Skip the expensive restaurant tabs, avoid the usual bar scene. If you want to take your date somewhere romantic and unique in Alexandria this Valentine’s Day (Friday), below are a few ideas for local outings.
On the more romantic side, there’s Ice & Lights, an ice skating running at Cameron Run (4001 Eisenhower Ave) through the end of February. Access to the rink is $8 and skate rentals are $4. There’s also a nearby retail area and a pizza shop called Slice & Ice.
Don’t worry. Even though Hal Hardaway just closed on a house in Williamsburg, he’ll still be around half the time.
If you don’t know the 70-year-old Hardaway by sight, you might know his famous garage, or the emails the Old Town resident sends to more than 1,000 people on a daily basis railing about the Alexandria waterfront or videos he shares of electric scooter violators.
Feeling tired and achy? You might be wearing the wrong shoes.
For the last 27 years, Comfort One Shoes has eased the pain of customers in locations throughout the region by offering more than 100 comfort brands like Mephisto, Beautifeel, Ecco and Dansko. The company’s 15 locations employ more than 100 employees, and it all started at 201 King Street.
It wouldn’t be February in Alexandria without the largest George Washington Birthday parade in the country.
The annual event, which will be held in Old Town on Presidents’ Day — Monday, Feb. 17 — is attended by thousands and caps the end of the George Washington birthday weekend.
Alexandria will turn green at the 39th annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade and Fun Dog Show on Saturday, March 7.
The festivities are sponsored by the Ballyshaners, a nonprofit dedicated to Irish heritage, and are expected to include more than 2,000 participants, including Irish dancers, the Kena Shriners with their mini Corvettes and the famous City of Alexandria Pipes and Drums.
(Updated 11:30 a.m.) Whether you’re a child reading through the Harry Potter books for the first time or a reporter in your late 20s still waiting on a letter from Hogwarts, you’re invited to the Hooray for Books Harry Potter night.
The event is scheduled for 6:30-8 p.m. at Hooray for Books (1555 King Street) tomorrow (Thursday).
An athletic pursuit is leading to some hazmat calls around Alexandria.
The Alexandria Fire Department responded Tuesday afternoon to investigate a white powder discovered along the 800 block of Duke Street in Old Town, according to AFD spokeswoman Raytevia Evans.
The Old Town GNC is closing next month, and the store has discounts on nearly everything inside until then.
The nutrition store at 711 King Street is scheduled to close on Wednesday, Feb. 19, according to staff. GNC offers a variety of food, snacks and supplements, with an athletic focus.
(Updated at 9:30 a.m.) Construction is complete at the second ALX Community coworking office in Old Town, and there is room for new tenants who need an office away from home.
The 25,000 square-foot, two-level office at 201 N. Union Street is the only dog-friendly coworking space in town. It recently opened after signing a 15-year lease for the space.
The recently opened Jeni’s Ice Cream in Old Town (102 S. Patrick Street) is planning a special event for a good cause this weekend.
On Saturday, Feb. 1, Jeni’s is planning to open early to serve breakfast with a new “skillet cinnamon roll” ice cream — “with a dark caramel sauce [that] tastes like caramelized sugar on a hot skillet” — in celebration of Ice Cream for Breakfast Day.
Looking for a grocer to suit your dry goods needs in Old Town? Mason & Greens will be opening its doors at 913 King Street this spring, but there’s a couple of catches — the store won’t accept cash and in the interest of sustainability you’ll have to bring your own bags and jars.
“We are living in a time where we can no longer kick the can down the road about taking care of our planet,” notes the Mason & Greens website. “Mason & Greens brings the community of Alexandria and its surrounding areas the ability to shop sans plastic. Sans disposable bags. Sans unnecessary waste. And knowing that your buying power is going to support companies who care about reducing waste we can start to combat the frivolous throw-away culture that has crept in all around us.
