Falls Church-based Rare Bird Coffee Roasters is expanding, despite its temporary closure.
The cafe is set to take over the next-door location that sits on the corner of North Maple Ave and West Broad Street, according to the Falls Church City Council.
It is unclear when the construction will be complete.
When asked about the updates, “We are making an official announcement soon,” a spokesperson said, adding that more details will be released soon.
Rare Bird Coffee Roasters decided to temporarily close its doors around March because of the COVID-19 pandemic but still offers free local shipping on various products, the website said.
Photo via Rare Bird Coffee/Facebook
SHOTTED Specialty Coffee is serving drinks from its new home in Tysons Corner Center.
The coffee shop originally had a kiosk on level two. Two weeks ago, SHOTTED held its grand opening for its kiosk on the first level outside Barnes and Noble.
The coffee shop has been active in the D.C. area, from supporting local Saudi student clubs to serving up pistachio lattes at the Embassy of Saudi Arabia, according to its Instagram.
People who stop by the new location in Tysons Corner Center can try a Spanish latte, which is usually sweeter than traditional lattes.
Photo via SHOTTED/Facebook
Coffee drinkers will have to wait at least another month for Fairfax-based Simply Social Coffee to open in the Town of Vienna.
Owner Kathy Pao told Tysons Reporter that the new coffee shop delayed the opening plans to possibly sometime in October at BB&T’s former spot in the Cedar Park Shopping Center.
Pao said that she signed the lease for the Vienna location last November after picking the location for its drive-thru window and proximity to the Fairfax coffee shop. While Pao originally saw the drive-thru window as a “perk,” she didn’t realize that she would need approval from the town to use it for food and drinks.
Currently, Pao is seeking a conditional use permit from the town to use the former bank’s drive-in teller as a drive-thru window.
Origianlly, she was planning to open the shop and drive-thru component at the same time this month. With delays from the pandemic and uncertainty about the conditional use permit, she now plans to open the shop — but not the window — sometime in October.
“It’s not one particular delay. It’s an accumulation,” Pao said. “It just adds up.”
Despite the extra work for the drive-thru window, Pao said she sees it as an extension of the coffee shop’s focus on building community relationships.
When the coffee shop opens, Pao hopes that people will support her female- and minority-owned business during the pandemic.
“I think these days, people do appreciate the mom and pop stores a little bit more,” Pao said.
Photo via Simply Social Coffee/Facebook
Caffe Amouri is holding an outdoor birthday party today with ice cream, e-bikes, books and, of course, coffee.
The coffee shop opened in the Town of Vienna 10 years ago.
“On the morning of July 14, 2010, I was standing inside an entirely new business… A coffeehouse opening in the midst of the worst economic downturn in a generation and within three blocks of two Starbucks,” a Facebook post said.
Owner Michael Amouri told Tysons Reporter that all of the proceeds from today’s event at 107 Church Street NE will go to Neighborhood Health, which provides primary care in Alexandria and Arlington and Fairfax counties.
Bards Alley is offering a pop-up bookstore, Bikes@Vienna has a “sustainable transportation” demo with e-bikes and Caffe Amouri is doing hand-pour demos and providing coffee samplings, Amouri said. Caffe Amouri is also serving affogato — espresso over Ben and Jerry’s ice cream.
Flyer for @caffeamouri's birthday party today in @TownofViennaVA pic.twitter.com/Evmcu9DQzs
— Catherine D Moran (@c_douglasmoran) July 14, 2020
Photo via Caffe Amouri/Facebook
Peet’s Coffee has left Tysons Station, along with closing its spot in the Town of Vienna.
A Peet’s spokesperson told Tysons Reporter this week that both locations have permanently closed.
When Tysons Reporter previously asked about the Vienna location, the spokesperson did not respond to questions about when or why it closed.
Fans of the coffee chain can still order drinks on the mobile app from the Tysons location (8150 Leesburg Pike).
Image via Google Maps
Peet’s Coffee won’t reopen its doors in the Town of Vienna.
A Peet’s spokesperson confirmed to Tysons Reporter that the Vienna location (332 Maple Ave E.) is permanently closed. The spot is still listed at “temporarily closed” on the coffee chain’s website.
The spokesperson did not respond to questions about when or why the Vienna store closed and instead offered a statement saying that Peet’s opens and closes coffee locations each year for different reasons.
“While not easy decisions, regional adjustments to our coffeebar presence are important for effectively managing our resources and for developing our business,” the statement said.
The statement went on to say that Peet’s works with employees from its closed shops to find them jobs at other Peet’s locations.
While the company is no longer in Vienna, coffee drinkers can still find Peet’s in the Tysons-area.
The Peet’s mobile app shows that the Tysons location (8150 Leesburg Pike) is accepting orders. Tysons Reporter reached out today (Monday) about the status of the shop at Tysons Station and will provide an update.
Image via Google Maps
(Updated 8/24/2020) Fairfax-based Simply Social Coffee has plans to bring new roasts to Vienna.
The coffee store posted on Facebook yesterday that work is underway at its upcoming location in the Cedar Park Shopping Center.
“We got framed. Just waiting on permits,” the post said. “Vienna here we come.”
The online menu for the Fairfax location includes a long list of drinks: dark and white mochas, hot chocolate, drip coffee, espresso, lattes, frappes, chai, teas and more. Breakfast and lunch sandwiches along with Belgium waffles are also on the menu.
Corrects name of shopping center.Â
Hat tip to Vienna VA Foodies
Photo via Simply Social Coffee/Facebook
(Updated at 5:40 p.m.) Caffe Amouri wants to reduce close contact between the people coming to the Vienna coffeehouse, as concerns spread about the coronavirus outbreak.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that people stay six feet away from each other to lower the risk of spreading the virus.
“Helping everyone ‘Keep their distance,'” the cafe tweeted along with a video showing large “X”s made of masking tape on the ground leading up the cafe.
In another video, owner Michael Amouri shared that the “X”s, which are six feet apart, lead to a window counter — formerly the front door — where people can place their orders and pay. The orders will be filled inside and then brought outside to the customers.
At the window service, one cashier wearing gloves places the order, while another person goes to get the coffee, Amouri told Tysons Reporter. Each drink is brought out on its own pedestal so that customers won’t touch the tray, he said.
Amouri said that he ordered 10 stylus pens that will be sanitized after every use so “no customer will be touching a pen that a previous customer touched.”
Tuesday evening, the coffeehouse announced on Instagram that it won’t accept cash while the coronavirus concerns are growing.
On Facebook, the coffeehouse announced on March 13 that all of its events are temporarily canceled. In other videos, Amouri said that other recent changes include:
- in-house cups won’t be used
- cups that people bring won’t be used
- all drinks will be served in paper to-go cups
Amouri said that people who don’t want to come to the shop can order beans online — “We’re getting hit by a ton of those” — and buy gift cards for future visits.
Amouri said that the cafe’s staff keeps stepping up its coronavirus-related efforts. At first, the employees were sanitizing the shop shift by shift and the hour by hour.
As more and more people started to telework, Amouri noticed that the shop was getting more crowded, which prompted him to switch to the outdoor counter last Saturday — an idea from one of his employees.
“The danger shifted from their workplace to our shop,” he said. “I’m really concerned about our staff.”
Amouri said that he has given his employees two weeks paid vacation so that they can stay home if they feel sick.
“I just want to keep my staff working. That’s really important to me,” he said. “Even if we don’t break even, which we probably won’t, if I can minimize the loss and keep them around, then that’s my goal.”
No matter what, he plans to keep the coffeehouse open, he said.
“We’re open,” he said in one of the videos, urging people to support their local businesses. “We’re going to get through this everybody.”
Helping everyone "Keep their distance"#SocialDistancing @TownofViennaVA @VisitFairfax @TysonsReporter @sungazettenews @washingtonian @WTOP @nbcwashington @ABC7News @wusa9 pic.twitter.com/z0Uh2sVNCM
— Caffe Amouri (@caffeamouri) March 17, 2020
Image via Caffe Amouri/Twitter
Happy Friday! Here are the latest stories about the Tysons area that the Tysons Reporter team has been reading:
Tysons-Based TV Company May Be Acquired — “Signaling ongoing consolidation of the broadcast business, Gray Television has made an $8.5 billion bid for larger rival Tegna, according to Reuters, sending Tegna stock up by more than 30% in premarket trading Friday in what looks set to be an otherwise down market.” [Deadline]
New Coffee Spot Eying Tysons — “[The owner]Â says For Five is also planning to open a location in Tysons within the next three to four months.” [ARLnow]
Founders Row 2.0 Planned in Falls Church — “The Economic Development Committee of the Falls Church City Council got the news at its meeting last Thursday… that the 4.3 acre Founders Row mixed-use project now coming out of the ground at West Broad and N. West Streets may be augmented with a two-acre “phase two” right across the street.” [Falls Church News-Press]
McLean Student Finalist in National Portrait Contest —Â “McLean High sophomore Libby Eick, a Photography 2 student, was one of 15 finalists nationwide in the National Portrait Gallery’s 2020 National Teen Portrait Competition. Eick’s work was selected from among 629 entries around the U.S. Â Her artist statement is below.” [Fairfax County Public Schools]
New Store in The Boro — The Shade Store is now open in The Boro. [The Boro/Instagram]
Updated at 6:45 p.m. — A spokesperson for The Meridian Group, the developer behind The Boro, said that the coffee shop has not signed a lease at the mixed-use development.Â
An Arlington-based coffee-and-alcohol joint wants to expand into Tysons with a new location.
While the website for East West Coffee and Wine says it is “coming soon” to Tysons, a representative for the cafe told Tysons Reporter that no plans have been finalized for a Tysons location.
The owner opened Central Coffee Bar in Arlington two years ago and then recently rebranded the cafe to “East West Coffee and Wine” to match its other new location in Arlington, ARLnow reported.
The online menu features coffee, espresso, red and white wine and beer.