If you’re a Nats fan with an affinity for raw bar and craft beer, you’re probably good and familiar with The Salt Line, the ever-bustling, New England-inspired seafood emporium next to Nats Park, where Ryan Zimmerman sightings are frequent (he’s an investor and part owner).
And if you live in or near Arlington, you’ll be happy to know that chef Kyle Bailey and the partners of Long Shot Hospitality are bringing The Salt Line’s “oysters & ale” concept to 4040 Wilson Boulevard in Ballston. Slated to open in the spring of 2020, the seafood restaurant’s sister outpost will anchor the ground floor of what is to become Ballston’s tallest structure—a mixed-use building with 22 stories of office and apartment space and the next phase of Liberty Center, a massive, 6-block redevelopment by The Shooshan Company and Brandywine Realty Trust.
Grizform Design Architects, which designed the original Salt Line in D.C.’s Navy Yard in conjunction with The General Design Company, is also designing the Ballston eatery. It’s anticipated to accommodate 100 patrons inside, and another 100 outside in good weather.
“The location offers the ideal opportunity to bring Ballston the success we’ve realized with the Navy Yard venue, where patrons use the establishment in different ways, whether for a sophisticated dining experience, or for a drop-in-after-work plate of oysters at the bar, or as a friendly, casual destination for beer and snacks,” Long Shot Hospitality partner Jeremy Carman said today in a press release.
Added partner Paul Holder: “The Salt Line concept is completely family-friendly, and the outdoor element is key for active kids and parents who just want to park the stroller and have an easy, relaxing bite.”
The venture also deserves props for sustainability. Bailey is the founder of the Washington chapter of Dock to Dish, a fishery program that reconnects Chesapeake Bay fishermen with local restaurants and chefs. And as an active supporter of the Oyster Recovery Partnership, The Salt Line returns all of its shells to the Chesapeake Bay to rebuild reefs that aid in the planting and cultivation of baby oysters.
Stay tuned for further developments in the months ahead.