Rosedale becoming Malabar: Rosedale, Ashok Bajaj’s farm-to-table restaurant in Van Ness, will be closing around the middle of this month, and a modern Indian concept based on food from the Malabar Coast will take Rosedale’s place in mid-January.
Rosedale has become a popular neighborhood spot since it opened at 4464 Connecticut Avenue in October 2024, but that’s not what Bajaj had in mind for the restaurant.
“I needed a wider appeal for the neighborhood,” Bajaj told Washington Business Journal reporter Daniel J. Sernovitz. “We did not draw people from Bethesda, Chevy Chase and other parts of the city, so we thought maybe it needed a more fun concept to become a destination restaurant.”
Bajaj thinks Malabar will be that restaurant.
“When you walk in, you’re going to feel like: Oh, I’ve been transported to another part of the world,” he told the Business Journal.
The end of a streatery: Rosemary Bistro Cafe (5010 Connecticut) has taken down its streatery.
Rosemary and its neighbor I’m Eddie Cano installed their streateries in December 2020, but I’m Eddie Cano dismantled its street seating the following month, after a van driver rammed into the jersey barriers protecting it.
Several DC restaurants have also taken their streateries down, or are in the process of doing so, after DDOT announced higher fees and tighter restrictions on the structures would go into effect on December 1st. The DC Council passed emergency legislation that day to reduce the new occupancy fee and loosen the design rules.
Avis Budget returns to Van Ness: Eight months after its location behind the Days Inn closed, the same franchise owner has opened a new vehicle rental location a block north of the Van Ness Metro station and upstairs from Pill Plus pharmacy.
The rental office is accessible from Connecticut Avenue and from the 4215 Connecticut Avenue garage.
Dog Haus is opening soon: No exact date has been announced, but Van Ness Main Street and 4340 Connecticut Avenue owner UDC said in November that Dog Haus Biergarten planned to open in the former Acacia Bistro space this month. To passersby, the interior and exterior buildout looks nearly complete.
The Whale Tea wants to sell cocktails, too: Franchise owner Teresa Jiang was at ANC 3F’s November 18th meeting to seek commissioners’ support for The Whale Tea’s ABCA tavern license application. Jiang said the plan is to serve tea-based and regular cocktails, and Asian beer and wine. The Whale Tea (4340 Connecticut) is also applying for an ABCA entertainment license, which will allow it to bring in live musicians. Think guitarists, singers, and harpists. “I play harp,” said Jiang.
