Thursday, May 17, 2012
Maple Ave Restaurant and Maverick Mosaics are asking for your support.
Two small businesses in Vienna are gunning to win a $250,000 grant awarded by Living Social and Chase. The grant program, called "Mission: Small Business," will award up to 12 $250,000 grants to small businesses across the country. The campaign is also supported by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Bonnie Fitzgerald, owner of Maverick Mosaics Art School & Studio, and Joey Hernandez, general manager of Maple Ave Restaurant, answered a few questions for Patch about the program. What would this grant mean for your business? Joey Hernandez (Maple Ave): "The idea for Maple Ave was born many years ago as our dream. We knew that the journey to our dream of opening a restaurant was tough but we both wanted to at least try to accomplish it. We opened …
Friday, May 11, 2012
Restaurant wins this week's reader poll
Congratulations to Maple Avenue Restaurant, which was named Best Place for Mother's Day Brunch in this week's reader poll. The restaurant, which went up against five other restaurants, earned 63 percent of the vote. The runner up was Maplewood Grill, with 13 percent of the vote. Maple Avenue Restaurant will be open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday, co-owner Joey Hernandez says. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., the restaurant will serve a lunch/brunch menu, which includes a la carte lunch and brunch plates as well as a six-course tasting menu for two, bottomless poinsettias, bottomless mimosas and Bloody Mary's. Hernandez said the restaurant is still deciding on special desserts, "but most likely will have our red velvet cake crumble," she said. …
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Moran’s business summit gives budding entrepreneurs tools to survive down economy
With larger businesses still trying to rebound from years of a slow economy, Congressman Jim Moran held a small business summit Tuesday in Falls Church to expose entrepreneurs to the global market. Moran said small business owners should expand outside the American economy and into the Asian market. With the U.S. recently signing a trade agreement with South Korea, Moran (D-8th District) said the opportunity to expand into markets overseas is now. "If the federal government cuts back spending, it will affect the small-business owners," Moran said after the summit. "I want them to be able to develop trade ties overseas." Several business support groups including the Virginia Small Development Center Network and the Asian American Chamber of…
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Foster's Grille will donate 10 percent of all Tuesday sales to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation
Three years ago this June, Amy Lotz brought her 3-year-old son Jack to see the doctor for what the Reston mother thought was a common cold. But a few days later, Jack got worse — he was constantly thirsty and going to the bathroom; vomiting, sweaty, lethargic. A return trip to the doctor revealed Jack had type 1 diabetes, a shock to a family that had no history of the disease. Jack spent three nights in the pediatric intensive care unit that week. "I'll never forget the look on the doctor's face when he walked into the room. I knew right away it was something serious," Lotz said. On Tuesday, Jack, now 6, and his family will team up with Foster's Grille in Vienna to raise money for the Walk To Cure Diabetes on May 20 in Leesburg, which …
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Caffe Amouri and Whole Foods sponsor first 'Vienna Idol' to benefit Khristin Kyllo Memorial Fund
If there's one thing Khristin Kyllo loved, besides the softball field, it was music. Friends and family of the 18-year-old rising star at Princeton University, who died unexpectedly last winter in her dorm room, say music was part of everything Kyllo did, and in the year since her death, have used it to honor the Madison High School alumna "with a heart of gold and a million dollar smile." In that spirit, two community groups are bringing their own version of a popular national singing contest to Vienna, offering residents of all ages to be crowned 'Vienna Idol' and giving the proceeds to the memorial fund in Kyllo's name. Caffe Amouri and Whole Foods kicked off the town's first ever contest Tuesday with the first qualifying round of the …
Doing Good is a new series about good Samaritans, random acts of kindness and people making a difference in our community. Today: "Pizza Blitz" part of business owner's strategy to connect community.
Martin White was driving home Friday night when he saw a cul-de-sac filled with children and their parents in a spontaneous block party to celebrate the unseasonably warm weather. While the kids were moving toys out of the roadway, he called out, "all you need is some pizza" to make it a party, he said later. A few hundred yards down the road, White, the owner of Donatos Pizza, realized he could make that party happen with just a phone call. Twenty minutes later, residents of the cul-de-sac were shocked when a delivery boy hopped out of a car to hand over two pizzas. They hadn't ordered them, but quickly learned they'd been sent for free in the spirit of a good community gathering. "We figured it was just a friendly comment from a commuter…
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Bicycle Advisory Committee adds center to bike-friendly partner list
Bikers headed to one of Vienna's largest shopping centers now have parking while running errands or taking a ride around town. The Maple Avenue Shopping Center celebrated the installation of 11 new bike racks on Saturday with a ribbon cutting and family fun day. Vienna Police Officer Gary Lose was on hand to answer bike questions; the center's businesses -- including Giant, Michael's, CVS and PNC Bank -- offered specials throughout the day, including a raffle for a bicycle. More than 70 children came through "mobile learning tents" throughout the day; 25 customers won Giant gift cards. Some sales will continue throughout the weekend. The initiative is part of a Vienna Bicycle Advisory Committee effort to increase bike use around town and …
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Vienna Town Council members extend public hearing on issue for more professional, business and resident input.
Vienna Town Council members need more time and professional advice to decide whether the future of Church Street should include taller buildings or if it could thrive under current 35-foot height restrictions. Council members extended a public hearing Monday night on a proposed ordinance that would modify the height code for the old Vienna commercial district to allow municipal parking structures up to 50 feet tall. The potential change follows a multi-million dollar proposal for a three-story mixed-use building and four-story parking structure on Church Street, the first pitch to come in under the town's newly adopted public-private partnership guidelines. As it stands, the Church Street proposal would violate the town’s zoning …
Monday, April 16, 2012
Madison Melt, Greek Omelet reviewed; share your pick for "best dish" in weekly readers poll
It's no secret Vienna is home to some of the best food in the Washington, D.C. area. We're out to find out where (and what exactly) it is. And we're turning to readers for help. Here's how it will work: We have just a few rules: Nominate your favorite dish in the comments below. Past Winners: While we discourage manipulating a vote, our current voting system can't prevent the practice. So, until our engineers make tweaks, strategize as you see fit. Patch's "Restaurant Commissioner" holds the right to make changes and decisions as necessary.
Friday, April 13, 2012
The Virginian's breakfast dish takes this week's title
The Virginian's Greek Omelet won this week's Eating Across Vienna, part of a weekly series aiming to recognize culinary greatness in town. Readers nominated just two dishes this week which made for a close race. Here's how the entrees stacked up: Don't worry: if your dish didn't win this week, you can nominate it again for next week's voting. As a reminder: And the rules:
Andre L. Taylor
9:47 am on Wednesday, May 9, 2012
So right, Edward. The cash flow is the main thing preventing me from wanting to move forward with starting a business. more ›