Neighborhood Eats: Kangaroo Boxing Club Opens, Lots of Other Restaurants Close

• June 21st 2012

by Rebecca Cooper

Ok, we don’t know if there’s some kind of restaurant plague kicking in or what, but other than the news that Columbia Heights neighborhood bar Kangaroo Boxing Club opened on 11th Street NW this week, this week’s Neighborhood Eats is pretty much all closings, all the time. At least you can drown your sorrows over the loss of Four Fields, Capital Q, Potenza, and others with a beer and a Three Little Pigs pork sandwich at KBC this weekend.

Closing: Sister restaurants Zola (800 F Street NW) and Potenza (1430 H Street NW) will both close their doors this summer, as WBJ’s Missy Frederick confirms. Zola will close up shop sooner — June 30 — and the Italian Potenza will close in August. The closing of Zola Wine & Kitchen earlier this year may have been an open for the two Stir Food Group restaurants. A rep for the Spy Museum, which houses Zola and has a stake in Stir Food Group, tells WBJ that Vidalia chef Jeffrey Buben will take over the ample Potenza space.

Speaking of ample spaces, it appears that Asian fusion restaurant and lounge Buddha Bar may have closed for good. Neighborhood Eats received a tip Monday that patrons with reservations showed up to the 455 Massachusetts Ave NW spot only to find locked doors. Doors remained closed Tuesday and Wednesday, and no one in the tenacious D.C. food press corps seems to be able to get an official answer from the restaurant, but Eater DC has a leaked email sent out to employees explaining that Sunday, June 17 was the restaurant’s last night.

Capital Q BBQ also let its fans know via Facebook that it will close its doors July 14 after 15 years at 707 H Street NW. The Texas-style barbecue joint — which is owned by the same folks that own Cantina Marina on the Southwest Waterfront — just couldn’t commit to another five years on their lease. They are considering opening Capital Q elsewhere or pursuing other ventures, they told Eater. They may announce some kind of final bash on their Facebook page, so keep an eye out.

In the way of grand finales, this weekend will also be the last weekend for Ireland’s Four Fields in Cleveland Park. The restaurant’s final day at 3413 Connecticut Avenue NW is June 27, but they’ve got some big acts (40 Thieves and the Sean Fleming Band among them) lined up to play this weekend — which should be a really good time, said an employee that answered the phone there this week. Their final party June 27 will involve the bar’s signature pub quiz, so get your fill of the Fields while you still can. The space is reportedly turning into a new concept from the folks behind McFadden’s, although it won’t be a carbon copy of the Irish bar’s other concepts, according to rumors around the neighborhood.

Dupont Circle’s Current Sushi will serve its last sashimi and other raw goodies tonight, according to Eater DC. The sushi restaurant and lounge’s owners will continue to operate Rosebar, the rooftop lounge above Current, but there’s no word yet as to what will go into the ground floor space at 1215 Connecticut Ave NW.

This one isn’t really a surprise, but Jose Andres’ temporary ode-to-the-U.S.A. restaurant, America Eats Tavern, will close up shop as scheduled July 4. The good news is that minibar, Andres’ super-elaborate restaurant-within-a-restaurant that used to inhabit part of the space at 405 8th Street NW, will reopen in October — in a new location around the block, Washington Post reports. Get your reservations-dialing fingers ready on Sept. 1; the new minibar at 9th and E streets NW — the old Zola Wine & Kitchen, which closed last month — will have 16 seats, more than double that of the original. What’s still unclear is what will open in the main area of the America Eats/old Cafe Atlantico space, so we’ll keep our eye out.

Belgian mussel bar St. Arnold’s is taking the next step in transforming the British-themed Underground bar to its own Belgian style, according to Washington Post. What has been “The Underground at St. Arnold’s” for the past six months will become St. Arnold’s the Abbey with more Belgian decor and beers. The bar will serve beers from independent producers and change over the British menu to one similar to St. Arnold’s. The switch is expected to happen sometime this summer.

Event: By far the biggest event this weekend is the annual Safeway BBQ Battle on Pennsylvania Avenue NW. We don’t envy the guys who are going to be slaving over those smokers in this crazy heat, but it will result in some pretty sweet barbecue tasting for attendees. The $12 ticket gets you access to the festival, entertainment, and all the tastes you can manage in a day (while supplies last).

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/neighborhood_eats_kangaroo_boxing_club_opens_lots_of_other_restaurants_clos/5679.