Reston Paolo's to Get New Menu, Name, Look

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by Karen Goff March 3, 2015 at 10:50 am 3,664 20 Comments

Paolo’s Ristorante, a mainstay of Reston Town Center for two decades, will morph into a Mediterranean-themed spot that will be familiar to some Washingtonians.

Thomas Gregg, the new CEO of Capital Restaurant Group — which operates Paolo’s in DC and Reston, J Paul’s (DC), Georgia Brown’s (DC) and Old Glory (DC) told the Washington Business Journal that all the restaurants in the company will be given menu and location overhaul.

The most drastic change will come in Reston, though, where Paolo’s will become Neyla, which was formerly located at 3206 N St. in Georgetown. Neyla, part of CRG, closed in August after 15 years at that location. The owners said at that time they were “actively looking for a new location for Neyla.”

Neyla was praised in Yelp reviews for its Lebanese food — as well as the belly dancing show.

No word yet on when the transformation will occur.

Photo of Neyla Georgetown/Credit: Neyla via Facebook

Sara Polton

Can we all hope they keep a happy hour that goes till 9pm?
- Flexxsingh
  
  they won’t…trying to upscale the clown center. cheap drinks attract too much riff raff.
- Noelle
  
  I hope so! I love eating there during happy hour.
- Mike M
  
  That’s the spirit!
Brian

Hopefully they keep Latina Night!
Flexxsingh

I guess we already have 2 other Italian places so can easily get rid of the third.
- CarolK
  
  Yeah, but one is very expensive (Il Fornio) and the other is noisy and much less expensive (Vapiano’s-not really the atmosphere for a nice dinner out). We could use another Italian restaurant in RTC that in between. I always liked Macaroni Grill across the street and I think it’s going to reopen.
Noelle

Noo… I like Paolo’s as it is. Their happy hour is my favorite. I hope Neyla can be as impressive.
- CarolK
  
  Have you ever asked to see the wine bottle labels they serve for happy hour? I asked what their wine was for happy hour. It explains why it’s so cheap…the alcohol is cheap. I left and went to a happy hour that serves decent wine!
  - Noelle
    
    For $4, I don’t care if its not the ‘best’ wine. It’s decent enough for the price. Also the beers are discounted and cocktails, not just wine. The food is also a great deal and is delicious.
RestonLyons

We are definitely not interested in belly dancing. I am only aware of one other Italian place. We went there once when it opened and never again, too noisy. We live across the street and eat elsewhere as the restaurants are so noisy.
Steve

You buried the lede. The headline should be, “Belly Dancing Coming to Town Center.” That is, until those get-off-my-lawn folks in Longwood Grove get wind of it and try to stop belly dancing too.
wrxman

The Reston Town Center needs an infusion of some sort of culture driven cuisine, not much there now. They need some alternatives that is for sure. Paolos was more of a meat market than a real Italian Restaurant, so anything with a nod to ethnicity would be a nice change
Mike M

Will they also change the nickname from “Garlic Town?”
Carolk

I will miss eating outdoors by the fountain in the spring and summer. I never liked the inside for dining. Just not an appealing atmosphere (too dark looking) and the bar is always too loud in the evening. I also checked out the 10 p.m. DJ scene on Saturday night. It became very apparent why there were about 3 bouncers lurking around–what a turnoff. Pretty much a “gangsta” type crowd…not for me. RTC is too sophisticated for that scene and I hope it stays that way. What RTC needs (or what I would like to see) is some LIVE music–like jazz or maybe piano bar for the over 30/40 crowd.
- Barbara Goddard
  
  Been going to Paolo’s for a very long time and have seen anyone that resembled riff raff or gangsta type.
- kati_la_cool
  
  Oh Carol, Carol, Carol… You make me laugh, you are soo adorable if you think that RTC is sophisticated. For someone that’s from Paris and have visited the world I find it soo amusing when people like you think they are well above everyone and that the RTC is “sophisticated”.
  Ah la la, folie quand tu nous tiens…
Michael P. McHugh

That’s the spirit!
Michael P. McHugh

Will they also change the nickname from “Garlic Town?”
Debbie S

Been going to Paolo’s for a very long time and most especially the outdoor venue to enjoy great Italian food while listening to the summer concerts. It is a great venue and their food was terrific. Very very disappointed to see what it is replacing it. Something with some live jazz or music would be good too.

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