Last time Tysons Reporter checked in on ShipGarten, the unique restaurant/biergarten venture was expected to launch in early spring, but spring arrived and is now heating up into summer, and the shipping container doors remain fastened.

ShipGarten will now open at the Scotts Run development in Tysons in June, Creative Bar Concepts LLC Managing Partner Matt Rofougaran confirms, though an exact opening date has not been set yet.

Rofougaran, who was CEO of the now-shuttered Tysons Biergarten, attributes the latest delay to several factors, including challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic, a delay in obtaining materials, a delay in getting Dominion Energy out to the site, and the overall size of the project.

“The project [is] bigger than expected by not just us but the contractor,” he said.

Developed by the same team behind Tysons Biergarten and the still-operating Hops N Shine in Alexandria, ShipGarten will be a pop-up biergarten with restaurants located inside four converted, 40-foot shipping containers.

In addition to the central biergarten, which will have 20 German taps as well as sausages and pretzels, the restaurants will include Chalkboard BBQ & Craft Beer, the Asian fusion fast-casual joint Rollbär, and the Persian fast-casual establishment Salamati Grille.

The delays that ShipGarten has encountered could ultimately turn out to be a boon, since starting on May 28, Virginia will lift the capacity and social distancing requirements that have limited operations at existing restaurants and bars for the past year.

Rofougaran says the current plan is to require masks for staff and encourage social distancing, but that could change depending on how the next month unfolds.

“We believe we are about a month until we open so we will reevaluate everything once we get closer to [the] opening date,” he said.

ShipGarten’s opening will be a key step forward for Scotts Run, a 40-acre mixed-use development focused around the McLean Metro station that currently consists of The Haden — an apartment complex — and the 14-story Mitre 4 office building.

The Archer Hotel is expected to open later this summer, and additional residential, retail, and office development is still on the way.

The ShipGarten team saw Scotts Run as an ideal location to expand on the ideas that they introduced with Tysons Biergarten, which closed in November 2019 to make way for planned redevelopment around the Greensboro Metro station.

“The amount of room available allowed us to utilize the space to put together something that everyone in not just the tysons region but all of the DMV could come and enjoy,” Rofougaran said by email. “Plus being on top of a hill overlooking the Tysons Skyline was a great added bonus!”

Cityline Partners, one of several developers working on Scotts Run, says it looks forward to ShipGarten opening next month. The biergarten is expected to stay on the site as a pop-up for about three years as more of the surrounding development falls into place.

“We are delighted to have such an active and fun interim use at our development directly adjacent to the Scotts Run Stream Valley Park,” Cityline Managing Partner Tasso Flocos said. “The Shipgarten is a wonderful outdoor addition overlooking the urban neighborhood in the making and is an important venue to fill a much needed void for Tysons.”

Image via ShipGarten/Instagram

The ShipGarten, a long-anticipated food and drink experience in shipping containers from the team behind Tysons Biergarten, is slated to open in “early spring.”

“As many can tell, the tent’s been put up, the shipping containers are being built as we speak, and everything is pretty much moving forward rapidly,” former Tysons Biergarten CEO and managing partner Matt Rofougaran said.

ShipGarten plans to be a pop-up for three years at the Scotts Run development in Tysons. It will be six times larger than Tysons Biergarten space, which closed in November 2019.

The pop-up will feature four specially-designed shipping containers where food and drinks will be prepared, along with three year-round tents where guests will sit at tables.

Originally, the new bar was slated to open in the spring of 2020, but it was pushed to the third quarter of 2020 due to the pandemic. Rofougaran also attributed the delays to the long processes involved in trying to do something this new.

“Our contractor has never cut up shipping containers before and converted them into bars,” Rofougaran said. “Fairfax County has never seen anything like this.”

Finding the right tent took a while too, and ultimately, they had to be ordered from Germany.

“Overall, everything about it is different than your normal restaurant-bar,” Rofougaran said.

The experience completely diverged from the process for Hops N Shine in Alexandria, which took six months from getting permits to opening, he said.

At ShipGarten, customers can choose from four mini-restaurants that will each operate in a shipping container: Salamati (which Rofougaran describes as “Persian-style Chipotle”), Tysons Biergarten (German fare like the old establishment served), Rollbär (Asian fusion) and Chalkboard (barbecue).

Customers will order from kiosks outside the containers and pick up their food from one of a half-dozen windows that are being cut into the containers. They will be able to sit at tables, spaced 10 feet apart, under the tent or in the field.

During non-COVID-19 times, Roufgaran says customers would be able to sit at the bar section of the shipping container.

“This will be the safest place for you to do social distancing because of how much land we have,” Rofougaran said. “We’re providing very good social distancing.”

For now, people can try offerings from Salamati and Rollbär at Hops N Shine. Kitchen staff will be preparing the Persian food for a pop-up on Feb. 10 from 6 to 9 p.m., and Asian fusion food will be served from noon to 4 p.m. on Feb. 13.

“The pop-ups are the best,” Rofougaran said. “We get people from Tysons showing up to these all the time.”

Images via ShipGarten/Instagram

As Northern Virginia continues to ease COVID-19 restrictions, Tysons-area restauranteurs are not only unveiling new eateries but also re-envisioning dining experiences.

Restaurant owners shared with Tysons Reporter their varying reopening plans.

Solace Brewing Company, a collaboration of D.C. restauranteurs Eric and Ian Hilton and BlackFinn Ameripub co-founder Steve Ryan, was originally poised to open a new location in Falls Church by May 1.

But the opening got delayed due to the pandemic, Jon Humerick, Solace’s co-founder and director of operations, said.

“When everything started, we obviously had to put everything on hold,” said Humerick. 

The brewery, boasting several unique offerings of in-house IPAs, now plans to open within the next two weeks, operating under Phase 2 guidelines requiring seating at half-capacity for indoor and outdoor dining. 

Taqueria Loca, a Mexican restaurant run by the Great American Restaurants group (GAR), debuted a “ghost kitchen” in Vienna in addition to their Sterling location before Northern Virginia began its transition into Phase 2.

This meant that they were available online and cooking in the kitchens for curbside pickup and delivery — however, they were not serving customers in-person, according to Jon Norton, the CEO of GAR.

“We are also creating a ‘patio and beer garden’ in the valet area of Coastal Flats [Tysons Corner] so that guests may begin to enjoy the Taqueria Loca experience in a physical space as well,” according to Norton. 

As of June 12, all GAR restaurants officially reopened at half-capacity.

Shipgarten, a new food and dining concept from the owners of the now-closed Tysons Biergarten, was originally planning to open in June. However, they are now pushing their opening until the end of Phase 3. 

“We are going to use paper products and more disposable items like disposable menus,” Managing Partner Matt Rofougaran said in describing the safety measures they will be taking.

In addition, there will be plexiglass sneezeguards to separate the bartenders from the customers, and the tables in the 30,000-square-foot facility will be separated by 10 feet rather than the 6-foot guideline to ensure extra distance. 

“We’re going to have plenty of room for social distancing,” Rofougaran said.

Photo via Solace Brewing/Facebook

The team behind the now-closed Tysons Biergarten plans to bring the beer garden back as part of a new pop-up concept near the McLean Metro station.

Tysons Biergarten closed near the Greensboro Metro station in November to make way for a redevelopment that will add a new office tower at 8332 Leesburg Pike.

The team behind the beer garden has said it plans to debut a new concept consisting of themed, 40-foot shipping containers:

• “The Biergarten” — German and Belgium beers and German food
• Roll Bär — Asian fusion cuisine and Japanese whiskey
• Chalkboard BBQ — a rotating menu of barbecue and international craft beer
• Tysons EuroBar — Mediterranean fare

Matt Rofougaran, Tysons Biergarten’s CEO and managing partner, shared with Tysons Reporter more details on what people can expect when The ShipGarten opens this spring.

Like Tysons Biergarten, which had a three-year-lease, The ShipGarten will plans to be a pop-up for three years at the Scotts Run development, Rofougaran said.

“We want to do pop-ups all over the [D.C. area],” he said. “What we want to do is avoid having to leave everything in one building and start all over.”

Rofougaran said that using shipping containers will allow for mobility — what he calls “a traveling beer service.”

“Our landlord owns multiple properties throughout Tysons — The Mile and near [Tysons] Galleria,” he said.

Meanwhile, the new spot means that The ShipGarten will have three times the space — and three times the number of people — that Tysons Biergarten had at its old spot.

The ShipGarten will also fill a currently empty space that is slated to house a high-rise later on.

Rofougaran said he hopes the nearby restaurants and bars in the area, which include City Works and an upcoming beer garden called The Perch, will encourage people to move around from one spot to another.

“We love it,” Rofougaran said about the new location. “The more restaurants and bars near us, the better. It takes us away from being a destination location.”

Plans for The ShipGarten started two years ago and were inspired by similar concepts in New York and California, he said.

“What we are doing is a little bit different,” he said, adding that the ShipGarten will be on a larger scale. “It’s a cross between stuff you see in New York and what the real, true Oktoberfest is like in Germany.”

Rofougaran said he wants The ShipGarten to attract the same, wide range of people — “from college students to 70-year-old executives” — that Tysons Biergarten brought in, along with an emphasis on being family-friendly.

“Surrounding those containers will be your quintessential biergarten area, family friendly kids area, a fenced in dog area, and entertainment venue,” according to The ShipGarten’s website.

When The ShipGarten arrives in the spring, Rofougaran said that people can expect all four concepts to open at the same time.

Currently, Roll Bär is scheduled to take over local bar Hops N Shine (3410 Mt Vernon Avenue) from 1-6 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 22, for a pop-up event to showcase items from the upcoming Roll Bär menu, like hand-rolled sushi.

“The goal is to test these concepts out in Scotts Run and if they work well, we put them everywhere,” he said.

Photo via The ShipGarten/Facebook

Work is gearing up on a new office tower that is part of the redevelopment of the sites once home to Tysons Biergarten and Clyde’s in Tysons.

Named Tysons Central, the new office tower is coming to 8332 Leesburg Pike — the former spot of Clyde’s — next to the Greensboro Metro station in the Tysons Central 7 neighborhood.

The building, which plans to have a private roof terrace and parking garage, is a part of a development that was approved in 2014.

More from Foulger-Pratt:

Tysons Central is the first step in the massive redevelopment of Tysons, made possible by the Metro’s Silver Line extension. This signature office tower will reside adjacent to approximately 1,100 residential units, 200 hotel rooms, and 135,000 sf retail at full build out.

Right next door you’ll find The Boro — a 4.2 million sf development featuring a variety of shopping, dining and entertainment options, including a Whole Foods and Showplace Icon multiplex.

Developer Foulger-Pratt is ready to start construction to get the project done by early 2021, the Washington Business Journal reported.

The Weekly Planner is a roundup of interesting events coming up over the next week in the Tysons area.

We’ve scoured the web for events of note in Tysons, Vienna, Merrifield, McLean and Falls Church. Know of any we’ve missed? Tell us!

Tysons Reporter also complied a list of the upcoming holiday events, for those seeking festivities.

Tuesday (Nov. 26)

• LGBTQIA+ Night — at 6:30 p.m. at Victory Comics (586 S. Washington Street) — This gives people a chance to gather and talk about LGBTQIA+ characters in comics and hear from illustrator Melanie Gillman.
• Salsa Classes — 7 p.m. until 2 a.m. at The Palladium (1524 Spring Hill Road) — This free event allows people to come by and take a free salsa lesson from Cecilia Villalobos at 8 p.m. before the opportunity for social dance.

Wednesday (Nov. 27)

• Trivia Night — 7 to 9 p.m. at City Works Eatery and Pour House (1640 N. Capital One Drive) — Community members are invited to stop by for an evening of trivia. Prizes will be awarded to winners and topics vary. This event is free.
• Comedy Cornucopia — 7:30 p.m. at Jammin Java (227 E. Maple Avenue) — This comedy event invites people to gather and enjoy some humor while raising money for Food for Others. Tickets range from $10-15. Comedy content may contain adult material and anyone 17 or under should be accompanied by an adult.

Thursday (Nov. 28)

• Live Music with Nick Tierra — 6 to 8 p.m. at Settle Down Easy Brewing (2822 Fairfax Drive) — This event will allow people to gather and enjoy a drink while listening to live music from Nick Tierra. There is no admission fee for this event.

Saturday (Nov. 30)

• Beer, Wine and Cider Festival — 1 until 6 p.m. at the Tysons Biergarten (8346 Leesburg Pike) — This event offers guests a chance to try over 50 different drinks before the Biergarten closes and relocates. Tickets are $10 online or $20 at the event.

Photo via Tysons Biergarten/Facebook

Next Saturday will be the last chance to drink beer at Tysons Biergarten by the Greensboro Metro station.

“Our landlord… recently informed us they would need our land for redevelopment,” according to a letter from Matt Rofougaran, the CEO and managing partner of Tysons Biergarten.

The owners behind the beer garden are planning to open a new concept called The Shipgarten at Scotts Run, which is set to open in spring 2020, the letter said.

The Shipgarten plans to have four themed shipping containers:

• “The Biergarten” with German and Belgium beers and German food
• Roll Bär offering Asian fusion cuisine and Japanese whiskey
• Chalkboard BBQ serving a rotating menu of barbecue and international craft beer
• Tysons EuroBar — a Mediterranean fast-casual restaurant

A “Grand Closing Festival” on Saturday (Nov. 30) will celebrate Tysons Biergarten’s last days at 8346 Leesburg Pike.

Here’s the full letter:

Friends, Family, Patrons, and Supporters,

My name is Matt Rofougaran and I am writing this message on behalf of Paymon and Abe Hadjiesmailoo, Ryan O’Connor, and Nick Rodriguez, the proud owners of Tysons Biergarten. This is one of the hardest letters I have ever written, as it is with great sadness and a heavy heart I inform you we will be closing our doors on Saturday, November 30, 2019.

Tysons Biergarten began as nothing more than a dream shared by 5 guys. Our team successfully transformed a rustic, aging warehouse into a successful restaurant by hand through hard work and determination. We signed our lease with the understanding we would be a pop-up bar, and that one day we would need to shut down. Our landlord (one of the greatest and nicest landlords a small business could ever have) recently informed us they would need our land for redevelopment, which is not much of a surprise as Tysons is well underway becoming America’s next great city!

That being said, our team is not finished here in Tysons! Our next concept will be something this area has never seen before; The Shipgarten! The Shipgarten will be very unique, as it will feature four shipping containers (each with its own concept) along with four large tents for seating and games. The first container will be “The Biergarten”, which will have 20+ German/Belgium beers on draft, German sausages, schnitzels and more! The second shipping container will be Roll Bär our Asian Fusion concept featuring poke bowls, custom made egg rolls, sushi burritos, infused liquor bubble teas, Japanese whiskey, and more! The third container will be Chalkboard BBQ which will feature a rotating menu of barbecue and craft beer from around world along with a wide array of sauces, rubs, and seasonings which will change on a regular basis! Our final container will be called Tysons EuroBar, Tysons’ latest Mediterranean fast-casual restaurant. The menu’s main focus is custom meals. Pitas and bowls with grains are dressed up with meats including beef, lamb, chicken, doner kebab, and falafel, with a variety of toppings from feta cheese to harissa. Mediterranean cocktails, beer, and of course WINE from all over the Mediterranean will be available to compliment your meal.

We also have another restaurant in Del Ray, Alexandria, on the corner of Glebe Road and Mount Vernon Ave called Hops N Shine. Hops N Shine is much smaller than Tysons Biergarten, however, it features 52 beers on draft, custom made grilled cheese sandwiches, and moonshine!

The hardest part about all this is having to part ways with our incredible staff. While we are able to bring a few people over to our sister location in Alexandria, we do not have room for everyone and have contacted numerous bars and restaurants in the area that have all expressed interest in hiring. If you are are aware of anyone looking to hire in the Northern Virginia area, please email [email protected].

Words cannot express how proud we are of the Tysons Biergarten legacy and our opportunity to become a member of such a wonderful community. We have hosted hundreds of events from fundraisers, yappy hours, comedy shows, concerts, corporate happy hours, birthdays, weddings, retirements, holiday gatherings, and much more. You, our guests, along with our spectacular Tysons Biergarten team, have enabled us to build tremendous notoriety these past few years, and I can not thank you enough for allowing Tysons Biergarten to be a part of your lives. Thank you for your years of support and we ask everyone to come in now and use up those tokens before our doors close at the end of the month!

Sincerely,

Matt Rofougaran
CEO and Managing Partner, Tysons Biergarten

Tysons may not have the liveliest nightlife at the moment, but that could soon change as more late-night restaurants and places to hang out open. “Tysons After Dark” will highlight a different spot every week.

The Washington Nationals are back in D.C. for the third game tonight in the World Series.

As D.C.’s baseball team prepares face the Houston Astros at 8 p.m., Tysons Reporter has found some places around the Tysons area offering specials or hosting watch parties for the World Series — including new ones since last week’s roundup.

Here’s where to bring the “Natitude” tonight (Friday).

The Tysons Biergarten (8346 Leesburg Pike) plans to have a watch party tonight with $8 food specials. The watering hole was four projectors — two outside and two indoor inside — for people to watch the game, along with 17 TVs.

The Town of Vienna is hosting a “Big Game Watch Party” starting at 7:30 p.m. tonight (Oct. 25) in the main gym at the Vienna Community Center (120 Cherry Street SE). Chairs will be provided, but attendees are encouraged to bring their own chairs, blankets, food and non-alcoholic drinks.

Taco Bamba spots in Falls Church (2190 Pimmit Drive) and Vienna (164 W. Maple Avenue) has the “Baby Shark Taco” for $4.50, according to a press release. The taco will include Venezuelan spiced fish “cazón” style with guacamole, green goddess-dressed cilantro and cabbage.

Meanwhile, pizza chain Matchbox will give diners wearing Nats gear on game days food and drinks at happy hour prices. Matchbox has a local spot in the Mosaic District at 2911 District Avenue, Suite 120.

Caboose Tavern (520 Mill Street NE) is offering $2 off of growler fills on game days and plans to hold watch parties from 8-10:30 p.m.

Settle Down Easy Brewing (2822 Fallfax Drive) in the Falls Church area plans to have a watch party with free pizza and $1 pints anytime a Nats player hits a home run. “We will extend our hours until the end of the game,” according to the Facebook event.

#StayintheFight

Photo via Caboose Tavern/Facebook

Tysons may not have the liveliest nightlife at the moment, but that could soon change as more late-night restaurants and places to hang out open. “Tysons After Dark” will highlight a different spot every week.

Now that the Washington Nationals won the National League Championship Series, the D.C. baseball team heads to the World Series next week.

The Nats will face the winner of the American League Championship Series — between the Houston Astros and the New York Yankees — in their first World Series since 1933.

Tysons Reporter found some places around the Tysons area offering specials for the World Series Games.

Taco Bamba spots in Falls Church (2190 Pimmit Drive) and Vienna (164 W. Maple Avenue) will feature the “Baby Shark Taco” for $4.50, according to a press release. The taco will include Venezuelan spiced fish “cazón” style with guacamole, green goddess-dressed cilantro and cabbage.

Meanwhile, pizza chain Matchbox will give diners wearing Nats gear on game days food and drinks at happy hour prices. Matchbox has a local spot in the Mosaic District at 2911 District Avenue, Suite 120.

As for watch parties, people can head to The Plaza outside Tysons Corner Center to view the first game of the World Series on Tuesday, Oct. 22. The Tysons Biergarten (8346 Leesburg Pike) plans to have watch parties for all of the World Series Games with the Nats.

Here are some watering holes in Tysons where locals can bring their Natitude to watch the games:

• City Works Eatery and Pour House (1640 Capital One Drive North): The self-described “beer geek” restaurant has 24 flat-screen TVs and 90 craft beers on tap.
• Greenhouse Bistro and Tea Lounge (2070 Chain Bridge Road): The restaurant has three unique spaces, including a sports bars.
• XTreme Wings and Sports Bar (8119 Watson Street): The bar serves up wings and pastas for diners to enjoy with the games.
• Tysons Social Tavern (1960 Chain Bridge Road): The sports bar with patio is located in the DoubleTree Tysons.
• BJ’s Restaurant and Brewhouse (8027 Leesburg Pike, Suite 100): The restaurant will have its regular happy hour specials during the games next week.
• Gordon Biersch (7861 Tysons Corner Center): Located in Tysons Corner Center, the restaurant has seven plasma televisions.

Photo via Taco Bamba/Facebook

Come help us celebrate the first year since founding Tysons Reporter at Tysons Biergarten tonight (Oct 3).

The first 50 guests will enjoy a drink on us.

You will have the chance to meet the editorial and business teams that work behind the scenes to bring all of the local news to you each day.

Find us on the patio between 5-7 p.m. Kids and dogs are welcome.

Check out the Facebook event to RSVP.