JBG Smith’s RTC West project is slowly welcoming new restaurants like Nando’s Peri-Peri, honegrow and Mezeh. But more is coming at the site, including nearly 1.4 million square feet of new development, up to 575 multifamily units in two buildings and three new office buildings.

The Fairfax County Planning Commission will consider the proposal, which transforms the the office park north of Sunset Hills Road and West of Town Center Parkway, on Thursday (July 26).

So far, the project is anchored by three existing six-story office buildings and two parking garages, as well as ground floor retail options.

If approved by the county, the project would have two new residential buildings, an additional 700,000 square feet of office space across three new buildings, two parking garages, a retail-only building and 3.4 acres of open space across nearly 13.4 acres.

County staff recommended approving the project.

JBG Smith’s mixed-use development, RTC West, welcomed a new restaurant this week. Mezeh Mediterranean Grill is now open at 12130 Sunset Hills Road. 

The 44-seat restaurant offers a mix of build-it-yourself bowls, pita pockets and wraps. Other establishments are also on the way in the development, including Punjabi by Nature, The Black Squirrel, and The Burger Joint. In recent months, Honeygrow, Starbucks and Nando’s were added to the mix of retail on the largely office-dominated site.

Although a soft launch was held on Tuesday, the restaurant’s grand opening day has not yet been finalized, according to Patrick Mika, Mezeh’s director of marketing and catering. On Wednesday (July 25), Mezeh will offer free chicken shawarma bowls – it’s inaugural opening promotion.

Beginning next week, Mezeh will also free promotions for different client bases in order to reduce overcrowding in the area, especially since immediate surface lot parking is limited.

The Reston location includes traditional elements of Mezeh’s nine other locations like a community bar and wrap-around seating. No paint is used anywhere on its mixed-media walls — except on the restaurant’s bathroom doors.

“More and more fast-casual restaurants I see are becoming more like a box,” Mika said. “Ours is more like a home.”

The restaurant will be open daily from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Its first fundraiser for a local charity will be on August 7. Forty percent of proceeds from purchases made between 5:30 and 8:30 p.m. that day will go toward the fundraiser if customers mention “Solutions Street.”

Photos by Fatimah Waseem

RTC West+ — JBG Smith plans major additions to RTC West, which, for now, is essentially an office park with a touch of retail. [Washington Business Journal]

Death ruled a drowning – An autopsy determined that Kevin Ruby’s cause of death was drowning, with the contributing cause of cardiovascular disease. Ruby drowned during a popular race on Lake Audubon in late May. [Fairfax County Police Department]

First PRC work session tomorrow — The first workgroup meeting regarding transportation as the county considers a plan to increase Reston’s population density is set for tomorrow at 12005 Sunrise Valley Drive. [Reston Today]

Twitter user @MrErrett

BGR the Burger Joint will open a new location in the fall in RTC West, JBG Smith’s new mixed-use development.

The restaurant, which offers burgers grilled over an open flame and hand-spun milkshakes, will be located at 12120 Sunset Hills Road.

An exact opening date was not available, although restaurants are opening their doors in development, which is already home to Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurant, Nando’s, Honeygrow and Starbucks.

Mezeh Mediterranean Grill, which is located in the same development, is also expected to open this month. An exact opening date will be confirmed next week, a company representative told Reston Now on Friday.

Other businesses planned for the development include The Black Squirrel, an old-school gastropub, Forever Nails and Punjabi by Nature.

Photo by Fatimah Waseem

Honeygrow, a Philadelphia-based, fast-casual restaurant, is opening in JBG Smith’s new Reston Town Center West development at 12100 Sunset Hills Road in May.

The restaurant sells made-to-order stir-fry, salads, cold-pressed juices. The store has no freezers in order to ensure ingredients are sourced locally and made from scratch on a daily basis.

Justin Rosenberg, the restaurant’s CEO, founded honeygrow in 2012. Since then, the restaurant has opened in Philadelphia, Boston, Chicago, the District, Pentagon City and other areas.

Photo via honeygrow

Cheers for volunteers — Reston Association will recognize volunteer individuals, groups and corporate partners at the 2018 service awards reception tonight. [RA]

Hairspray JR begins tonight — Students from Langston Hughes Middle School will kick off their production of Hairspray JR beginning today. The show, which captures the spirit of Baltimore in 1962 with laughter, dance, romance and songs, will run through Saturday, April 21. Tickets are available online. [Langston Hughes Middle School]

A walking art tour — Art historian Phoebe Avery will lead a tour of public art around Lake Anne tomorrow from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.. [RA]

Honey, I shrunk the... — Honeygrow, a fast-casual Philadelphia import restaurant, is getting ready for opening day at RTC West. Hiring has begun. [Honeygrow]

Look who’s in town — The Herndon Youth Advisory Council, which was created by the town council late last year, is off to strong start this year. [The Connection]

Photo by Jessica Wallach

Mezeh Mediterranean Grill is expected to open this spring in JBG Smith’s RTC West development (12130 Sunset Hills Road). 

A specific date has not been announced. Permits for the installation of the electric system were issued late last year.

The grill will join other establishments like Starbucks, Nando’s Peri-Peri and Cooper’s Hawk Winery as work continues on adjacent office buildings and ground-floor retail spaces. Other future businesses, as advertised on signage at the front of the new office building, include Punjabi by Nature, The Black Squirrel, The Burger Joint, and Honeygrow.

The first phase of development converts 15,000 square feet of office space into street-level retail and adds 25,000 square feet of new retail on the southwest corner of the nearly 14-acre campus. The buildings have structured surface parking for visitors and a four-level parking garage with a total of 1,619 parking spaces.

Photos by Fatimah Waseem

Brookfield Property Partners now owns two office buildings next to its future Reston Crescent project, a planned mixed used development with more than 2,000 residential units and the likely future home of Wegmans.

The company purchased Summit I, the home of Noblis, Inc., and Summit II on 2000 and 2002 Edmund Halley Drive from JBG Smith Properties for $95 million.

The acquisition expands Brookfield’s footprint in Reston. Although the offices have the potential of 290,000 rentable square feet, CBRE has marketed the property as a redevelopment project that could yield up to 1.2 million square feet of mixed-used development.

“The sale of Summit I and II is consistent with our strategy to take advantage of market conditions to recycle capital, deleverage our balance sheet and reinvest the proceeds in higher-yielding growth opportunities,” Matt Kelly JBG Smith’s Chief Executive Officer wrote in a statement.

JBG Smith bought the buildings for $51 million in 2012 and renovated them. The company maintains ownership of other major sites near Wiehle-Reston East Metro Station, VY at Reston Heights and RTC West.

Photos courtesy JBG Smith

The Northern Virginia Restaurant Week is back this year. The annual event, which runs from March 19-26, offers reduced price at more than 50 restaurants in Northern Virginia.

Customers are strongly encouraged to make reservations.

Several eateries in Reston and Herndon are participating in the event, including:

• Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurants (12130 Sunset Hills Rd)
• GreenFare (408 Elden Street)
• Gregorio’s Trattoria (428 North Point Village Center)
• Kalypso’s Sports Tavern (1617 Washington Plaza N)
• Mon Ami Gabi (11950 Democracy Drive)
• Red’s Table (11150 South Lakes Drive)
• The Melting Pot (11730 Plaza America Drive)

For a complete list of all eateries taking part, visit the event’s website.

Photo via Northern Virginia Restaurant Week

Nando’s PERi-PERi restaurant opened today at 11 a.m. on 12120 Sunset Hills Road in Reston Town Center. The Portuguese restaurant will host a grand opening on Saturday to support music programs at South Lakes High School and Herndon High School.

All sales on Saturday will be donated to the schools, according to a press release. The funds will be directed to help fund Herndon High School’s marching band as the team goes to Normandy, France to represent the United States at the 75th commemoration of D-Day in 2019. South Lakes High School will use the donations to send their band to Hawaii to perform at the Pearl Harbor Memorial Parade this year and other program needs.

According to the SLHS Parent Teacher Association, raffle prizes will be up for grabs at noon, 2 p.m., 5 p.m. and 8 p.m.

“This is all about being good neighbors, and Nando’s looks forward to becoming an integral part of the Reston community,” said Sepanta Bagherpour, the restaurant’s vice president of marketing. “We are proud to support musical programs at two of the most impressive public high schools in Virginia.”

Nando’s has 40 locations in the country and nine in Virginia. The chain made its U.S. debut in 2008 with its first location in the Chinatown neighborhood of Washington, D.C.  According to promotional information, the chain has about 1,200 restaurants in 23 countries on five continents. It was founded in 1987 in South Africa. Other area restaurants include at One Loudoun and in the Mosaic District.

Photos courtesy of Seven Oaks Media. For more photos, visit the online album. 

One of Reston’s newest restaurants will celebrate its grand opening this month by donating a portion of sales to music programs at two local high schools.

Nando’s PERi PERi, a popular chain of South African-Portuguese casual dining restaurants known for its spicy, flame-grilled chicken, will open its 40th nationwide location at Reston Town Center-West on Monday, Nov. 13.

For its first Saturday in business, on Nov. 18th, representatives said 100 percent of sales on that day (minus sales tax and alcohol sales) will be donated to the music programs at both South Lakes High in Reston and nearby Herndon High School.

“This is all about being good neighbors, and Nando’s looks forward to becoming an integral part of the Reston community,” said Sepanta Bagherpour, Nando’s vice president of marketing. 

Representatives from South Lake High School say the school’s marching band is currently raising funds to help send students to Hawaii, where they have been invited to perform for the 2017 Pearl Harbor Memorial Day Parade next month. Herndon High is reportedly raising money to send their band to Normandy, France, where they have been invited to represent the United States in the 75th Commemoration of D-Day in 2019.

Though the two schools are traditionally rivals, Nando’s said students from the two bands are happily coming together to raise money through the fundraiser on Nov. 18.

“We are proud to support musical programs at two of the most impressive public high schools in Virginia,” Bagherour added.

Nando’s PERi PERi will be located at 12120 Sunset Hills Road.

Management has begun hiring for all positions as Nando’s Peri-Peri (12120 Sunset Hills Road) as the Portuguese-style chicken restaurants gears up for its opening day on Nov. 13, according to a company representative.

Nando’s has about 1,200 restaurants in 23 countries on five continents. It was founded in 1987 in South Africa, with its first location debuting in the United States in D.C. nearly nine years ago. Other restaurants are located at One Loudoun and the Mosaic District.

The business will open a little over a month after a Starbucks opened next door. The Starbucks is the fifth in Reston and progress continues at Mezeh Mediterranean Grill, which will also sit next to Nando’s.

The company is hiring for all positions. Company representatives dispersed information outside the location early this week.

At a panel event last week, developers said that filling the thousands of new rental units coming to Reston’s Metro corridor is proving to be a “bumpy road.”

Commercial real-estate news source Bisnow hosted a “Fairfax County State of the Market” event last week, at which representatives of several top area developers spoke about the boom in development in Reston and Tysons. According to Bisnow’s report, the areas are currently in a state where supply is outpacing demand.

“In Reston we’re a little sick, but Tysons is in hospice in terms of the glut of apartments,” said Greg Trimmer, JBG Smith executive vice president of development, according to the Bisnow report. Trimmer is reported to have said that apartment rents in Reston are flat — and in some cases slightly negative — due to the amount of new multifamily construction.

JBG Smith is involved in numerous residential projects around Reston, including the next phase of the RTC West project, which would include 700 dwelling units in two towers. It also has a stake in the 1831 Wiehle project, which would bring in about 1,500 new residents. In addition, Fairfax County has approved JBG Smith’s plans for about 500 more residential units and more at the Commerce Executive Park; however, the developer may be looking to unload that property.

Trimmer is reported to have said that Reston is positioned well to be a residential success, but that it is currently experiencing a “blip.”

“In the long term we’re set up well, but right now we do have a bit of a problem,” Trimmer is reported to have said.

Comstock CEO Chris Clemente is reported to have agreed, saying that the 450-apartment BLVD has not leased as quickly as expected. He says the hope is that will change once the full Reston Station development begins to take shape.

“I think a lot of that has to do with the lack of understanding of what this neighborhood here is going to be,” Clemente is reported to have said. “The new residential buildings will benefit from that lifestyle that only comes when you have a more complete environment.”

Comstock’s additional plans include 460 more residential units where the Sunset Hills Professional Center currently stands.

Mike Henehan, Bozzuto’s senior vice president, also spoke on the issue during the forum. He is reported to have given similar comments about the glut of new apartments and the supply surge in Reston.

Bozzuto is currently leasing apartments at its new 421-unit Aperture building.

“There is still some rent growth in this market,” Henehan is reported to have said. “It certainly doesn’t keep up with construction costs and some of the other costs, so I think there will be a little resistance there over time.”

File photo of Bozzuto’s Aperture apartments under construction, August 2016

Signs now in place at the future home of Nando’s Peri-Peri (12120 Sunset Hills Road) indicate the Portuguese-style chicken restaurant will open later this year.

The windows at the new storefront within the RTC West development are now adorned with advertisements for the coming restaurant. The largest reads that the fast-casual restaurant’s opening has been scheduled for “Fall 2017.” Others encourage future customers to send their email address to “make a date” with the restaurant, and future employees to text “RESTON” to 41-411 for information about job opportunities.

We emailed a Nando’s spokesperson for additional information about the opening date of the restaurant. We were told there will be “big news in Reston shortly.”

According to promotional information, Nando’s has about 1,200 restaurants in 23 countries on five continents. It was founded in 1987 in South Africa, and first came to the United States in 2008 with a DC location. Other area restaurants include at One Loudoun and in the Mosaic District.

Also in the RTC West development, Starbucks (12130A Sunset Hills Road) opened this week. Meanwhile, progress continues at Mezeh Mediterranean Grill, which will be located next to Nando’s.

UPDATE: The Starbucks location opened Monday, Oct. 9.

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Another new Starbucks will soon open in Reston.

Signs inside the future coffee shop at 12130A Sunset Hills Road, within the RTC West development, indicate that the new Starbucks will be ready soon. The storefront is attached to Cooper’s Hawk Winery and Restaurant, which opened in August.

A spokesperson for RTC West developer JBG Smith said she could not provide an exact opening date for the Starbucks. An “opening soon” sign hangs inside, visible through the front windows. Several “Now Open” sandwich boards are also stacked inside, ready for deployment.

This will be the ninth Starbucks in Reston, joining locations at North Point Village Center, South Lakes Village Center, Hunters Woods Village Center, Reston Town Center, the Spectrum shopping plaza, Plaza America, Reston Station and inside Target.

Six additional restaurants are also planned for the development. Significant work has been done at the sites of the future Nando’s and Mezeh restaurants, which have been in the plans since April 2016. Other coming restaurants, which were announced earlier this year, include BGR The Burger Joint, Punjabi by Nature, The Black Squirrel and Honeygrow.