Meatballs Opening Today?

Meatballs' interior

We've seen some unconfirmed reports that Meatballs will have a soft opening today at lunch.  We'll keep you posted!

12PM UPDATE:  Not yet, anyway.  City Paper has the scoop.

12:30PM UPDATE:  A call into the restaurant ((202) 393-1083) goes unanswered but others have confirmed with management that Meatballs will open "around 1." Mangia!!

1:30PM UPDATE:  The health inspector never showed, so opening is delayed at least a day.  Here's hoping for a Thursday open...

The Old Artifactory Space Gets a Restaurant

The space once occupied by Artifactory finally has some signage up and our friends at Prince of Petworth have pictures here.  Back in May, we reported that a Middle Eastern restaurant was coming to the space.  We now know that come mid-winter, we will be privy to "The World's First South Asian American Fast Food Brand." The restaurant is called Grand Trunk, and will be run by Dominick Cardella, the proprietor of the space (pictured left) and previous owner of Artifactory.

The restaurant references the Grand Trunk Road, which runs from Bangladesh, across India, Pakistan and into Afghanistan - and we're guessing the menu will be a melange of all these cuisines.

It's too early to know whether or not Grand Trunk will have a similar concept to Merzi, just a block away - but we hope the two will be able to coexist here in Penn Quarter.

Improper Permits at Living Social's soon-to-be headquarters

We received a tip from a reader that there is a notice on the door at 918 F Street N.W. that construction workers have been working without the proper permits.  That building is being outfitted to house Living Social's new headquarters.

We remember when this happened at Hill Country.  Often workers stay late working after the hours their permit allows.  We also know that many residents of the Ventana have been displeased with the disruption caused by the work at 918 F Street.

No further word yet from D.C's Construction Codes Coordinating Board.  We'll let you know if we find anything else out.

Neighborhood Deal Roundup

Ovi hangs out at Madame Tussauds
for all of your picture-taking needs

A lot on sale (and even free) today and tomorrow:

• 50% off entrance to Madame Tussauds over at Groupon
• Between 50% and 63% off a ticket to a Georgetown basketball game at the Verizon Center on Monday November 14th or Monday November 28th, also at Groupon
• FREE lunch at Roti today (11a-1p) if you donate to Dreams for Kids
• Tomorrow: FREE coffee at Bruegger's through 2p

Waldorf Astoria Wants to Move In at the Old Post Office

We've been reporting for almost a year now that there have been plans in the works for a luxury hotel to move into the Old Post Office space.  Today, Jonathan O'Connell at the Washington Post reports that Hilton has proposed to convert the 112-year-old Old Post Office into a 245-room Waldorf Astoria with 4 restaurants and luxury shops.  Hilton joined with Metropolitan Partnership on the proposal - the same group that brought luxe stores such as Tiffany & Co. to Tyson's and Chevy Chase.  Metropolitan Partnership isn't new to Penn Quarter though - they had a hand in the old Evening Star building at 1101 Pennsylvania.

The Old Post Office building was deemed "underutilized" by the federal government, and the GSA began collecting proposals for the space back in March -- and has gotten quite a few from hotel heavyweights like Trump Hotel and the JBG Companies.  Regardless, Christopher J. Nassetta, Hilton's CEO, said he was "absolutely committed" to bringing the Waldorf brand to DC.

The GSA will make their final determination in just ten days, on November 17th.  We'll let you know who our new neighbors will be then!

Celebrity Sightings

Saturday evening brought two celebrity chefs together here in Penn Quarter:  Food Network star Giada De Laurentiis, fresh off the Metropolitan Cooking and Entertaining Show, popped into Mike Isabella's hotspot Graffiato.  Giada was born in Rome and hosts Everyday Italian on The Food Network so the restaurant seemed like a good match for her - and indeed it was.  She tweeted:

De Laurentiis and her agent dined with Isabella, and they had gnocchi, chestnut-filled pasta called mezzaluna, spaghetti with cherry tomato, garlic and basil sauce, crispy goat, chicken with cranberry sauce, and pumpkin-filled zeppole.

The Penn Quarter Real Estate Market

Local real estate firm Long & Foster has released their "Market Minute" for the Penn Quarter and Shaw areas.   Condo owners are in for some great news: the median sale price for PQ and Shaw homes increased by a staggering 26% between September 2010 and September 2011.  On average, sellers are getting 98.4% of their list price when the sale goes through - after an average of 33 days on the market.

The full report is available here and is rich with information about the area.

TJ Maxx in Penn Quarter

We mentioned yesterday that TJ Maxx was a viable suitor for the space that Filene's Basement will leave vacant once they shutter.

Well, TJ Maxx will indeed be filling the discount store void in our hearts - but they won't be filling the Filene's property.  TJ Maxx will be across the street from the Filene's space: they've signed a lease at 601 13th St. NW in the Homer Building - and will occupy 29,000 feet over two levels.

We heard from readers that they were pulling for a Nordstrom Rack in the Filene's space - but this news seems to make the space less viable for another discount store.  We've heard that Uniqlo is weighing this space, along with potential City Center retail space, as options for DC expansion.

Fuel Pizza to open in January

There's news this morning about Penn Quarter's newest pizza place: Fuel Pizza will be opening in January 2012, almost exactly a year after they announced their intent to move in.  Fuel will be occupying 2100 square feet right at the corner of 6th and F - the space where the Oriental Building Association Savings and Loan Association occupied many years ago.

If nothing else, we're looking forward to another casual restaurant joining the 'hood, and friends in Charlotte rave about the pizza.  The chain was started by New Yorkers, so it should have a different flair than the Chicago-style Pi Pizzeria close by.  We'll see how things shake down after Comma Pizzeria (10th and G) moves in later in 2012. 

Predictions for the Filene's Vacancy

Filene's only announced just yesterday that it would be shuttering its stores, but brokers have already begun postulating what could fill the space.

A Washington Business Journal article cites two different brokerage firms as saying that "discount retailers like TJ Maxx, Ross, Nordstrom Rack and other similar operations would likely swoop in to take over the vacant spaces."  They also note that small format gyms like Washington Sports Clubs could compete for the space, but for Penn Quarter's outpost, there is already a WSC literally across the street.

We wouldn't mind a replacement discount store.  Or, shall we revive the great grocery store debate?

Skating Rink Prepares to Reopen

Photo by AgnosticPreachersKid

More news that means winter truly is on the way: the National Gallery of Art has announced it plans to reopen the Skating Rink on Saturday, November 19th, weather permitting.

Two hours on the ice will cost you an extra buck this season:
       $8 for adults
       $7 for seniors (50+), students (with ID) and children (12 and under)

Planning on practicing your Salchows and triple toe jumps more than 25 times this season (November - March)?  Consider the season pass, which is $195.

UPDATE:  Looks like you'll get one more day of skating in - the National Gallery is opening the skating rink on November 18th.

White House Christmas Tree Lighting

Many of the condo associations in Penn Quarter don't allow residents to have live Christmas trees in their units.  It's a bummer for sure, but we do have one of the world's most famous Christmas trees right in our backyard. (OK, it's in 1600 Pennsylvania Ave's backyard, but still...)

This year's White House Christmas tree comes all the way from Neshkoro, Wisconsin, and will be lit on December 1st. Want to be at the ceremony and concert?  You have from now until 9:59am on Monday, November 7th to register for the ticket lottery. There are 3,000 ticketed seats and 14,000 standing room tickets up for grabs.  Performers at the event haven't been announced yet, but last year boasted Sheryl Crow, Maroon 5, and BB King.

Filene's Basement Closing

Sad news for bargain-hunters from the Washington City Paper: Filene's Basement is closing.   They have 21 stores and are closing all of them, including the one closest to us at 14th and F Streets N.W.

The biggest question, besides where will we bargain shop now, is what will fill the space?  We know Eataly was looking for a large space.  Most of all, we will miss Filene's.

But we have to imagine their going-out-of-business sale will be nuts.