Notes: Umiya Sushi opens at long-vacant Alexandria site

Good morning, Alexandria! 👋 Today is Friday, Aug. 8, the 220th day of 2025. There are 145 days left in the year.

☀️ Today’s weather: Mostly sunny, with a high near 83 degrees. East wind 6 to 10 mph. Partly cloudy tonight, with a low around 64 degrees. Northeast wind 5 to 8 mph.

🚨 You need to know

Umiya Sushi opens Friday at 3000 Duke St. in Alexandria, marking the end of a 16-year vacancy at the former Generous George’s Positive Pizza & Pasta Place location.

The all-you-can-eat sushi restaurant features 338 seats, including 17 ADA-compliant seats, and offers 36 valet parking spaces. The restaurant specializes in Edomae-style sushi traditions, featuring daily deliveries of fresh fish transformed into nigiri, sashimi platters, and traditional rolls. The dining room features soft lantern lighting and a koi pond mural, creating an elegant backdrop for both omakase experiences and casual dining, as described by the restaurant.

The owners completed extensive interior renovations over the past several months, installing sushi bars and new countertops throughout the space. Workers also removed the aged Generous George’s window signs that had remained on the building since the pizza restaurant’s closure. Contractor Kevin Huong told ALXnow in March that the project involved “a lot of interior cosmetic stuff” and that the team hoped to open before August. The restaurant met that timeline, opening Friday as announced on social media.

The restaurant offers sushi, seafood, and grilled items in an all-you-can-eat format with free parking available.

For more details and updates, visit https://www.umiyasushiva.com/.

Here’s what else you should know

🚅 Amtrak Virginia ridership increased exponentially this year. But is future growth in jeopardy? So far, current projects that have already been approved, such as the Long Bridge Project, which will create two new track railroad bridges over the Potomac River from Alexandria into D.C., have not been affected by federal budget cuts.

👉 More than 600 local children ages 5-14 gathered at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in Alexandria on July 31 for the 31st annual Thingamajig Invention Convention, a free event hosted by the YMCA of Metropolitan Washington.

✊ The group Alexandria for Palestinian Human Rights isn’t going to stop disrupting political events any time soon. ALXnow recently interviewed several organizers from the group to discuss their work.

🚔 A 26-year-old Washington, D.C. man has pleaded guilty to felony charges related to the attempted abduction and rape of a woman in Alexandria’s Potomac Yard neighborhood.

🛍️ Alexandria residents and visitors have a packed weekend ahead with the city’s annual Sidewalk Sale taking center stage Saturday, transforming Old Town into a shopper’s paradise while farmers markets, live music venues, and cultural attractions offer something for every taste. Here’s what’s happening this weekend.

📈 Thursday’s most read

The following are the most-read ALXnow articles for August 7, 2025.

1. Proposed 24-Hour Mexican restaurant in Del Ray draws neighbor opposition
2. French bakery and cafe files paperwork to open at 701 King Street in Old Town
3. Alexandria advocacy group calls on sheriff to stop transferring inmates to ICE
4. Virginia ABC store moves from Duke Street to Pickett Street in Alexandria
5. Things to do this weekend in Alexandria: August 7 – 10

📅 Upcoming events

Here is what’s going on today and this weekend in Alexandria, from our event calendar.

• 7:00 pm Friday: Trivia Nights at Historic Sites – Baseball
• 👉 9:00 am Saturday: Del Ray Vintage & Flea Market
• 9:00 am Saturday: Yoga on the Magnolia Terrace
• 10:00 am Saturday: METWC 2025 Annual Community Back-2-School Slam Jam Events
• 3:00 pm Saturday: 3rd Annual Project Backpack Giveaway

Things To Do

• 11 a.m.: Derecho Lager returns at Port City Brewing Company
• 3:30 p.m.: Fun Friday at Ellen Coolidge Burke Branch Library
• 6:30 p.m.: Friday Night O’Connell’s Run at Daniel O’Connell’s Irish Restaurant
• 7 p.m.: Trivia Nights at Historic Sites – Baseball at Lee-Fendall House Museum & Garden

• 6:30 p.m.: ACRP Benjamin Thomas Remembrance Program at Shiloh Baptist Church