Fans of Clarendon’s South Block Café will be happy to hear that the health-conscious business is expanding into the space next door and opening a dedicated juice bar.
The 640-square-foot South Block Juice Co. will showcase the same cold-pressed juices and cleanses that owner Amir Mostafavi has been selling at his adjacent eatery and by delivery since spring 2013 (his sister operation, D.C.’s Campus Fresh, also carries them). “The juice took on a life of its own,” says Mostafavi, “so this gives it its own space.
Sidle up to the bar and you’ll find the raw, unpasteurized juices (made fresh daily) presented in a couple of new formats beyond the usual 16-ounce bottles. Juice flights will be served at the counter, and larger growlers will be available for takeaway. Mostafavi says he strives to use organic and local produce whenever possible, though not all ingredients can be sourced locally.
The Clarendon bar isn’t his only expansion. Since June, he has been cold-pressing all of the juices for his various operations at a new micro-juicery in East Falls Church.
The [production] space allows us to explore different recipes and expand our lineup,” says Mostafavi, who hopes to squeeze out a few more juice bar locations across Northern Virginia over the next year or so. “We’re going to do more seasonal juices and create three types of juice cleanses—beginner, intermediate and difficult, which has more green juices and fewer calories.
South Block Juice Co., 3019 11th St. North, Arlington; southblockcafe.com