Category Archives: News
Chipotle Cleveland Park on Track for May Opening
Although nothing is certain in the world of restaurant openings, Chipotle is on track to open its Cleveland Park location by the end of the month. Via Twitter, the store will open “by the end of the month” if “all goes well.” As we mentioned on Twitter two days ago, the location is actively hiring for this location. Chipotle will be opening in the old Cereal Bowl / Starbucks location near the Uptown Theater and the soon-to-be McFadden’s.
Here’s to celebrating Memorial Day weekend next to the pool with Chipotle in hand!
Cleveland Park Fire Station to Seek LEED Silver Certification
Somewhat lost in the mess the Cleveland Park fire station renovations is the fact that the city is hoping to get the building LEED Silver certified. Of course, much of the discussion has centered on the widening of the front doors and the historical preservation issues surrounding that change. With that behind us, though, we can focus on some of the upgrades that will occur at the site. This includes all new windows and doors, in addition to a new roof. Obviously, this will mark a significant improvement on the “greenness” of the building. The city hopes that these improvements will allow it to earn a “silver” certification under the LEED standard. The rating of silver is granted to buildings scoring between 50-59 points on the LEED scale. Buildings are rated in five categories Sustainable Sites, Water Efficiency, Energy and Atmosphere, Materials and Resources, Indoor Environmental Quality with additional points for innovation in design and regional priority.
Atomic Billiards Seeks Later Hours
On May 9, Atomic Billiards will go before the Alcohol Beverage Control Board seeking an extension of its hours. The new hours would give the establishment an opening time of 8 AM. On weekends (Friday and Saturday), sales and consumption of alcohol would extend until 3 AM. On weeknights (Sunday-Thursday), sales and consumption of alcohol would extend until 2 AM.
Atomic Billiards has faced increasing competition in the neighborhood recently with the opening of the Underground below St. Arnold’s. Even with the competition, it remains uniquely positioned with its myriad recreational opportunities on site including billiards, shuffleboard, darts, and board games. Atomic has no outstanding fines or investigative matters before the board, so it will likely be granted its request.
Breaking: Pulpo Set to Take Over Tackle Box Space
As we’ve alluded to previously, Tackle Box will be replaced by a restaurant conceived by Floriana owners. We received confirmation from Rachael O. Tapper Director of Marketing and Communications for Floriana that the company will be taking over the Tackle Box space on May 7. According to Tapper, “We are estimating a couple weeks of renovations and an open date of late May.” We look forward to this new addition to the neighborhood and wish Tackle Box the best of luck at its Georgetown location.
Tackle Box Closing After Bandolero Run
We’ve finally gathered enough sources together to confirm that Tackle Box will not reopen permanently in Cleveland Park. Prince of Petworth hinted as much this afternoon, but like most outlets up to this point, no confirmation was forthcoming. Although management has remained hush about its future, the staff has been permanently reassigned, with most moving to the Georgetown location. Unless something changes, we can confirm that you will not see a permanent Tackle Box space in Cleveland Park. We believe that the use of the space as Bandolero’s pop-up restaurant has made everyone play this close to the vest.
On the speculation side, there is mounting evidence that the Tackle Box space will become the next location for Floriana owner Dino Tapper. It is definite that Tapper has plans to open a Cleveland Park space in June, as we posted some time ago. The timeline seems to fit with the Tackle Box closing. We only have rumors and speculation on this right now, as nothing has been officially confirmed.
What does this mean for the Cleveland Park food scene? It’s difficult to say, but it should not cast doubt on the vitality of the neighborhood as the rash of closings did a few years ago. If anything, it is a good sign that a decent, yet poorly executed restaurant was able to find someone eager to take over their lease. If the Floriana owners do move into the space, it will be an interesting development. Their Dupont space is considered by most as “solid”, but it has never generated much buzz and certainly isn’t spectacular. We certainly are holding out hope that the Tapper family can bring another innovative and popular restaurant to the Cleveland Park food scene.
UBreakIFix Store: About our New Neighbor in Cleveland Park
As many of you have sent us, UBreakIFix will be coming to Cleveland Park in the old National Shoe Repair store. The company is not your grandfather’s “electronics repair shop”. As the logo to the right reads, it originally focused on professional smart phone repair, along with other more 21st century devices. In fact, among the repairs featured on its website are: iPhone repair, smartphones, iPods, iPads and tablets, game consoles, and Macs. According to its website, its professionals are quite speedy as well. “Our proprietary repair processes ensure most repairs are completed within 15 minutes, all while maintaining the manufacturer’s original feel and functionality.”
One of my favorite things about this franchise is that it not only repairs your technology, but also has the supplies for DIY jobs. In fact, it will even “fix” your DIY repair after you botch the job (something that I can appreciate).
UBreakIFix currently lists 25 franchises on its website, many of which are in Florida. The store in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood has five stars on Yelp, with only five total reviews. Its Atlanta, GA store has 4.5 stars in ten Google reviews.
You can find our new neighbors on Twitter at @UBreakIFix.
Friday Traffic in Cleveland Park
The center of Cleveland Park was clogged with traffic for much of the day today. You might guess that the source of this congestion was throngs of people pouring into the Tiger Mart for MegaMillions tickets. Sorry, that’d be a wrong guess, you’re clearly spending too much time look at your Twitter feed. The source was much more banal … the continued water main project along Porter St. By 3PM things were starting to clear up some.
Cleveland Park Mentions
What’s the world saying about Cleveland Park this week? Find out every Thursday in Cleveland Park Mentions…
From Washington City Paper’s Housing Complex blog
What the District’s Building in the Next Six Years
“Other libraries are in luck…Cleveland Park and the Palisades got a few million dollars each for scopes of work for their own upgrades.”
From DCist blog
An Editorial Aside: The Great Chick-Fil-A Controversy of 2012
“So I was surprised when Dean Gold, owner of Cleveland Park’s well-regarded Dino, quickly took to Twitter and Facebook to chastise us for saying chicken lovers should “rejoice” at the news of the new addition to the city’s vibrant food truck scene. “Fck em,” he tweeted…”
From the Washington Post theBUZZ
Crowds turn out for ‘The Hunger Games’ opening night in D.C. area
“Tickets for “The Hunger Games” sold out at AMC Loews Georgetown. At the Uptown Theater in Cleveland Park, the line of mostly pre-teens and college students wound around the block.”
From CBS Local
Best Nachos In DC
“Alero: In their simplest form, nachos are just tortilla chips topped with cheese, but as you will soon realize, D.C. area spots can serve up nachos with toppings to transform this dish into something much more exciting than that.”
From Washington City Paper’s Young and Hungry blog
La Forchetta Vows To Topple 2Amys As D.C.’s Highest Neapolitan Temple
“Restaurateur Hakan Ilhan has taste-tested all sorts of artisanal pizzas around town. “2Amys, in my opinion, was No. 1,” Ilhan says, referring to Peter Pastan’s uber-popular pizzeria in Cleveland Park. Yes, Ilhan is speaking in the past tense. Like any confident operator of a brand-spankin’ new gourmet pizza joint, Ilhan boldly asserts that the pies at La Forchetta, scheduled to open April 2 in Tenleytown, will set a new high watermark for Neapolitan-style craftsmanship in the District.”
Cleveland Park RAMMY Nominees
This 2012 RAMMY finalists have been announced. This year, Cleveland Park venues are featured in 4 of 16 categories. Ripple is the overall standout, earning two nominations. Last year, the neighborhood’s only nomination went to Dino for Wine Program of the year (Taberna del Alabardero, Gustavo Iniesta won).
RAMMY Finalists from Cleveland Park
Rising Culinary Star of the Year: Logan Cox, Ripple
Pastry Chef of the Year: Alison Reed, Ripple
Wine Program of the Year: Dino
Restaurateur of the Year: Ashok Bajaj – Knightsbridge Restaurant Group (Ardeo, etc)
Complete list of 2012 finalists
Congratulations to all RAMMYS finalists. The awards ceremony / fund raiser will be held on Sunday, June 24.
Bus Stop Parking Tickets
Last week, we got a series of emails from Porter St about the new bus stop in front of 2501. It seems that during the construction of the new crosswalks on Porter, the bus stop sign was moved into areas where residents usually park. This seems to have been done without the proper signage to mark off a new bus stop area. Worse still, the signs from the old bus stop area remain in place, preventing parking in that space as well. Sadly, the bus cannot use this old space because of the newly installed crosswalks.
ANC3C Commissioner Richard Steacy informed us that DDOT is aware of the problem, yet will not have anything fixed for 10-15 business days. This seems ridiculous since this is an easy fix that should have been completed immediately upon movement of the stop, AND a 311 request regarding the stop seems to have been made on March 6.
For those of you who received tickets, we apologize… that sucks. Steacy says, “I would certainly urge them to challenge the tickets. With photos of the signs in relation to the bus stop.”
Best of luck, and please let us know the outcome. Despite the inconsistency in sign placement, the parking code does seem to have two different bus stop violations. DCMR subsection 2409.3 orders a $100 violation for obstructing a bus zone delineated with signs and 2409.8 is a $50 violations for parking within 20 feet of a bus zone that is not marked by signs.
Poor Porter St. Not only do they have to contend with walking up the hill, but they also have the speed cameras, terrible road conditions, and unfair parking tickets galore.
The new bus stop with one person parked in it
As you can see, the sign indicates the stop is to the right of this vehicle (as it used to be)
A view of the old stop, with the new crosswalk in the middle of it
Is Floriana Restaurant Owner Opening a Cleveland Park Joint?
Cleveland Park could be adding another restaurant to the fold. Rachel Tapper recently tweeted that her husband, David, would be opening a restaurant in Cleveland Park this June. No word on concept, name, etc, but we’re excited about the possibility of another dining option in the neighborhood. We’ll update you when we hear more.
Their current restaurant is Floriana in Dupont Circle at 1602 17 St. NW.
Sugar Magnolia Opens in Cleveland Park
The much awaited Ripple Market–aka Sugar Magnolia–has opened in Cleveland Park. We noticed varying degrees of social media buzz about the opening, including some very enthusiastic approvals. When we walked in last night it was kind of quiet, definitely more staff than customers, but the menu looked amazing.
The menu includes its featured house-made ice cream sandwiches. These frozen pieces of deliciousness come in six different varieties including ginger cookie, waffle cookie, chocolate wafer cookie, peanut butter cookie, cocoa meringue cookie, and chocolate chip cookie. You can also find a nice variety of baked goods including oatmeal raisin cookies, butterscotch pudding, brownies, chocolate chip cookies, blondies, and house-made granola.
As the market’s slogan, “purveyors of sweet treats and savory snacks” indicates, there is plenty for those of you who shun the sweet. Four sandwiches are included on the menu: veggie, porchetta, smoked mackerel, and prosciutto. Its salad and prepared foods selection includes pate, liver parfait, pre-sliced meats, local potato salad, and marinated beans.
The young boy in front of the store begging his mother for an ice cream sandwich made us realize that Sugar Magnolia is not just another grown-up hot spot; it’s also likely to draw a considerable amount of traffic from those seeking post-zoo treats.
