Matt & Tony’s to open at former Charlie’s On The Avenue at the end of March

Matt & Tony’s will open for all-day brunch this spring at the former Charlie’s On The Avenue, the new restaurant’s owner tells ALXnow.

Alexandria Restaurant Partners bought the 3,000 square-foot space at 1501 Mount Vernon Avenue last fall with the intention of turning it into a concept called Joe’s Kitchen, but those plans were scrapped when ARP managing partner Matt Sloan announced he was leaving to open his own restaurant.

“I was going to leave working for them and they came to me and said they have this building, this opportunity,” Sloan told ALXnow. “It was Scott Shaw, Dave Nicholas and David Clapp. Those guys are awesome. We have a great relationship and it just made sense. They offered to lease me the building.”

Sloan, a Michigan native, moved to D.C. a year-and-a-half ago to work with ARP. He opened the company’s Ada’s On The River as their general manager and then spent time working at ARP’s The Majestic.

“The plan is to open in middle-to-late March,” he said.

Sloan is now developing a menu based around an all-day brunch concept. He named the restaurant after himself and his great-grandfather Anton (Tony) Schabas, a pastry chef who emigrated to the U.S. from Austria at the turn of the 20th century.

Charlie’s (1501 Mount Vernon Avenue) closed in January 2020, after being in business for less than three years. Before that it was home to Fireflies for 15 years.

“The important thing going into this space is getting engaged with the community and doing something special for the neighborhood,” Sloan said. “We will have an emphasis on breakfast and lunchtime, with steak and eggs, chicken and waffles, shrimp and grits.”

Sloan says that the hours for the restaurant will likely be 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekdays and from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekends.