The Ground Floor

Jack Spade, the trendy men's boutique, is getting a make over.  The remodel of the 2000 square foot store located at 1250 Wisconsin Ave, NW is to begin in late November.

A new cafe is coming to the corner of 14th and R St, NW.  Aaron Gordon, the owner of TangySweet, Rabbit and the upcoming Drafting Table is in the preliminary planning stages for a 25 seat espresso bar/restaurant.  (Washington City Paper).

Harris Teeter, the grocery store located in the Citadel at 1631 Kalorama St, NW, is going to renovate two departments.  They plan to expand the produce and cheese departments due to customer demand.  The store hopes to start the expansion in the next four weeks.


The Firelake Grill is coming to the old Ruby Tuesday's space at 4200 Wisconsin Ave, NW.

A new coffee shop is coming to the USDA building.  Casey's Coffee will be converting a 2,245 square foot location at 355 E St, SW.  Construction is to begin in November.

Cava Mezze Grill, the modern Greek restaurant, is opening their Tenleytown outpost located at 4237 Wisconsin Ave, NW tomorrow.

Read More

The Ground Floor

Scotch & Soda, the Dutch retailer of men's, women's and children's clothing, is coming to the former Betsey Johnson space in Georgetown at 3029 M St, NW.  Construction is slated to begin in late October.

Sweetgreen, the local salad and frozen yogurt chain, is opening it's eighth and ninth locations in the West End and Glover Park.  The West End location will open at the end of September at 2238 M St, NW.  The Glover Park location will open in November at 2200 Wisconsin Ave, NW.  (Eater)

Home Goods, TJ Maxx, Michaels, and DSW are coming to Georgetown Park Mall in 2013.  The J. Crew store in Georgetown Park Mall is also planning to expand.

Einstein Bros. Bagels, the bagel and coffee chain, is taking over the former Vespa location at 2233 Wisconsin Ave, NW.

Al Dente Ristorante, a modern Italian trattoria, has signed a lease for a 5,500 s.f. space at 425 Eye St, NW in the Mt. Vernon Triangle neighborhood.  It will be the restaurant's second location; their first location is 3201 New Mexico Ave, NW.

Rhode Island Row, the new rental complex at the Rhode Island Avenue Metro station, has signed several new retailers including Chipotle Mexican Grill and Sprint.

Poboy Jim, a Cajun restaurant, is coming to 709 H St, NE.

Absolute Noodle, an Asian restaurant from the owners of Absolute Thai, is taking over the old Quiznos space at 772 5th St, NW in Penn Quarter.

Read More

The Ground Floor

Karma by Erwin Gomez, a new beauty salon, has opened at 1104 24th St, NW in the West End.  Services offered include his signature brow shaping plus makeup, hair, mani-pedi's, massage, and microdermabrasion.  (Daily Candy)

Tanger Outlet Center at National Harbor, an 80 store, 350,000 square foot shopping mall, is coming to National Harbor.

The Uptown Tap House opened last night in Cleveland Park.  The owners of McFaddens converted the old Four Fields space (previously the 4Ps) into a more upscale version of its college-serving establishment, as neighbors fretted that Cleveland Park would get rowdy.

Pizzeria Uno, the Chicago pizza chain, has closed its Georgetown location at 3200 M St, NW after 32 years in business.

The new restaurant at 3415 11th St, NW from the folks behind Tryst, the Diner and Open City finally has a name:  The Coupe.  The Coupe will offer coffee and pastries a la Tryst, breakfast all day like the Diner and comfort food similar to Open City.  Word on the street is that they'll be open in several weeks.  (Eater)

Domku Cafe, the Slavic/Scandinavian restaurant located in Petworth at 821 Upshur St, NW, is beginning a new project: the Start-Up Kitchen.  Every Monday from 9/17/12 to 10/8/12, a guest chef will be featured and will serve their own culinary dishes.  Domku owner Kera Carpenter dreamed up the idea to support start-up chefs as they discover what its like to run their own restaurant.

Read More

The Ground Floor

CorePower Yoga, a yoga studio, is planning to open it's second DMV location at 1055 Thomas Jefferson St, NW in 2013.  The 5,272 sf Georgetown location will be a retail store and fitness facility.  The first location is to open in Bethesda on November 16th, 2012 at 6800 Wisconsin Ave. Suite 300.

Urban Essentials, the contemporary home furnishing store, is having its grand opening party at it's new location at 1401 14th St, NW on September 13th from 5-10pm.

Kate Spade, the colorful, graphic fashion line of clothing, handbags and accessories, will open a store at the Pentagon City Mall in early Fall.  It will be located on the second level next to Club Monaco.

Kiji Club, a cocktail bar from the Sushiko team that was inspired by a recent visit to Japanese drinking spots, will open at 600 F St, NW.  (The Washingtonian)

Bistro Bistro, the Italian-American restaurant located in the Villages at Shirlington, closed yesterday.

Read More

The Ground Floor

A new restaurant named Biergarten is coming to 1216 18th, St, NW, the former Guitar Shop space. Construction on the 3,371 square foot space is slated to begin in late September.  Rumor has it the Public Bar people are behind the opening of Biergarten.

The Clarendon Whole Foods grocery store located at 2700 Wilson Blvd. has plans to remodel and add a beer room. The beer room will offer growlers, wine by the glass, local draft beers and craft bottled beers.  Estimated opening date is late September.

Z Burger, the burger chain, has opened their fourth location in Columbia Heights in the Tivoli Theatre at 14th and Park St, NW.

Icebreaker Merino, a performance clothing store, will open it's first DMV location in Bethesda Row at 4821 Bethesda Ave.

Malmaison, a new restaurant from the owners of Napoleon and Bonaparte, is coming to 3401 K St, NW, at the base of Key Bridge. The restaurant will feature unique cocktails, pastries, hors d'oeuvres, dj's and dancing.  An opening date has not been announced.



*Biergarten is going into the former Guitar Shop space, not the former Fudruckers space.

Read More

The Ground Floor

Pei Wei Asian diner, a fast casual national chain owned by PF Changs, is coming to 1212 18th St, NW.   The 4,000 s.f. restaurant will start construction in late September, taking over the Mattress Discounters space below 18th St. Lounge.

Morton's Steak House, the archetypal steakhouse chain, is getting a face lift.  The location at 1050 Connecticut Ave, NW will undergo renovations to open the floor plan.  Work is slated to start at the beginning of September.

Panera Bread, the bakery/cafe chain, is opening it's fourth DC location in Chinatown at 673 H St, NW.  Construction will begin in October.

eatsPlace, a pop-up restaurant space, is raising funds via Kickstarter to renovate a 100 year old vacant building in the Parkview/Petworth neighborhood.  The brains behind the project, Katy Chang, hopes to create a commercial, community kitchen for a variety of chefs using local ingredients.  Chang hopes to start renovations in 2012 and open in the Spring of 2013.


*correction: Panera will be opening its fourth DC location not second.

Read More

The Ground Floor

Howard University is getting Fro-Yo.  A lease has been signed with fro.zen.yo, a self serve frozen yogurt chain.  It will be located in the Wonder Plaza, the retail strip adjacent to the Howard University bookstore.

Izakaya Seki, a Japanese restaurant, has opened at 1117 V St, NW.  The restaurant, which is housed in a refurbished barber shop, offers Japanese specialties (sushi) plus a variety of grilled dishes, saki, Japanese beers and whiskey.

J. Crew, the traditional-with-a-twist clothing store, has opened their third location in DC in the Penn Quarter neighborhood at 950 F St, NW.  The store will offer both men's and women's clothing.

National Harbor welcomes two new retailers: Blink Blanco, a globally influenced fashion boutique, and Angst Girl, a clothing store for the "edgy, restless, and rebellious" young woman.  Both concepts are from the White House | Black Market group.

Tacos El Chilango, the first brick and mortar location of the popular Arlington food truck, has opened at 1119 V St, NW.  The menu offers nine different types of tacos, agua frescos and Mexican sodas.

Read More

The Ground Floor

Showroom 1412, a collaboration between Lori Graham of Lori Graham Design, Lauren Gentile of Contemporary Wing art gallery and mid-century furniture dealer Mike Johnston of Sixteen Fifty Nine by MJR, has opened at 1412 14th St, NW in Logan Circle.  It's a one stop shop featuring custom furniture, interior design services, contemporary art and vintage furniture.

Mossimo Dutti, a new, upscale clothing store from the creators of Zara, is opening their second U.S. location in Georgetown at 1220 Wisconsin Ave, NW.

John Fleuvog Shoes, maker of funky shoes, will open a store at 1265 Wisconsin Ave, NW.

Suitsupply, a Dutch custom suit company, is opening at 2800 Pennsylvania, Ave, NW at the end of July.  The 5,400 s.f. store will offer well made suits and shirts plus foot ware and accessories.

Mego Inc. has opened at 1419 Wisconsin Ave. in Georgetown in the space formerly occupied by Jan's.  The upscale retailer sells upscale clothing predominantly made of cashmere.




Jen Angotti is a DCRE realtor licensed in DC and VA.  She also writes Concrete Jungle DC, a blog about real estate and design.

Read More

The Ground Floor

Tom Power, owner of Corduroy restaurant, is moving forward with renovations to 1124 9th St., NW. Plans are for a 6,200 s.f. restaurant and bar.  As reported previously, it will be a more casual concept with a "raw space feeling with exposed brick, a sky light and a big bar."  Permits are pending.

3 Stars Brewing Company, a DC brewery offering hand crafted artisanal beers, is opening their brewery at 6400 Chillum Place in northwest DC.  They hope to release their first batch for public consumption in early July.

Noodles and Company, the national chain that serves all things noodles, is coming to 1815 Wisconsin Ave, NW., into 3,000 s.f. of new space next to the Georgetown (is it still Social?) Safeway.

Louis' Rogue Club, a gentleman's club at 476 K St, NW, has closed for updating.  Current plans call for renovations of 8,000 s.f. on the second and third floors of the building.

The Dry Bar, a hair salon that only provides blow outs: no cut or color, is opening two locations in the DMV.   The DC salon will be a 1,458 sf space located at 1815 Wisconsin Ave, NW.  The Bethesda salon will be 2,005 s.f. space located at 4840 Betheseda Ave.

Buddha Bar in Mt. Vernon Triangle has closed.


Jen Angotti is a DCRE agent licensed in DC and VA.  She also writes Concrete Jungle DC, a blog about real estate and design.

Read More

The Ground Floor

Big Lots, the close out/overstock retailer, is coming to Edgewood.  Construction is starting shortly on a 37,000 s.f. shell located at 514 Rhode Island, Ave., NE.

The fish market on the corner of 14th and P St, NW closed two weeks ago.  No details yet on what will replace the decrepit relic on the prominent Logan Circle corner.

Wagamama, the highly anticipated British ramen restaurant, is moving forward with their build out in Penn Quarter.  The estimated start date is late July 2012.

The Protein Bar, a healthy food and catering restaurant, is coming to JBG's development at 800 N. Glebe Rd.  Construction is slated to start in late July.

Bar Louie, the stadium-sized bar at Gallery Place, is opening their first MD location in Rockville Town Center.  The grand opening will be celebrated June 18-24th.



Update:  Big Lots is coming to Edgewood, not Brookland.


Jen Angotti is a DCRE agent licensed in DC and VA.  She also writes Concrete Jungle DC, a blog about real estate and design.

Read More

ICSC Spotlight: DSW takes over D.C., L St. Borders site gains a future

DCMud’s man at the International Council of Shopping Centers Convention survived that shopping center jungle with a couple new updates, both conspicuously involving clothing …

•  DSW, the footwear retailer, plans to open three new stores in Washington, D.C. One will be in Columbia Heights, one in Friendship Heights and one on Connecticut Avenue. So anyone who has been stocking up on heels for the coming shoe drought can breathe easy.

•  Following the trend of transforming ex-Borders into things that have absolutely no hope of raising the national literacy rate (see: the Hamilton), a large but as-of-yet unnamed clothing retailer will be taking over the old Borders site on L Street.

Read More

The Ground Floor

The Ground Floor is DCMud's, weekly column on new retail in the D.C. area

Rosa Mexicano: a 7,304 s.f. Rosa Mexicano will open in the former BambuleBrasserie space at 5225 Wisconsin Avenue in Chevy Chase. Slated for a November opening, the third Rosa Mexicano in the area (after Penn Quarter and National Harbor) will offer its crowd-pleasing standbys: guacamole made tableside and a mini-library sized selection of tequila.

The Standard: Housed in the original Garden District location at 1801 14th Street, the barbecue and burger joint is putting the finishing touches on the tiny upstairs kitchen, the downstairs bar, and an outdoor beer garden for a mid-March opening.

Hill Country: The barbecue and music mecca set to open by Georgetown Day School alum Marc Glosserman, this Penn Quarter location is gearing up for an opening day around March 12th. Aside from Texas-style barbecue, expect decadent sides and PB&J cupcakes and a prime location to draw the masses.

Blue 44: In the former Senor Pepper space at 5507 Connecticut Avenue in Chevy Chase comes the neighborhood's eatery slated to open in March. Owned by the folks behind Wisconsin Avenue's Cafe Ole, the restaurant is under renovation to make way for a family-friendly New American restaurant.

District of Pi: The pizza purveror from St. Louis that's an Obama family favorite is slated to open at 910 F Street. Can't wait for the brick and mortar shop? Follow the Pi truck on Twitter.

Unnamed Bar: Set to open in the former Anna Maria space at 1737 Connecticut Avenue is the bar still unnamed, brought to the neighborhood by the owners of Rocket Bar. And it really is a bar: light bites but plenty of booze and games: think shuffleboard, pool, bocce, and darts.

Mellow Mushroom: The Atlanta-based company will open its first D.C. franchise in a renovated commercial storefront in the heart of Adams Morgan, at 2436 18th Street. The local owners will add a roof deck along with substantial renovations. Mellow Mushroom will feature more than 20 beers on tap, a selection of bottled microbrews, artisanal pizza, calzones, and hoagies. Judging from DCMud's previous sampling, upscale pizzerias better look out.

Circa: The second location of the Dupont Circle eatery is slated to open at 23rd and Eye. Expect 20 wines by the glass, a solid selection of beers, lunch, brunch, dinner and late night menus, and a standard fare American menu.

Washington, D.C. retail development news

Read More

The Ground Floor

The Ground Floor is a new column presented by DCMud, summarizing new and upcoming retail operators in and around DC. The Ground Floor will appear weekly here.

Peregrine Espresso: Having trouble with permitting? Follow Peregrine's lead and tweet about it. Four months in and one signature away from approval for construction at 1718 14th Street and the coffee shop does a back and forth on twitter with DC Regulatory Commission to grease the wheels and ends up with a building permit by the day's end. The coffee shop is scheduled to open this spring.

Hank's Oyster Bar: Though the same group who had resisted the opening of Hank's may have delayed the progress of its expansion, chef Jamie Leeds has been given the go-ahead to expand into the space next door, which will allow a bigger bar, private dining room, and doubled patio space by this summer. Leeds in the process of getting building permits and hiring a sound engineer to assess sound levels for neighbors and to make construction changes accordingly.

Graffiato: Work has begun on the demolition and buildout of Top Chef contestant Mike Isabella's new place near the Verizon Center at 705 and 707 6th Street. However, "there's no wood burning oven. There's nothing that looks remotely like a kitchen. Work is very slow," said spokesperson Jennifer Resick Williams. The space is to have an outdoor patio and a roof deck. They're shooting for a spring opening, if luck holds.

Ping Pong Dim Sum: The 6,134 square foot space at 1 Dupont Circle (between New Hampshire and P Streets) is slated to become the second D.C. location. Renovations will continue through the spring and summer, with an anticipated opening of late 2011.

Pearl Dive Oyster Palace: Though restaurateur Jeff Black faced construction hurdles at 1612 14th Street, work is underway to create the bi-level concept that will house an oyster bar and 75-seat restaurant as well as a bocce court in the upstairs bar to be named BlackJack. Opening is slated for this spring.

3201 New Mexico Avenue: The former Balducci's space will gain several new tenants, including, "some women-owned businesses and owners who also live in the neighborhood," said Peggy Pagnano, Community Relations spokesperson for American University, which owns the space. "One prospective tenant proposes a full-service restaurant specializing in gourmet wood burning oven pizza. . . Another prospect offers healthy carry-out salads, soups, baked goods, yogurt, and ice cream."

Blackbyrd Warehouse: The newest of the Hilton brothers restaurants have several projects in the works. Blackbyrd Warehouse at 2005 14th Street is still scheduled to open in spring or summer of 2011. (The Hilton restaurants include Marvin, The Gibson, Dickson Wine Bar and American Ice Company.) Ian Hilton confirmed that it may not be a coffee shop as originally slated, though the newest conception is still under wraps.

Washington DC retail development news

Read More