Cocktail pop-up 1908 Lounge opens at Union Station
Oct 18
2023
Douglas Fruehling
It's part of the latest effort to revitalize the historic D.C. landmark in the post-Covid era.
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Cocktail pop-up 1908 Lounge opens at Union Station
Cocktail pop-up 1908 Lounge opens at Union Station
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D.C. restaurant Immigrant Food expanding into Arlington
Oct 17
2023
Daniel J. Sernovitz
The company, which had three restaurants in D.C., found a new location that “could offer more than just a heavy lunchtime business.”
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D.C. restaurant Immigrant Food expanding into Arlington
D.C. restaurant Immigrant Food expanding into Arlington
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NYC cocktail bar The Dead Rabbit to replace Pi Pizzeria in D.C.'s Chinatown
Oct 13
2023
Daniel J. Sernovitz
The deal is a win for Chinatown, which has seen a spike in retail vacancy rates due to factors including sluggish office occupancy and rising crime.
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NYC cocktail bar The Dead Rabbit to replace Pi Pizzeria in D.C.'s Chinatown
NYC cocktail bar The Dead Rabbit to replace Pi Pizzeria in D.C.'s Chinatown
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Seven Reasons to relocate to larger space at CityCenterDC
Aug 22
2023
Daniel J. Sernovitz
The Michelin-honored team behind Imperfecto and Joy will close their 14th Street location in favor of a new spot.
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Seven Reasons to relocate to larger space at CityCenterDC
Seven Reasons to relocate to larger space at CityCenterDC
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Pisco y Nazca Ceviche Gastrobar to replace Cesco Osteria in Bethesda
Aug 7
2023
Daniel J. Sernovitz
It will be the third local outpost for the Peruvian restaurant and a sought-after amenity for the building's owners.
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Pisco y Nazca Ceviche Gastrobar to replace Cesco Osteria in Bethesda
Pisco y Nazca Ceviche Gastrobar to replace Cesco Osteria in Bethesda
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BurgerFi planning new Rosslyn location
Jul 24
2023
Daniel J. Sernovitz
The Florida-based chain will join a mix of retail tenants including Chipotle, Potbelly and Seoulspice.
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BurgerFi planning new Rosslyn location
BurgerFi planning new Rosslyn location
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Union Station picks Papadopoulos Properties to secure new restaurant, entertainment tenants
May 24
2023
Daniel J. Sernovitz
It's the latest step in a multipronged strategy to breathe new life into the historic rail hub's commercial spaces.
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Union Station picks Papadopoulos Properties to secure new restaurant, entertainment tenants
Union Station picks Papadopoulos Properties to secure new restaurant, entertainment tenants
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Chef Peter Chang plans new McLean restaurant in former House of Fortune space
Mar 28
2023
Daniel J. Sernovitz
The 2022 James Beard finalist opened a restaurant near Dupont Circle in October and has another planned for Crystal City.
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Chef Peter Chang plans new McLean restaurant in former House of Fortune space
Chef Peter Chang plans new McLean restaurant in former House of Fortune space
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Union Market pop-up Mita migrating to new space in Shaw
Jan 24
2023
Daniel J. Sernovitz
The restaurant from chef Miguel Guerra fills a void created by the Declaration pizza chain that shuttered earlier in the pandemic.
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Union Market pop-up Mita migrating to new space in Shaw
Union Market pop-up Mita migrating to new space in Shaw
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Pirate Ventures launches new event space from historic downtown D.C. building
Jan 11
2023
Daniel J. Sernovitz
Anna Valero hopes the event space, in LivingSocial's former headquarters, will help speed the return of downtown D.C.'s remote office workers.
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Pirate Ventures launches new event space from historic downtown D.C. building
Pirate Ventures launches new event space from historic downtown D.C. building
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Michelin-honored duo behind Imperfecto to reset the table for The Ritz-Carlton D.C.
Sep 16
2022
Daniel J. Sernovitz
French-American and Spanish Latin fusion cuisines will be on the menu for the two spots.
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Michelin-honored duo behind Imperfecto to reset the table for The Ritz-Carlton D.C.
Michelin-honored duo behind Imperfecto to reset the table for The Ritz-Carlton D.C.
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New restaurant to replace the Daily Grill in Bethesda
Aug 30
2022
Daniel J. Sernovitz
The Daily Grill closed temporarily early in the Covid-19 pandemic but opted to shutter that spot for good.
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New restaurant to replace the Daily Grill in Bethesda
New restaurant to replace the Daily Grill in Bethesda
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New York-based taqueria chain coming to Dupont Circle
Aug 29
2022
Daniel J. Sernovitz
These's been plenty of speculation about this prime retail spot since a coffee shop closed there in April.
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New York-based taqueria chain coming to Dupont Circle
New York-based taqueria chain coming to Dupont Circle
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A new twist on Alexandria's Carlyle Club coming to downtown D.C.
Apr 19
2022
Daniel J. Sernovitz
The venue will feature more live events and performances than the former one did in Alexandria's Carlyle neighborhood.
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A new twist on Alexandria's Carlyle Club coming to downtown D.C.
A new twist on Alexandria's Carlyle Club coming to downtown D.C.
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Pr. George's apartments sell for $72M; Bosch parent to open CityCenterDC showroom
Apr 13
2022
Tristan Navera
A new D.C. Green Bank deal, appliance showroom and apartment sale lead this week's edition of Deal Dash.
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Pr. George's apartments sell for $72M; Bosch parent to open CityCenterDC showroom
Pr. George's apartments sell for $72M; Bosch parent to open CityCenterDC showroom
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World-renowned Malaysian chef picks Tysons for first U.S. restaurant
Apr 1
2022
Daniel J. Sernovitz
The Kuala Lumpur native is developing a menu of items influenced by Singapore and Malaysian cuisine, with an emphasis on seafood dishes.
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World-renowned Malaysian chef picks Tysons for first U.S. restaurant
World-renowned Malaysian chef picks Tysons for first U.S. restaurant
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Michelin-starred chef to open new restaurant at Capital One Center in Tysons
Mar 23
2022
Daniel J. Sernovitz
The big-name restaurateur has signed on to open at the Wegmans-anchored mixed-use project.
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Michelin-starred chef to open new restaurant at Capital One Center in Tysons
Michelin-starred chef to open new restaurant at Capital One Center in Tysons
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Peruvian restaurant to replace Vapiano in Reston
Mar 4
2022
Daniel J. Sernovitz
The restaurant group had been searching for a second location after opening its first in downtown D.C. nearly four years ago.
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Peruvian restaurant to replace Vapiano in Reston
Peruvian restaurant to replace Vapiano in Reston
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Greene Turtle inks deal for new location in D.C.
Mar 2
2022
Daniel J. Sernovitz
The suburban Baltimore-based restaurant and bar chain hasn't had a location in the District since its lease at Capital One Arena was bought out to make way for a sportsbook.
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Greene Turtle inks deal for new location in D.C.
Greene Turtle inks deal for new location in D.C.
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D.C.'s newest Japanese restaurant, Shōtō, is ready to open at last. Here's a first look.
Feb 9
2022
Daniel J. Sernovitz
It's been more than three years since the team announced plans to open at the redevelopment of the Washington Post's former home in downtown D.C.
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D.C.'s newest Japanese restaurant, Shōtō, is ready to open at last. Here's a first look.
D.C.'s newest Japanese restaurant, Shōtō, is ready to open at last. Here's a first look.
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True Food Kitchen Headed to Mosaic District
Jun 18
2013
Missy Frederick
The Mosaic District will get the addition of a new, health-focused restaurant in 2014. True Food Kitchen, part of Fox Restaurant Concepts, has been looking around the D.C. area with real estate broker Tom Papadopoulos for some time. The restaurant was developed in conjunction with Dr. Andrew Weil, who promotes an anti-inflammatory diet. It will serve salads, pizza, salmon, spaghetti squash casserole and other items, with a local bent to the ingredients. The restaurant will open in summer 2014, according to Mosaic Developer Edens. It joins such other restaurants as Matchbox, Red Apron and Taylor Gourmet at the Virginia development. This will be the first True Food Kitchen in the D.C. area. (source)
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True Food Kitchen Headed to Mosaic District
True Food Kitchen Headed to Mosaic District
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What's DC's Next U Street for Food?
May 16
2013
Bisnow
Celebrity chefs and restaurateurs are crowding 14th Street, U Street, Logan Circle, and H Street NE. But we here at Bisnow like to keep you ahead of the curve and tell you about new places. However, since we have no independent knowledge of anything, we had to find someone else to ask. 1) Petworth Naturally, we turned to a Papadopoulos—since there are so many of them (that's Tom Papadopoulous, Charles Papadopoulos, Ralph Tapiero, John Gogos, and Nick Papadopoulos) outside their Dupont office yesterday). They tell us the influx of residential development in Petworth is likely to attract new restaurants, with the bonus of inexpensive retail rents. "It's a cheaper version of 14th Street," Tom says. Concepts that could have success are "neighborhood spots" like saloons and locations featuring weekend brunches, he adds. Okay, count us in. 2) Bloomingdale Tom says Bloomingdale (which we thought was a department store but evidently is also an area north of Shaw) is another up-and-comer and has already added hip and busy spots like Rustik Tavern (above, at the corner of T and First streets). Like Petworth, the neighborhood is seeing more residents, both through condo sales and apartment rentals—the magnet for merchants of food. 3) CBD While the CBD remains the core of DC's business arena, new fine dining spots have largely stayed away, the guys say. For star chefs and hot concepts "it's not on the top of anyone's list," Tom says; instead, they're choosing hipper neighborhoods to break in to the District. There's also a lack of available space in the CBD as fast casual lunch spots and power business dinner spots dominate. The lack of residential hurts, but Tom tells us to look out for new lunch concepts and happy hour-focused bars. Elsewhere, the Papadopoulos gang is close to a deal in Northern Virginia with Fox Restaurant Concepts' True Food Kitchen, a healthy-based concept only open on the West Coast (here's a shot of the Santa Monica location). The group says they're also close to two other deals with concepts new to DC. One is a major West Coast group and the other is one of the most prominent chefs in the world, Tom says. (We're going to assume it's one of our mothers, just to avoid insulting anyone reading this.) John says the firm is also actively seeking DC sites for Stone's Cove restaurant, a kitbar concept featuring a kitchen behind the bar. (The bartender prepares both food and drink; that's the Herndon location, above.) They're also celebrating the openings soon of two clients—whiskey bar Black Whiskey at 1410 14th St this week and M Cafe at 14th and R. (source)
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What's DC's Next U Street for Food?
What's DC's Next U Street for Food?
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Stoney's to open second location in West End
Apr 24
2013
Rebecca Cooper
Stoney's, the D.C. institution with a grilled cheese sandwich perennially ranked high among the best grilled cheese sandwiches in the city, is expanding its bar/restaurant empire to the West End. The bar's owners — who also own Bullfeathers on Capitol Hill — have signed a lease for a second Stoney's location, at 2101 L St. NW, according to Tom Papadopoulos of Papadopoulos Properties, who brokered the deal. Pending the approval of a liquor license, the 3,900-square-foot space will be the third physical location for Stoney's, which was at 13th and L streets NW for years before moving to is current location at 1433 P St. NW. Stoney's co-owner William Walls confirmed the lease but didn't offer much in the way of details. "Stoney's has secured space for a second location near 21st and L," Walls said. "Pending approval of a liquor license for it, we are excited that Stoney's will have a home again on L Street." (source)
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Stoney's to open second location in West End
Stoney's to open second location in West End
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Ruby Tuesday in Chinatown to close
Apr 24
2013
Rebecca Cooper
Goodbye, Ruby Tuesday. A valuable piece of retail space will turn over in Chinatown in the next couple of months as Ruby Tuesday plans to close its doors at the end of service Sunday, making way for at least two new retailers to come into the space. Ruby Tuesday spokeswoman Meredith Hammond confirmed the closure at 712 Seventh St. NW. The restaurant is one of at least six company-owned locations that will close nationwide in the coming months, as Ruby Tuesday Inc. reported in its third-quarter earnings report. I'm still waiting to hear more from Douglas Development Corp., which owns the building, on their plans for the space. Details on the newcomers are a little bit sketchy. Fast-growing self-serve yogurt chain FroZenYo will lease space there and open there by the third week of June, President Chuck Rendelman confirmed to me Wednesday. FroZenYo will take only 1,400 square feet of the 5,700-square-foot footprint, however, leaving plenty of space for other retailers. I'm told two other stores — a candy store and a fast-casual Asian joint — are eyeing the space, but I haven't been able to confirm that yet. The closure comes as many of the retailers along this busy block, which contains Verizon Center, come to the end of their 10- and 15-year leases and face much higher prices per square foot than when they originally signed. "It's already happening. Ten years ago, they signed their leases for $60 to $70 per square foot. Now they're at $200," said retail broker Tom Papadopoulos of Papadopoulos Properties. Spanish restaurant La Tasca and fast food burger chain Fuddruckers both renewed their leases, albeit at much higher prices per square foot, Papadopoulos said. (source)
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Ruby Tuesday in Chinatown to close
Ruby Tuesday in Chinatown to close
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On the Floor at ICSC Mid-Atlantic
Feb 20
2013
Bisnow
This morning, we made the rounds along Retailers' Row at the ICSC conference at National Harbor. At the Papadopoulos Properties booth, Nick Papadopoulos (second from right, with colleagues and family members Charles and Tom, plus George Petros) says the firm is repping food concepts Sharbat Republic and Insomnia Cookies with expansions into the DC market, as well as listing the restaurant space at Rosslyn's 1812 N Moore. (source)
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On the Floor at ICSC Mid-Atlantic
On the Floor at ICSC Mid-Atlantic
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2013 Forecast: Casual and Celebrity-Heavy
Dec 21
2012
Bisnow
From celebrity chefs to one of the nation's most popular healthy-living gurus, the DC restaurant scene can expect many exciting new players in the coming year. (Barack Obama and John Boehner are opening a health food snack shop called Fiscal Clif Bars.) One of the city's leading restaurant real estate brokers, Tom Papadopoulos of Papadopoulos Properties, tells us, “People are eating out more, but at moderately priced places where you can spend $20 or $100, depending on your mood.” Look for more of that: he filled us in on a number of forthcoming restaurants that will fit that bill. Another hot trend: fine dining chefs moving into the casual space. We’ve already seen this with Robert Wiedmaeir’s Mussel Bar and Michel Richard’s now-defunct Meatballs. In that vein, Tom reports that Manhattan’s Daniel Boulud, who has a number of moderately priced cafés in addition to his famous fine-dining spot Daniel, will be bringing one of his casual concepts to DC. In other celebrity chef news, Bobby Flay, who opened Bobby's Burger Palace on K Street in August 2011, is opening new concepts in Potomac Mills and Bethesda’s Montgomery Mall. Further details are currently under wraps. Richard Sandoval (Masa 14, El Centro, Zengo) will be opening pan-Latin restaurant Toro Toro at 13th and Eye NW—the first American outpost of the Dubai-based concept. Holistic health evangelist Dr. Andrew Weil's health-conscious True Food Kitchen, in partnership with Fox Restaurant Concepts, is seeking locations in DC, Maryland, and Virginia—with plans to open in all three markets within the next 24 months. And Alice Waters disciples rejoice: Tom assures us that “the locally sourced, farm-to-table trend isn’t going anywhere.” (source)
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2013 Forecast: Casual and Celebrity-Heavy
2013 Forecast: Casual and Celebrity-Heavy
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Next » Crushing it Downtown
Dec 14
2012
Bisnow
We seem to have interrupted an insider deal between local investor/Georgetown prof Julian Josephs and Papadopoulos Properties' Tom Papadopoulos. Tom's firm is leasing the retail portion of The Portals at Maryland and 12th, two blocks from the Mall. Tom also just bought an apartment in Athens, the first sign that the US financial woes just aren't stressful enough for some people. (source)
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Next » Crushing it Downtown
Next » Crushing it Downtown
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14th Street Matchbox opens Nov. 30
Nov 14
2012
Jeff Clabaugh
Matchbox Food Group will open its third Washington-area location on 14th Street Nov. 30. The Matchbox restaurant, similar to those in Chinatown, on Capitol Hill and in Rockville, was announced last year, and takes over a former Arena Stage rehearsal hall at 1901 T St. NW. In addition to signature dishes such as pizza from wood-fired ovens and burger sliders, the 14th Street Matchbox will also have a dedicated take-out station near the back of the three -tory restaurant with its own entrance on T Street. The 14th Street Matchbox will be managed by Michelle Hebert, currently assistant manager at the Rockville location. Executive Chef Jeffrey Richardson will be in charge of the kitchen, promoted from his current job as sous chef at the Capitol Hill Matchbox. Matchbox, which also has a restaurant in Palm Springs, Calif., plans to open a fourth Washington location in Merrifield next year. (source)
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14th Street Matchbox opens Nov. 30
14th Street Matchbox opens Nov. 30
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Bobby's Burger Palace to open in Westfield Montgomery Mall
Oct 16
2012
Carole Sugarman
Bobby’s Burger Palace, the burger chain started by celebrity chef Bobby Flay, will be opening a new location in the Westfield Montgomery Mall. Tom Papadopoulos of the District’s Papadopoulos Properties, the restaurant’s broker, said "it's a done deal" and that the eatery should open within the next 12 months. This will be the third restaurant in Maryland for the burger joint; there are Bobby’s in College Park and at the Maryland Live! Casino at Arundel Mills. Downtown Washington also has a branch at 2121 K St. NW. The growing chain has restaurants in Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey as well. All serve 10 varieties of Flay’s six-ounce signature burgers, any of which can be “crunchified” with potato chips, or made with ground turkey or chicken instead of beef. Milkshake flavors include mango, pistachio and Vanilla Caramel Bourbon. The deal to open a Bobby’s Burger Palace in the Bethesda mall had been in negotiations for several months, with the discussion focusing on exactly where the restaurant would be located, according to Papadopoulos. “There were a lot of moving parts,” he said. The restaurant will have its own outside entrance and will be part of a substantial expansion of the mall, which includes a new multi-screen movie theater with an overhauled dining court below it. (source)
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Bobby's Burger Palace to open in Westfield Montgomery Mall
Bobby's Burger Palace to open in Westfield Montgomery Mall
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Mooove over, burger joints, a new chain is in town
Sep 28
2012
Missy Frederick
Chipotle’s Asian ShopHouse, poised to open a location in Georgetown (following its first restaurant in Dupont Circle), will soon get some competition from a local source — chef Dennis Friedman of Newton’s Table in Bethesda. Friedman has signed a lease for a little more than 4,500 square feet at 1129 20th St. NW. Ralph Tapiero of Papadopoulos Properties brokered the transaction with landlord Liberty Property Trust. That’s the spot where he will open Newton’s Noodles, a fast-casual Asian restaurant featuring some items found on Newton’s Table’s broader menu and scaled down to a price of $8 to $12 per person. Friedman had been touring potential sites for a second Newton’s Table and decided that wasn’t feasible. “I came to the realization that I can’t duplicate Newton’s Table because I need to be there,” he said. Friedman had been keeping his eye on ShopHouse and liked the concept, but thinks there is room to compete in terms of the quality of food. “People who come into Newton’s Table will have their food cooked to order; nothing’s going to be prepared ahead of time,” he said. WJLA-Channel 7 news anchor Leon Harris, a personal friend of Friedman’s, is a partner and investor in the business. Newton’s Noodles will have a selection of noodle and rice dishes, as well as some other items familiar to Friedman fans, such as beef wontons and crispy kapow chicken. Friedman would like to get the restaurant open by May and thinks he can expand Newton’s Noodles quickly. He is in talks for additional locations in Arlington and near the University of Maryland... (source)
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Mooove over, burger joints, a new chain is in town
Mooove over, burger joints, a new chain is in town
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Protein Bar bulks up Washington region offerings
Sep 7
2012
Missy Frederick
The Washington area is getting protein packed. Chicago-based Protein Bar set up its first D.C. location in Penn Quarter — the company’s biggest store opening ever — and the store had only been open a week when I checked in with Matt Matros, the company’s CEO, who has been splitting his time between Washington and the Windy City. Matros already has two more leases signed and another in negotiation. Protein Bar will open in 2,800 square feet at 1011 19th St. NW in a former Cosi space; the target opening is next spring. Meanwhile, construction is under way at 800 N. Glebe Road in Ballston, though an opening date has not been announced. The downtown location is “right where our customers are — the urban professionals,” Matros said. When he began eying the Washington area, 19th and K was his No. 1 priority. Papadopoulos Properties worked with him on the deal. Matros is also in talks for a space in Rosslyn on Wilson Boulevard near Roti Mediterranean Grill, but the deal has not yet been signed. Protein Bar is known for its “bar-ritos,” which boast half the calories of a typical fast-food burrito. It also serves items such as shakes, salads and chili. Matros started the business after losing more than 50 pounds on a high-protein diet. So far, D.C. customers order more chili than Chicago residents (even though it was August) and tend to ask for multiple menu items, Matros said. He is seeing customers at the Penn Quarter location who visit for multiple meals in one day. The downtown Protein Bar, which will feature an outdoor patio, will open in spring of 2014... (source)
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Protein Bar bulks up Washington region offerings
Protein Bar bulks up Washington region offerings
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Latin chef beefs up the tapas game with Toro Toro
Aug 10
2012
Missy Frederick
Leave it to Richard Sandoval to bring a sultry edge to meat on a stick. The Latin chef, familiar to local diners for his restaurants Zengo, Masa 14 and El Centro D.F., has signed a lease for a fourth D.C. restaurant at 1300 Eye St. NW, according to broker John Gogos of Papadopoulos Properties, who worked on the deal. “It’s a really sexy, cool concept,” Gogos said. The restaurant is Toro Toro. Sandoval already has a Toro Toro open in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and is working on one in Miami. Toro Toro combines a churrascaria (Brazilian steakhouse) with Latin tapas and high-end cocktails. Pro tip: Don’t go to the restaurant’s Dubai website and think, “Man, that place is pricey,” not realizing that those aren’t dollars; they’re dirhams. Not that Top Shelf would do anything that ditzy. The D.C. restaurant, which will occupy 12,320 square feet, does not yet have an opening date... ...A new bakery is on the way to Bethesda. French baker Florent de Felcourt plans to open La Baguette in about 2,550 square feet at 4919 Bethesda Ave. His background is in selling high-end baking equipment, and now he is using his retail experience to open a bakery of his own. John Gogos of Papadopoulos Properties represented him. An opening date has not yet been set... (source)
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Latin chef beefs up the tapas game with Toro Toro
Latin chef beefs up the tapas game with Toro Toro
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‘Top Chef’ contestant’s ‘odyssey’ ends in D.C. eatery
Jul 20
2012
Missy Frederick
Emily Sprissler and her husband, Jason Cote, wanted to open a restaurant, but they were intimidated by D.C. Despite growing up in the capital, Sprissler had heard horror stories about liquor license laws and bureaucracy. So she focused her search on Northern Virginia. She looked in Old Town. In Del Ray. In Vienna. Nothing worked. She described her search as “an odyssey, a Greek tragedy, almost.” After hunting for more than a year with her real estate broker, Charlie Papadopoulos, Sprissler relented and checked out a space in Glover Park. “I came here on a beautiful fall afternoon, and it was one of those blue-sky D.C. days,” said Sprissler, who competed on the second season of Bravo TV’s “Top Chef.” “I just fell in love.” The pair leased 2,850 square feet at 2218 Wisconsin Ave. NW. Because the space had formerly been a bar (Town Hall), much of the kitchen infrastructure was there, so the couple was able to self-finance the roughly $500,000 buildout, with the help of a loan (eight banks turned them down before Merrill Lynch said yes)... (source)
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‘Top Chef’ contestant’s ‘odyssey’ ends in D.C. eatery
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Roti Med. Grill signs Bethesda lease
Jul 10
2012
Missy Frederick
Roti keeps on rocking. The fast-casual restaurant has signed yet another lease, this time in Bethesda, according to broker Ralph Tapiero of Papadopoulos Properties. Roti Mediterranean Grill will occupy 2,700 square feet at 10321 Westlake Terrace in the Westlake Crossing Shopping Center. The space held a Baja Fresh some time ago, Tapiero said. Roti has seven locations locally, with spots in Union Station and College Park still to come this summer. That's more regional locations than in the company's home city of Chicago. Roti is still looking in D.C., Montgomery County and Northern Virginia, Tapiero said. The Bethesda location will likely open by the fourth quarter. (source)
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Roti Med. Grill signs Bethesda lease
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Fro-yo, beads, kabobs, poutine … aaaaand more fro-yo
Jun 8
2012
Missy Frederick
Fro-yo, beads and kabobs. They don’t have a ton in common beyond this: They are all headed to the same Falls Church mixed-use project in the next few months. Three retail leases have recently been signed for The Spectrum, at 444 W. Broad St., broker John Gogos of Papadopoulos Properties tells me. The first is for Bedazzled, a crafty retail concept selling beads and jewels, which has three other local locations. The store leased 1,200 square feet at The Spectrum. Also headed to the center is a Moby Dick’s House of Kabobs restaurant, which is taking 2,600 square feet. Moby Dick’s serves fast-casual Middle Eastern fare, including hummus and lamb. And because it wouldn’t be a Top Shelf column without mention of a new fro-yo place, we have Sweet Frog, which has leased 1,650 square feet. The Richmond-based yogurt shop has a pretty heavy Virginia presence, which likely will be increasing. Locations are coming soon to Manassas, Woodbridge, Oakton, Reston and Centreville, according to its website. Each store will probably open in about four months, Gogos said. Meanwhile, there is about 5,200 square feet left to lease in the development, as well as about 5,600 square feet at the corner of Broad Street, which Gogos hopes to fill with a bank or fitness concept. That same development houses restaurant and brewery Mad Fox Brewing Company, which I learned recently hired a new chef in Andrew Dixon, who used to work as sous chef at the now-shuttered Michel restaurant in Tysons Corner, under local culinary heavyweight Michel Richard. (source)
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Fro-yo, beads, kabobs, poutine … aaaaand more fro-yo
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Kitchen Aide
Nov 26
2007
Nick Adde
In an industry where most new enterprises fail within three years, Papadopoulos says most of his clients' businesses tend to survive. Sometime around 1990, a group of Florida-based investors approached Tom Papadopoulos with an idea for a new steak restaurant that would offer Washington-area diners a menu more upscale than Sizzler, but not as fancy as The Palm. Other real estate brokers had turned them down flat. The concept was stupid, they said. And there was no way anyone could find real estate deals for the money the investors were willing to pay. Papadopoulos, who by then had 10 years experience as a real estate broker specializing in restaurant properties, did not agree with the naysayers. Let's give it a shot, he told the investors. Under Papadopoulos' wing, they met with prospective landlords and made their pitch. Some liked it, some did not. Finally, they settled on a site in Herndon. Within a few months, the first Outback Steakhouse in the area opened there. The "stupid" idea, which had actually met with some success in Florida before the group decided to move into Washington, bloomed like the fried-onion appetizer the Outback chain now sells by the zillions. The D.C. market expanded steadily to its current level of 30 restaurants. The investors parlayed their success here into nationwide expansion and one of the most recognizable brands in the marketplace. "We didn't know what was going to happen with Outback," says B.J. Stone, a partner in the joint venture group. "Tom was the only one who gave us the time of day." From Papadopoulos' standpoint, helping Outback get started was more an act of faith than charity. "You have to be a gambler and a risk-taker," the 50-year-old says. "They were looking for really cheap deals for a new, untested concept. But that's the nature of what we do a lot of times. I could tell these guys had the background." Not every story about a restaurant startup or expansion has such a happy ending. It's an industry rife with long hours, small profit margins, broken dreams and headstones as far as the eye can see. But if anyone in the area hopes to have a fighting chance of making a restaurant succeed, restaurateurs and competitors in the real estate business agree that Tom Papadopoulos is probably the man to talk to. Even though he never worked in a restaurant, he combines an encyclopedic understanding of locations, costs and demographics with the intuition to find the right fit for prospective clients. He loves working with professional foodies, whom he describes as "the most eclectic businessmen you'd ever want to meet because of the egos involved." Papadopoulos savors a good meal, preferably steak and potatoes, probably as much as he likes making money, traits evident from his stocky build and dollar-sign cuff links. He is quoted often in Washington Business Journal stories -- and he's been known to complain when he isn't quoted enough. "Tom is a strong character," says Bill Miller, a restaurant broker for Transwestern Commercial Services who considers himself a friend as well as his competitor. In the restaurant industry, where "ego gets you up in the morning," Miller says dealing with a proprietor whose establishment is on the ropes is difficult. It's also where he believes that Papadopoulos is at his best. "Being eccentric is absolutely part of the trade," Miller says. "When you add a distressed situation on top of that, when somebody needs to sell a restaurant and doesn't want to admit failure, that's where it gets most difficult. When you've had experience working with people like that, it's easier to cope with the unusual circumstances that do occur." Growing up greek The son of a biochemist who worked at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda and taught at Georgetown University, Papadopoulos would have none of his father's wishes that he too become a doctor. Instead, after attending high school in Athens, Greece, and graduating from business school at the University of Maryland in 1979, he took some time off to hang out at home before seeking a line of work that had nothing to do with 9-to-5 hours. Real estate, he found, fit the bill. Growing up in Washington's tight-knit Greek community, where everyone knows everyone else, he knew that many of the restaurants at the time were owned and operated by Greeks. That sounded good, he thought. A friend guided him to Al Stern, who was the king of the area's restaurant brokerage business. His intuition turned out to be correct. He garnered a good client base working for Stern until Stern died in 1984. Stern's firm closed with his death, and Papadopoulos founded his -- Papadopoulos Properties -- immediately afterward. The firm, located on the ground floor of a 21st Street brownstone just off of Dupont Circle, now has five employees, including his brother, Charlie. While 80 percent of the business is still focused on restaurant properties, Papadopoulos says it is a full-service commercial real estate firm. He declined to disclose the firm's revenue. Papadopoulos' office is situated closest to the street. His desk is cluttered, and he says he has to take time once a month to clean it up before it gets unmanageable. But the clutter seems to be more than a disorganized pile of papers: One gets the impression that he could lay his hand on any item and know how long it has been there, when it must be acted upon, and why it is too important to throw away. One wall is adorned with Greek, Italian and English posters of his favorite movie, "The Godfather." Another has two property cards from an antique Monopoly game, blown up to poster size: Park Place and Boardwalk (the two most expensive, naturally). Veterans and beginners Besides Outback, Papadopoulos and his firm have helped countless entrepreneurs open, close or relocate restaurants of all shapes and sizes. He was instrumental in helping chef Roberto Donna move his noted Galileo restaurant to bigger digs and brokered the sale of one of Donna's restaurants on New Mexico Avenue NW, Dolcetto, to up-and-coming chef Geoff Tracy, who had worked for years in the chain of Clyde's restaurants. Tracy's AU Park restaurant, Chef Geoff's, is a resounding success. He has since opened another Chef Geoff's on 13th Street between E and F streets, as well as Lia's on Willard Avenue in Friendship Heights. "Without Papadopoulos Properties, you're probably not seeing 75 percent of the available properties out there," says Tracy. "He has such a corner on the market. He knows what's available, what's not, and who's going out of business in the next two months. "Plus, he eats in my restaurant all the time," Tracy says. "Anything in the larger portions." Papadopoulos also aided chef Morou Ouattara, who held his own on The Food Network's "Iron Chef," and established Farrah Olivia on South Franklin Street in Old Town Alexandria. Less likely to generate splash, but just as important to Papadopoulos, are the scores of immigrants from Korea, the Middle East and Central America who came to the United States and took jobs as busboys and waiters until they saved enough money to buy their first restaurant. He still gets his share of out-of-towners who want to crack the Washington market. A year ago, when John Carcasole and Bobby Fitzgerald of Scottsdale, Ariz., made initial plans to open their White Chocolate Grill restaurants here, an industry colleague referred them to Papadopoulos. "I was perfectly blind," says Carcasole. "We needed a guy who was on the ground and plugged in." Papadopoulos helped Carcasole and Fitzgerald secure a deal in Reston Town Center at the site of a former Ruby Tuesday to open the first of three White Chocolate Grill restaurants in the area. Too often, real estate brokers will work under the premise that they will be paid whether the restaurant is successful or not, Carcasole says. Papadopoulos takes a different approach. "He says 'no' to more sites than he says 'yes.' That's good when you want to keep from striking out. And when it takes between $3 million and $4 million to build a restaurant, it is expensive to strike out," Carcasole says. Colin McCabe and Tony Shure, co-owners of the New York-based Chop't salad restaurants, wanted 2,000-square-foot sites in heavily trafficked areas, with built-in populations that would naturally gravitate to their brand of high-quality quick salads made from scratch during both lunch and dinner. After arriving in town, they spent hours driving around with Papadopoulos while he showed them potential sites. Ultimately, they settled on locations at 730 Seventh St. NW in Penn Quarter, 1300 Connecticut Ave. NW near Dupont Circle, 19th and L streets NW downtown and in Rosslyn. Of the 35 to 40 restaurant deals Papadopoulos Properties brokers in a given year, roughly a quarter are startups. In an industry where most new enterprises fail within three years, Papadopoulos says most of his clients' businesses tend to survive. Without feigning modesty, Papadopoulos genuinely seems amazed by the success rate. Everybody wants to be in the business, he says, but very few really have the gumption, capital, concept and talent to succeed in an industry infamous for slim margins. There are a lot of dreamers, he says. Everyone has a plan to open up the greatest restaurant since the last great restaurant. Then, after making a million dollars, they will franchise the business, take it nationwide, and really cash in, he says. "I can pretty much tell you who's full of baloney and who's not, who's got the money and who's fishing," Papadopoulos says. "I've been wrong a few times, but I'm right 95 percent of the time." The reality is this: "You're going to work long hours. You're going to get dirty. And you're not going to make as much money as you think, in most cases." If all goes well, a properly run restaurant should "put about 20 percent on the bottom line," he says. He has told a few potential clients that he couldn't help them or steered them to consider other options. And he's also had to turn down constant offers to become an investor. "Over the years I did it once," he says. "It didn't turn out too well. Our policy now is not to do it again." Tracking Trends Papadopoulos says potential investors should look at lounges and clubs rather than restaurants right now. The demand for hip-casual places catering to 25- to 40-year-olds with good paychecks is soaring. He cites a client, Matchbox, located on H Street NW around the corner from Verizon Center, as another good idea. "Four guys came to town, put everything they could scrape together, and opened up a little wood-burning pizza place," he says. They have since tripled their size and are ready to move into other parts of the area, including Barracks Row on Capitol Hill. The new neighborhood by the Washington Nationals stadium in Southeast has intriguing possibilities, but the lack of parking could be a serious problem, he says. He bristles at the mention of the new convention center, with a nearby convention hotel at least three years away. Like adequate parking at the Nats' stadium, the convention center hotel should have been part of the deal from the beginning, he says. And Papadopoulos has serious concerns about the viability of the huge National Harbor complex being built just south of the Wilson Bridge in Prince George's County. He knows of retailers who have met with the project's developers for hour-long meetings, only to listen to a spiel about security for the first 45 minutes before hearing a word about the project itself. He also says National Harbor's location is all wrong from a tourist standpoint. People do not come to the nation's capital to spend time in a suburb. "I think it's gonna be a bust," he says. He should know. Hanging on his office wall, opposite his desk, is a collage made up of a million dollars' worth of checks, written for deals that never went anywhere. Papadopoulos came across them, stacked up in a drawer, while cleaning up his desk one day. To him, they represent a lot of frustration and unfruitful work. "That's the wall of shame," he will tell new clients. "You don't want to be there." (source)
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