Now Open: Finally, after years of different businesses eyeing the former and long-shuttered McDonald's space in Cleveland Park, Tackle Box has opened and will serve "favorites like the popular lobster rolls, grilled trout and fried and grilled calamari while incorporating new steamed seafood offerings and straight-from-the-water menu items." [via release]

Field Report: Over on Barracks Row, Senart's Oyster & Chop House has been packed. "Just try getting a seat at the bar during happy hour." [WeLoveDC]

Debts to Arlington Coffers: Most local restaurateurs and franchise owners who owe Arlington County overdue taxes are making progress on their payments. While Roberto Donna continues to "make small court-ordered payments on his $150,715.96 debt," a Quiznos location near the Virginia Square Metrorail station saw its debt increase as four other franchise owners have been paying down what they owe. "That makes Quiznos the most delinquent chain in Arlington (by number of restaurants)." [ARLNow]

Planned: Local bagelry Bethesda Bagels will be moving into Dupont Circle. [WBJ]

Photo by Flickr user La Chiquita using an Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic Creative Commons license

Why do you think that might be? Leave your answers in the comments.

The latest in restaurant openings, closings, and highly unstable target dates.

Coming Soon:

• Rockville is getting set to open the latest outpost of the gourmet pizza bar, Matchbox, as early as Friday with an impressive spot which can seat more than 400 people! (Bethesda magazine)
• Dupont Circle will soon have a new yogurt and parfait bar/coffeehouse, Yola, which is set to open next Monday. (Prince of Petworth)
• The Arlington Rooftop Bar and Grill in Courthouse is now officially open however the actual rooftop component will not be ready for patrons until early spring. (ARLnow)
• New York-based Shake Shack, which is set to hit the corner of 18th Street NW and Connecticut Avenue, is now looking for managers. (The Feast)
• The self-proclaimed "first FIT restaurant and bar in America" Funxion at 1309 F St. NW is looking to switch to a 24-hour schedule. (Prince of Petworth)
• The space occupying the former Mar de Plata restaurant at 1827 Jefferson Place NW will soon be transformed to house St. Arnold's of Jefferson Place, a Belgian restaurant and pub. (Prince of Petworth)
• Woodley Park will be the new home to Las Vegas–based and Man Vs. Food-featured, Hot N Juicy Crawfish, which will be occupying the old Trattoria Italiana space at 2651 Connecticut Ave. NW. (Prince of Petworth)
• Besides the two new in-District spots already planned, FroZenYo has announced they will also be adding three new joints in Arlington as they continue their campaign of frozen yogurt world domination. (TBD)
• Perry's owner Saied Ayoubi plans to open Mintwood Place in Adams Morgan sometime in the spring. (The Feast)
• Volt chef and owner Bryan Voltaggio is apparently scouting around for another restaurant, which may or may not be the second coming of Volt. (Washington Business Journal)
• The Capital Video Sales store on 8th Street SE will be closing to make way for a Latin tapas joint called Pacifico. (Prince of Petworth)
• Foxhall sandwich shop Jetties will be opening a second location in Bethesda early next spring. (Bethesda magazine)
• New York City tapas joint Boqueria is currently on the prowl for a spot in the District to open a new location. (Eater)
• While the downtown D.C. branch of NYC-based Crumbs Bake Shop has already launched, the folks in Clarendon continue to await an opening date. (ARLnow)
• A new bar and barbecue joint called American Ice Company is set to open at 917 V St. NW. (Prince of Petworth)
• A new dual-concept sports bar and restaurant, Redline, will be opening soon in the former Indebleu space at 707 G St. NW. (Prince of Petworth)
• Sette Bello has closed its doors at 3101 Wilson Blvd. in Arlington to make way for yet another American Tap Room. (ARLnow)
• Ping Pong Dim Sum is already on the hunt for a third location despite still working on its second spot in Dupont. (Washington Business Journal)

• New "urban village" Park Potomac is attracting a wide range of new restaurants, including the second outpost of The Wine Harvest. (Bethesda magazine)
• Speaking of Park Potomac, the owners of Cava will be joining forces with the owners of Mamma Lucia in order to open Sugo Macaroni and Pizza Bar in the Potomac complex early next spring. (Bethesda magazine)
• Capital City Brewing Co. has lost its lease on Capitol Hill and will be moving operations to its Shirlington site, making it one of the top 10 largest brewpubs in the country. (All We Can Eat)
• More brewpub news: Rock Bottom and Gordon Biersch are merging. (Washington Business Journal)
• BGR owner Mark Bucher has just signed a lease for a Burger Joint in Springfield, at 8420 Old Keene Mill Road. It'll mark the fifth BGR. The sixth is already scheduled for Clarendon.
• Grapeseed's chef Jeff Heineman is planning to open a New England-style seafood shack called Freddie's Lobster and Clams right next door to his current joint at 4867 Cordell Ave. in Bethesda. (Bethesda magazine)
• Self-proclaimed "non-traditional sandwich shop" SUNdeVICH is on its way to 1314 9th St. NW. (Prince of Petworth)
• Cafe Eagle, an Italian/Eritrean restaurant will soon be occupying the old Vegetate space at 1414 9th St. NW. (Prince of Petworth)
• Celebrity chef Bobby Flay plans to throwdown a Bobby's Burger Palace on K Street NW. (Washington Business Journal)
• Jackie Greenbaum, the restaurateur behind Jackie's and Quarry House in Silver Spring, plans to open a Mexican restaurant in Columbia Heights.
• Heebeen Restaurant in Alexandria is scheduled to open a location in Arlington where it will continue to mix Korean and Japanese cuisines. (ARLnow)
• Former IndeBleu chef Michael Hartzer is pairing up with the owner of Bourbon to open the Jack Rose Dining Saloon in Adams Morgan. The selling point? One thousand kinds of whiskey. (Going Out Gurus)
• The founder of Tangysweet is opening a gourmet salad and sandwich shop in Clarendon called Rabbit.
• Looks like Cava is moving forward with plans to open a 4,000-square-foot space in Arlington. (ARLnow)
• Todd Gray and Ellen Kassoff Gray will open their multi-faceted Watershed operation in NoMa this spring.
• Businessman David Von Storch, who owns the Capital City Brewing Company, signed a lease for his newest operation, 901 Restaurant at 901 9th St. NW. (TBD)
• Silver Spring will finally have a spot to watch sports and wolf down fried foods. Babe's Sports Bar & Grill is moving into the old Gallery Restaurant space. (Silver Spring Singular)
• Hey, Biergarten Haus, look out! A new Bavarian beer garden is on its way to 720 L St. SE. (Prince of Petworth)
• Michael Landrum's project at CityVista, it turns out, will apparently not sell steaks or burgers — but coffee, sandwiches, salads, and yogurt. Michael Landrum and yogurt?! (Washingtonian)
• The owner of Hudson in the West End is taking over the former Il Mulino space and turning it into a comfort-food tribute to the 16th president, Lincoln. (WaPo)
• Capitol Hill Sporting Goods at 727 8th St. SE will soon be replaced by a funky new tavern serving up American fare and offering live jazz and blues. (The Hill Is Home)
• Roti Mediterranean Grill has claimed a spot in Constitution Square in NoMa. (Prince of Petworth)
• A new Tryst-type spot called Bistro 18 will be opening up where Oya’s Mini Bazaar and African Art used to be at 2420 18th St. NW. (Prince of Petworth)
• News from Twitter is that food truck, DC Empanadas, will start rolling out soon in the District — with plans to extend into Maryland. (TBD)
• The owners behind the popular Foggy Bottom eatery, Founding Farmers, and its sister operation, Farmers & Fishers, are planning to open a new restaurant in Potomac. (Bethesda magazine)
• Beer and wings specialist, Buffalo Wild Wings, will open up a location in Crystal City sometime this month at the corner of 23rd Street and Crystal Drive. (ARLnow)
• Our bread and pastry options may soon improve. Paul, a bakery that can trace its roots back more than 100 years to France, is opening a location on Pennsylvania Avenue NW. (Metrocurean)
• Zpizza plans to open a location in Rosslyn. Try to contain your excitement. (Washington Business Journal)
• News from the Twitter world is that Red Hook Lobster Pound is looking to add a second truck to its fleet. (Metrocurean)
• The spot at 1113 V St. NW, which used to house the Gori Cafe, is set to become the V Street Cafe, slated to open in several weeks. (Prince of Petworth).
• Christine Sarapu and chef/husband Jorge Pimentel are launching a new Latin-inspired food truck, Sabor’a Street, which is coming to town soon. (WeLoveDC)
• Former Vidalia chef R.J. Cooper is working on a place of his own, Rogue 24, an all tasting-menu restaurant in Mount Vernon Square.
• Could Bayou Bakery's David Guas have some competition? A place named Mudbug is headed to Crystal City. (ARLnow)
• Restaurant Eve‘s chef Cathal Armstrong is planning to get into the pub business with Virtue Feed & Grain. (WaPo)
• Former Maestro chef Fabio Trabocchi is coming back to town to open his own place, Fiola. (WaPo)
• Chef Jeff Black will be opening up the Pearl Dive Oyster Palace and a bar upstairs called Black Jack at 1612 14th St. NW. (Prince of Petworth)
• Middle Eastern restaurant Javan is on its way out to make room for Kabob Bazaar at 7710 Wisconsin Ave. in Bethesda. (Bethesda magazine)
• Prince of Petworth speculates that a Z Burger may be soon opening at the Tivoli Theatre in Columbia Heights. (Prince of Petworth)
• Neighborhood pet shop Chateau Animaux at 524 8th St. SE will close its doors and two District chains, Moby Dick House of Kabob and Nooshi, will occupy its space. (ANC Norm)
• Penn Quarter is set to introduce two new restaurants. St. Louis-based pizzeria, District of Pi, will take over one of the final retail spots at 914 F St. NW and former Top Chefer Mike Isabella will launch his new place, Graffiato.
• A hip new deli called Annie and Teddy’s is coming to the corner of Potomac and Pennsylvania SE. (Prince of Petworth)

Openings:

• Arlington Rooftop Bar and Grill in Courthouse
• Sweetgreen in Ballston
• Bayou Bakery in Arlington
• Ba Bay on Capitol Hill
• Tsunami Sushi & Lounge in Logan Circle
• Brasserie Brightwell in Easton, Md.
• DC-3 on Capitol Hill
• Merzi in Penn Quarter.
• Panera Bread in Dupont Circle
• Vento in Dupont Circle
• Wok and Roll in Adams Morgan
• Zoës Kitchen in Fairfax

Closings:

• Sette Bello in Arlington
• Chuck's Wagon BBQ is closing on H Street NE
• Quarterdeck Restaurant is closing in Arlington

Photo by Arlington Rooftop Bar and Grill

The owners are calling it Jackie's Wine Club, but the Rockville spot is neither a club nor owned by Jackie Greenbaum, the noted Silver Spring restaurateur with three properties to her name.

No, Jackie's Wine Club is a wine and tapas bar owned by Lucia Borro, whose husband, Emilio, is the owner of next-door neighbor, Lola Cafe, a bakery and restaurant that combines Argentine and European influences. The couple's daughter, Jackie, is the inspiration behind the new operation, which officially opens on July 30.

Unfortunately, Jackie Borro won't be able to enjoy the opening; she passed away in February before the family could debut her wine bar. "She was the real brains behind the business of Lola and she had great plans for her wine and tapas," Emilio Borro said in a press release sent to Y&H.

Wine writer Tom Risen has consulted with the Borro family on its wine list,  which is still a work in progress. But he believes there will be 27 bottles on the menu as well as eight selections by the glass.  The emphasis will be on South American wines, he says, but will likely include bottles from France, Italy, Spain, and California as well. The Borro family hails from Argentina and, as a result, they'll import a number of wines from their homeland.

Risen didn't know the full extent of the tapas menu, other than some hot prepared items as well as meats and cheeses imported from Argentina, France, Italy and Spain. But he did point out, in a bit of culinary symbiosis, that Lola is also right next door.

He promised to forward menus as they are finalized. More as we know it.

Jackie's Wine Club, 12 N. Washington St.

The publisher of Roadside, the magazine long dedicated to the chrome culture of classic diners, is not at all happy with Silver Diner's plan to demolish its Rockville location and build a spacious new $4.5 million diner just down the road.

Roadside's Randy Garbin writes that he first visited the Rockville diner shortly after it opened in the late '80s and found that the retro Kullman structure "completely fooled me: I believed it was a vintage structure. Kullman reached deep into its past and designed, built, and transported one of the more amazing examples of the iconic American diner."

Now Garbin's frustrated at Silver Diner's plan to jettison the old property on Rockville Pike for a gleaming 10,000-square-foot showcase that will be lit up like a casino on the Vegas strip. Writes the publisher:

Despite the fact that the diner was built as an assembled diner in Avenel, New Jersey, separated into 8 sections, and trucked 300 miles to Rockford [sic], somehow they've determined it's "unfeasible" to do just this and move those sections a couple of miles (if that).

This all sounds like corporate blather to me. The diner is historic in its own right, and its construction quality is on par with almost anything Kullman ever built. Having visited the stores they've built since this unit, I can say with some confidence that the new building will pale by comparison.

Damn shame, folks. Just another damn shame.

Last year, I spoke with president/CEO Bob Giaimo about his decision to tear down the old property, a move that struck me as particularly anti-diner, given that history and nostalgia are such an integral part of the business. Here's what I wrote last year about Silver Diner's plans:

All that excess and space is needed, the president says, because the current location is already operating beyond its capacity. He calls the Rockville location “one of the busiest restaurants of its size in the United States.” It feeds 10,000 diners per week, he says, but the restaurant requires many turns a night to hit those numbers, which taxes every one of his employees, from hostess to cooks to bus boys.

The new Silver Diner will seat about 250 customers and, just as important, will feature a modern kitchen capable of handling the stress of so many diners. The bigger and better diner is expected to open in the spring of 2010, Giaimo says, at which time they will close down the old restaurant and raze it.

But isn’t tossing away an old diner really an anti-diner philosophy? I put the question to Giaimo because, to my mind, diners are about history. Giaimo is sympathetic to that view, which why he’s planning to donate much of the old structure to a diner museum, but he also acknowledges that he has a business to run. The old spot has taken a beating. It doesn’t serve either the customers or the staff well.

“If you stay the same, you’re going to be a diner, but your customer base is going to shrink,” Giaimo says. “We have plenty of data to back that up.”

This Jackie's, located in the same Rockville strip center as Pita Hut, has nothing to do with the Jackie's in Silver Spring. So says Jackie Greenbaum to whom I just spoke on the phone.

Greenbaum is not concerned about potential confusion between her place and the forthcoming wine-and-cheese operation. She has no interest in pressing the budding business to change its name.

But maybe Baci, just a few doors down, will care about its new neighbor? Baci, after all, is a wine bar.

This weekend, I stopped by Branded '72 at the urging of co-owner Mark Johnson, the son-in-law of  founder, Ken O'Brien Sr., whose Rockville smokehouse bore his name for decades until the newcomers rebranded it last year. More on my meal in just a second.

But before I ordered a thing at Branded '72, I noticed the 'cue joint was selling a single "Chris Rock" rib for $2.50. (See the bottom of the middle column on the menu.) I asked the meat carver behind the counter what the story was. He looked as perplexed as I was. Only when I got home did Carrie turn up this video:

Looks like inflation has bumped the price of that lone rib from 50 cents to $2.50.

Personally, I'd skip the rib(s) altogether, at least if you're looking for Texas-style spare ribs. Branded's third-rack is fall-off-the-bone moist, which might play in some circles, but not in Texas where you want a little chew left on those bones. The ribs also rely too heavily on sauce instead of smoke, time, and a thick coating of seasonings.

But I think Johnson and his team are headed in the right direction with their brisket, which they now smoke with the deckle on. This rich, fatty section of the brisket helps keep the flesh moist during its long stay in the smoker.  Even better, the Branded team is wrapping its briskets warm, deckle still attached, before throwing them in the holding unit. The fatty sections are then trimmed to order. This technique prevents the brisket from drying out in the holding unit.

Branded's brisket is certainly moister than the first time I tried it. It also has a deeper level of smoke. But the brisket doesn't boast a ton of bark, the result, I presume, of smoking with the deckle on, and without a good crusty coating of seasonings, the meat is rather one dimensional. I'm also not a fan of Branded's chopped-up approach to serving brisket. I prefer those thin strips of perfumed beef, which I can leisurely drop into my mouth like long strands of pasta. Meat pasta, that is.

The owners of Urban Bar-B-Que plan to open a third location of their small smokehouse chain in the former Willoughby's Market in Sandy Spring, pitmaster David Calkins told Y&H over the weekend.

The lease has been signed, and since the space won't require a massive build-out for the restaurant, Calkins expects to open the latest Urban within a month, if not sooner. Even better, Urban will install a Southern Pride XLR-600 smoker in the Sandy Spring spot; the giant machine, able to smoke hundreds of pounds of meat for 12 hours with split logs, was in large part responsible for Y&H's recent re-evaluationof the barbecue joint in Rockville. (The lack of an XLR-600 at the Urban location in Silver Spring also explains its inferior meats.)

At the time of my March re-review, owners Calkins and Lee Howard said they were thinking about expanding the Urban mini-empire. But they thought they would do it with a centralized smoking operation; in other words, they thought they would smoke the meats at one location and then quickly truck them to the outlying Urban dining locations. I asked Calkins why the change of plans.

"It's important to have an on-site smoker," Calkins says. "People want to smell the aroma."

I couldn't argue with that, given how often I have been sucked into 'cue joints merely by the smell of smoking meats. Calkins said the menu at Sandy Spring will be exactly the same as the one at the other locations. He did float the idea that he might add some items, like salads or buttermilk fried chicken, but emphasized that if you like something at the old Urban, you'll find it at the new one.

Photo by Darrow Montgomery

One by one, we’re running through the 50 restaurants that made the cut on this year’s

Of all the local restaurants I have frequented, both as critic and regular ol’ diner, few get me as excited as Joe’s Noodle House in Rockville. Sometimes I get keyed up just thinking about going here. Part of it is the simple thrill of discovery as you work your way through Joe’s long and diverse menu, from the steamed dumplings and boiled peanuts to the double-cooked pork and Szechwan-style beef noodle soup. But part of it is just the pleasure of returning to old favorites, like the golden, green-flecked scallion pancake, the crispiest anywhere, or the soft, almost slurp-worthy cubes of bean curd in the ma-po tofu, which mixes toe-curling heat with the refreshing, pine-needle coolness of Szechwan peppercorns. Besides, where else can you watch employees snap beans in the corner of the dining room?

Joe's Noodle House, 1488-C Rockville Pike, Rockville, Md., (301) 881-5518

Photo courtesy of Joe's Noodle House