely revamped” from years prior, according to its hosts, Exposed Temptations Tattoo and Baller Incorporated.
In the past, the expo has offered contests, live entertainment and special guests from the reality show “Ink Master.” This year, attendees can look forward to more live art and entertainment as well as opportunities to shop and get tattoos and body piercings, according to the website.
“It will be the best, not the biggest, but the best show we’ve ever had,” the hosts said.
Returning guests may notice some familiar faces from previous years, including burlesque dancer Cervena Fox and sword-swallowing couple Captain and Maybelle. The Miss DC Pin Up Contest, a fashion contest that determines the best old-school pin-up fashions, will also make a comeback.
Attendees can also showcase the tattoos they came with or those they get while at the expo.
The expo will start at 1 p.m. on Feb. 16 at the Sheraton Pentagon City hotel, located along Columbia Pike at 900 S. Orme Street. It will wrap up on Sunday, Feb. 18. The full event schedule is available on the event website.
Guests can purchase tickets at the door on each day of the expo.
You can celebrate the Year of the Dragon this month at a handful of Lunar New Year celebrations across Arlington.
In East and Central Asian cultures, the Lunar New Year heralds the arrival of spring and the beginning of a new year on the lunisolar calendar. This year, it falls on Saturday, Feb. 10.
For the Chinese New Year specifically, celebrations will run through Saturday, Feb. 24.
There are a few places and organizations in Arlington joining in the festivities, offering everything from ceremonial teas to limited-edition ice cream flavors to lion dances to dragon parades.
1800 N. Lynn Street, Rosslyn
Celebrate the approach of the Lunar New Year on Thursday, Feb. 8 from 5-7 p.m. at Central Place Plaza where attendees can experience a lion dance performance by Hung Ci Lion Dance Troupe, drink ceremonial tea provided by the Asian American Chamber of Commerce, eat fortune cookies and more. This event is free and family-friendly.
The Hung Ci Lion Dance Troupe performance, a Lunar New Year tradition, starts at 6 p.m. Before the performance, grab your Rosslyn-inspired fortune and enjoy ceremonial tea. Tae-Gu Kimchi will also be on-site selling its handcrafted Napa cabbage kimchi.
625 S. Carlin Springs Road, Glencarlyn
Visit the Long Branch Nature Center on Saturday, Feb. 10 from 3-4:30 p.m. to celebrate Lunar New Year. Meet live animals, make Lunar New Year crafts and take a short hike with paper popper “firecrackers” to chase away the New Year’s beast, Nian.
Reservations are required.
1100 S. Hayes Street, Pentagon City
Ring in the Year of the Dragon with festivities at the mall on Saturday, Feb. 10 from 1-4 p.m. This celebration is in the food court of Fashion Centre at Pentagon City, located on the at the Metro level, and will include lion dances, dragon parades and musical dance performances.
This public event is in partnership with the Asian American Chamber of Commerce.
4238 Wilson Blvd, Ballston
Lunar New Year flavors are back at Ice Cream Jubilee in Ballston Quarter and include red bean almond cookie, strawberry matcha latte, mango sticky rice and a vegan mango sorbet. The flavors are available as scoops, tasting flights and pints for shipping.
Know of any other Lunar New Year celebrations or businesses marking the occasion? Be sure to let us know in the comments.
(Updated at 3:55 p.m.) Black History Month starts today and events are planned throughout the month in Arlington to honor the history and achievements of African Americans past and the present.
As Black History Month, February pays “tribute to the generations of African Americans who struggled with adversity to achieve full citizenship in American society,” according to the Library of Congress.
Arlington Public Library will kick off a month of programming this Saturday (Feb. 3) at 1:30 p.m. with a presentation by Maryland-based oyster farmer Imani Black on the Black history of Chesapeake Bay aquaculture. The event is taking place at the Aurora Hills Library (735 18th Street S.).
Black comes from a 200-year lineage of watermen and today runs a nonprofit called Minorities In Aquaculture that supports underrepresented populations in aquaculture.
On Monday (Feb. 5), local nonprofit Coalition for Empowerment and Opportunity (CEO) will host a panel discussion about the College Board’s Advanced Placement African American Studies curriculum course. The new course is set to launch this year after coming under scrutiny from conservative critics, including former GOP presidential candidate Ron DeSantis.
“African-American history is one of struggle and triumph, and its impact and importance to how it has shaped this country presently has a rightful place to be taught in this nation, as Black History is American History,” said CEO founder and board member Zakiya Worthey, in a press release. “Therefore, history must always be protected for our children and future generations.”
Attendees can register online for the discussion, to be held at Wakefield High School (1325 S. Dinwiddie Street) from 6-8 p.m.
Later this month, the Charles Drew Community Center will host the county’s annual “Feel the Heritage” festival. Held from 12-5 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 24, the festival showcases Arlington’s historical African American neighborhoods and will have live entertainment, food and tables and digital art displays from local vendors and artists.
The Dept. of Parks and Recreation has also organized a month-long Black History Month-themed scavenger hunt featuring “Sam Sandiego,” “a fun-loving spy who wants to help you discover the hidden gems in Arlington,” per a county webpage. Clues will be posted on Facebook and YouTube.
From witty retellings to hyperlocal stories, Shakespeare to contemporary musicals, a wide range of shows is set to hit Arlington theaters this spring and summer.
Next Thursday is the opening night for the musical “Private Jones” (Feb. 6-March 10) at Signature Theatre. The audience will be taken on a journey, based on a true story, of a deaf Welsh sniper during World War I.
Also this spring, Signature will put on “Penelope” (March 5-April 21), which retells Homer’s epic about Odysseus from the perspective of his wife, Penelope, and “Where the Mountain Meets the Sea” (May 21-July 7), which follows a young man who tries to bond with his deceased father by retracing his steps through a journey across America.
Other upcoming Signature shows will let attendees relive the ’60s or experience for the first time and get a behind-the-scenes look at how the Broadway musical “Hair” came to be, leading up to the theater’s performance of the musical from April 16 to July 7.
Shakespeare lovers, meanwhile, can rejoice in a trio of plays this spring.
First up, from this coming Friday to Sunday, theater-goers can see a playwright reckon with Shakespeare’s legacy in “Historic Doubts” by Avant Bard Theatre. The show is being held at Mason Exhibitions Arlington, at 3601 Fairfax Drive in Virginia Square.
Next is Synetic Theater‘s rendition of “Romeo and Juliet” (Feb. 9-March 24), followed by an interactive adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Coriolanus” (Feb. 29-March 23), also by Avant Bard Theatre. In it, the audience becomes “directly involved and implicated in the conditioning of a man” who has been groomed into thinking antisocial brutality is normal.
The Arlington Players (TAP) will reprise the plays-about-plays genre in its two shows this spring. First up, starting this weekend, is “Anton in Show Business” (Feb. 3-18), about the “joys, pains and absurdities of putting on a play.”
Stories about acting continue in the “The Prom” (March 23-April 7) in which four struggling Broadway stars looking for their next break find it in small-town Indiana, where they help a young gay girl best a PTA set on not allowing her to bring her girlfriend to the high school dance. Both TAP productions will be held at Thomas Jefferson Community Theatre (125 S. Old Glebe Road).
Meanwhile, local children’s theater Encore Stage and Studio will start the year with an adaptation of the “Adventures of Swiss Family Robinson” (March 1-10). Director of Marketing and Design Aileen Christian says this show — also held at the Thomas Jefferson Community Center — “is full of humor with talking animals, silly characters, and the beloved treehouse.”
Next, Encore will revisit original theater pieces focused on Arlington’s African-American voices in a double feature of “The Day Nothing Happened” and “Nauck to Green Valley, Transforming a Community” (April 26-28).
Christian says she believes that these stories “share a special meaning right here in Arlington.” The show will take place at Theatre on the Run (3700 S. Four Mile Run Drive).