There’s a new option in Old Town for coffee and wine.
After years under construction, LaPluma Coffee & Wine opened today at 1000 Cameron Street. The two-story Latin American wine bar and café is owned by Iliana and Dany Lopez, who did a full renovation of the 140-year-old building that was previously home to Energesco Solutions LLC.
Welcome to Friday! Here’s a look back at our most-read stories of the week.
Our top story this week is on Episcopal High School being named a training site for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. To accommodate an international soccer team with a home-away-from-home atmosphere, the private school is asking the city for permission to install field lighting with 47 light poles between 40-to-100-feet-tall.
Your stretchy pants are about to get a workout, because the Taste of Del Ray is returning June 1 (Sunday).
More than a dozen Del Ray restaurants are participating in the 16th annual event, which will run from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Mount Vernon Recreation Center fields (2701 Commonwealth Avenue).
The 43-year-old McDonald’s restaurant at 505 S. Van Dorn Street is requesting a second drive-through lane to make orders faster.
In a proposal that will go to the Planning Commission in June, the restaurant’s owner asks the city for the change “to better serve our customers, improve the efficiency of the ordering process, and allow for better vehicular circulation on the property.”
A proposal for a new French bakery in Old Town will be submitted to the Board of Architectural Review on Wednesday (May 7).
Arlington-based Eclairons Pastry and Coffee House wants to open at the old Firehook Bakery at 430 S. Washington Street. The location was Shuman’s Bakery for more than 30 years before Firehook Bakery took over in 2004.
It’s been an intense week in Alexandria.
Here’s a look back on this week’s top stories. Our most-read post was on the shooting of three men in Arlandria on Sunday night (April 27). Police found the victims with gunshot wounds shortly after being called at around 9 p.m. They were transported to area hospitals, and no arrests have been announced. Witnesses heard a barrage of gunfire, and the Alexandria Police Department is asking for help in the investigation.
A new Vietnamese-themed restaurant is under development in Arlandria.
2D Noodles (3823 Mount Vernon Avenue) ‘s interior renovation is nearly complete. The restaurant’s location in the Del Ray North shopping center is two stores down from Sake Express Japanese Hibachi, which is owned by the same local restaurant chain that owns Sake Japanese Steakhouse & Bar at 2016 Eisenhower Avenue.
Akeno Sushi Bar wants to open before the end of the year at 611 King Street in Old Town, but it has to get a few paperwork issues squared away with the City of Alexandria to make that possible.
The interior renovation of the former home to Java Grill hasn’t started, as the local business is asking the city for an allowance to install a new HVAC system on the roof without a mechanical screen. The proposal going to the Planning Commission on Wednesday (April 16) would replace two HVAC units, add a third unit, and install an exhaust fan.
Welcome to Friday in Alexandria. What a week we’ve been having.
To start things off, ALXnow broke the story of an Alexandria Police Department’s arson and burglary investigation after Sunday morning’s (March 30) shopping center fire that shuttered multiple businesses in the 5200 block of Duke Street.
Hungry? A fantastic burger might help, especially from one of the Alexandria restaurants included in Northern Virginia Magazine’s April list of the 25 tastiest burgers in the region.
District Biscuit (3401 Mount Vernon Avenue) made the list for its biscuit burger, described online as a “custom-blended Allen Brothers patty sits between layers of an airy square biscuit that absorbs every tantalizing drop of juice, along with housemade hollandaise sauce and pickles.”
Want to shake it off in style? Get in line.
Since opening earlier this month, it’s become common to see long lines of customers waiting to get into Eras, the new Taylor Swift-themed pop-up bar in Del Ray.
