By Daniel J. Sernovitz – Senior Staff Reporter, Washington Business Journal
Apr 23, 2024
This article was originally posted on the Washington Business Journal and is available here: https://www.bizjournals.com/washington/news/2024/04/23/crystal-city-restaurants-dweck-properties.html
Dweck Properties is bringing a trio of new restaurants to Crystal City, including a popular Uyghur restaurant with two other locations in the D.C. area, as part of its larger refresh of an apartment building on 23rd Street South.
Dolan Uyghur leased 2,485 square feet at the Quimby on 23rd, a 440-unit building formerly known as The Buchanan at 320 23rd St. S.
The restaurant, which features traditional Uyghur and Central Asian cuisine, is slated to open later this year or early next year. It will be joined by a Chinese restaurant and karaoke bar and a Mexican restaurant.
Dweck, a D.C. commercial real estate firm, retained a team from KLNB including Kim Stein, Jennifer Price, Matt Skalet and Alex Meyer to seek out prospective tenants. The search came as it tackled a series of renovations to the building estimated to cost between $5 million and $6 million, per Andy VanHorn, president and chief development officer at Dweck.
The developer sought the types of tenants at Quimby that would help activate the base of the building and complement what’s already in the neighborhood or coming soon.
“We thought about: What can we do at the ground plane to enhance livability and walkability along 23rd Street,” VanHorn said. “How can we make this a community-serving dining and services destination?”
Billy Kelly and Veronica Kamara, both of KLNB, represented Dolan in the lease.
Joining it at Quimby are Lantern Restaurant and Bar, which has leased about 5,450 square feet and will be part Chinese restaurant and part karaoke bar; and La Posada, from the team behind Don Pancho Mexican Grill, which has leased 5,458 square feet and will be serving up Tex-Mex-style food. Lantern, represented by Dallon Cheney and Forrest Morrill of KLNB, is slated to open in late spring or early summer. Lantern’s lease was first reported by Arlnow.com. La Posada, expected to open in spring 2025, was represented by Shang Wang.
Interest has been building over the past few years thanks to nearby projects including the new multifamily buildings JBG Smith Properties Inc. (NYSE: JBGS) developed at 1900 Crystal Drive, where the Hilton brothers plan to open a French restaurant. Dweck received more offers and letters of intent from tenant prospects than it had space to accommodate in the building’s base, with about 55,000 square feet of retail, per VanHorn. All but 5,000 square feet is now leased to a mix of tenants including Bowlero, with part of that remainder space subject to a pending lease deal.
Dweck has sought to position itself as a competitor to JBG Smith in Crystal City and the larger National Landing area, which also includes Pentagon City and parts of Potomac Yard, as the Washington Business Journal’s Dan Brendel reported in July. It’s boosted its holdings in National Landing to around 3,500 multifamily units, including Quimby, named after aviator Harriet Quimby due to the market’s proximity to Reagan National Airport. The building’s getting a series of upgrades including new elevators and improved common areas, and its residential units are now more than 93% leased.
Nearby, Dweck is also upgrading The Gramercy at 550 14th St. S closer to Amazon.com Inc.’s Metropolitan Park headquarters. It recently signed a lease with Gwenie’s Pastries, which will feature classic Filipino desserts, fusion specialities and traditional family recipes. Its chef, Kuya Ja, also plans to run Lapu Lapu, serving up breakfast and sandwich specials. He also has a restaurant in Gaithersburg.
