wendydb22

I just wanted to congratulate Wendy Buckley on the first anniversary of her opening Screwtop Wine Bar. It's been fun watching this small independent business grow and evolve over that time. The process of checking things out has also given me the opportunity enjoy a number of delicious lunches and brunches - not to mention the great wines I've been introduced to by Wendy and her great staff.

Congratulations Wendy. Here's to many more years of success!

TSchaad

Thanks Tom and thanks to the rest of Clarendon and surrounding communities for making our first year fantastic!

Cheers to many many more!

-Wendy

Actually, one of the ideas I presented to Don for an independent restaurant association would be to have a panel of experienced restauranteers offer advice, support and guidance to prospective first-time operators.

It is one area where the input of experienced board members would be invaluable in growing and fostering the local dining scene, and a way in which those of us who have profited so greatly through this board could pay it back/pay it forward.

Not to mention one of the real, valuable services that RAMW fails to provide--and only one of the many for which this community is uniquely and singularly positioned to serve as a network of mutual support and shared vision.

That really really sucks for them. Plus if Starbucks can't make it somewhere, that has to say a little something about the location. Not that I am a fan of Starbucks, but they seem to have a game plan of some sort when selecting sites.

I think it would be good to have a "business only" board of some sort one day. Don..hint hint.

Mihns is just wonderful. My husband and I go once a week during the cooler months for the #3 Pho with as much rooster sauce as either of us can tolerate.

We also always order the garden rolls (not fried).

The service is always friendly, and the wine pours are ginormous!

Another dish that I have had a couple of times is the Lemon Grass Chicken in a Clay Pot - heaven!

The decor is so cute, but I am from the South, so I'm probably a bit biased. We had the cafe au lait and it was very good!

I like the little signs they give you with New Orleans street names, it's definitely more personal than a number from Corner Bakery.

I saw a little Tapster of Abita in the back and an older gentleman sipping one and propping his feet up while watching a football game.

The overall ambiance feels like your hanging out at a friend's house, not a coffee shop.

Everyone should let them iron out the little kinks that are bumps with any new place.

I'm hoping with everyone's support that they will be here for a long time.

Put Steve Bakers Bacon on the New Virginia Sausage and you have a mouthful of heaven!

Great beer list. I usually stop off one night a week and grab a beer while waiting for my pizza.

BTW - Chef Evan does all his prep and baked desserts in that brick oven.

There are not other heating elements in that place. Amazing...

David and I went to Capital Hill last night to poke around and see what was over there.

We went into a little Belgian bistro called Belga and had a wonderful meal. I had venison tenderloin that was fork tender!

The service was wonderful as well. I didn't catch the server's name, but she had short brown hair and did a wonderful job taking care of us.

The beer menu is huge!

Anyway, I wanted to do a shout out because I noticed they were having a Belgian Waffle event this Saturday. It sounded intriguing, and I HEART a good Belgian waffle.

Passing along the website - http://www.belgacafe.com

We are gearing up for a busy Fall season and hiring a couple of new experienced servers.

If you are interested, please email my GM - Amy, with your resume/past experience. Amy@screwtopwinebar.com.

Great Discounts!

Flexible Schedule

Metro Accessible

Good $$$

Must Love People & Wine

Thanks,

-Wendy

Hey Wendy,

Can I ask how the seating/crowds are going now? I used to try to come by and it was always too packed to get a seat without a very long wait. I hope of course this is still the case for your business just wondering when the best times to stop by are, especially because Hubby's work schedule makes it hard to come by at non-rush hour times, but I would really like to bring him by.

Thanks.

You know Kate it is just so random. But it's definitely a lot better (for diners) than it was in Feb & March. Much less of a wait, which is good.

I can't guarantee (no wait) but less of one and we have a much better system in place which makes for a more enjoyable experience for all!

August would be a great time to bring him in.

-Wendy

Guys the pizzas are great and they don't leave you with that (ick bloated feeling!- must be the organic crust) I eat here once a week.

Get the Virginia Sausage and have them add sauce, goat cheese and bacon.

The spinach salad is also very nice.

They have been through a lot this summer with both the County and HVAC issues

and could really use the support of this group!

-Wendy

David and I went Saturday afternoon and split "The Burger" with bacon, American cheese and a side of rosemary garlic fries.

It was fantastic and more than enough for two people to share.

We sat outside and overheard some folks sitting in front of the Italian Store mocking the gourmet burger craze and the price. --ugh hipsters!

Anyway, I loved the decor and their tie-dyed T-shirts and most of all that grilled burger aroma!

I'm a little nervous of all the pounds we are going to pack on when they put one within walking distance in Clarendon!

Patio Seating has arrived!!

I'm proud to say that only 6 short months after filing for patio seating with Arlington County, we are finally legit!

Hallelujah!

Although I would have preferred opening our patio in early May, this time of year we have found that it is quite delightful and shaded for an early lunch or evening glass of wine.

Celebrate with us "this weekend" by mentioning Don Rockwell to your server and we'll give you a free mimosa or glass of cava when you by one at the regular price!

In other news, a TV (on mute) will be available during football season.

Thanks so much for all your support & have a fantastic weekend, wherever your stomachs may lead you!

-Wendy

Don't forget about Boccato in the morning for coffee/espresso drinks. I always order the cafe au lait, and it's been consistently good. There is usually plenty of parking at that time of day as well.

I'm going to preface this by saying that I have taken my husband to the tasting room once a couple of years ago and had a wonderful experience. Todd was there and the wines and service was fantastic.

I'm on call these days (with our own place) so I seldom have time to escape from Clarendon to go out to dinner. So I was really looking forward to heading there last night for a good meal on my one night off.

We were greeted warmly by the hostess and headed to the bar for a pre-dinner cocktail, which was wonderful.

However the evening took a turn for the worse when we entered the dining room. We sat in the bistro room this time, which was fine on all accounts except that the tiny two-top(next to the fireplace) that sat us at was in ear shot of the dishwashers. So I had to lean in to hear what my husband was saying most of the night because of the pots and pans clanking around.

Service was joyless, slow and also a bit spotty in kind of a knee jerk reaction kind of way most of the night. But, other than the dishwashing noise I was having a pretty good time.

We ordered a bottle of wine and a nice young lady brought it by to show it to us, and took it to the back to open it, which I thought was odd. I have been taught to always open a bottle in front of the customer. So she returns 5 minutes later with the open bottle (foil at the top mutilated) and pours me a sip and I taste it (mind you I have a cold, so I ask my husband if he minds tasting it as well...and I didn't think it was corked I just wanted him to try it and she jumps in immediately to say she had tried the wine in the back and it was fine. Then she pours him a sip and he likes it, then she insists on decanting it, which I said wasn't necessary (2007 Tablas Creek from Paso) but she takes off with the bottle nonetheless.

The night came to a screeching halt when our entrees arrived. The food runner stood there for a moment(as if to insinuate - can I bring you anything else), so I kindly asked if they were going to bring a side of risotto that we had ordered with our entrees as well and then the food runner gets this confused look on his face and walks toward the kitchen and is intercepted by our server. The server then approaches our table and jumps down my throat and he says "he only has two hands. Your risotto is coming, he’s only allowed to bring out one dish in each hand, he only has two hands". The tone in his voice was so rude that we just asked for a check and we left without touching our entrees.

That server (I should have gotten his name, but I was close to tears and walked towards the front door) ruined not only a rare night out for us, but on top of it all it was also my birthday last night as well. We should have just stayed in Clarendon. My husband said they didn't charge us, but it didn't really matter to me at that point because the damage had been done.

I'll never go back….ever.

To reply to my own thread. Todd called me this afternoon to apologize. That's all I needed to hear.

It was a nice gesture and heartfelt and I appreciated it. Like I said to preface this post, I have been there and had a wonderful experience before.

Everyone has an off night. Including me. Thanks for understanding and for reaching out. - Wendy

I'm so excited for this! Wonder who the chef will be?

I'm going to preface this by saying that I have taken my husband to the tasting room once a couple of years ago and had a wonderful experience. Todd was there and the wines and service was fantastic.

I'm on call these days (with our own place) so I seldom have time to escape from Clarendon to go out to dinner. So I was really looking forward to heading there last night for a good meal on my one night off.

We were greeted warmly by the hostess and headed to the bar for a pre-dinner cocktail, which was wonderful.

However the evening took a turn for the worse when we entered the dining room. We sat in the bistro room this time, which was fine on all accounts except that the tiny two-top(next to the fireplace) that sat us at was in ear shot of the dishwashers. So I had to lean in to hear what my husband was saying most of the night because of the pots and pans clanking around.

Service was joyless, slow and also a bit spotty in kind of a knee jerk reaction kind of way most of the night. But, other than the dishwashing noise I was having a pretty good time.

We ordered a bottle of wine and a nice young lady brought it by to show it to us, and took it to the back to open it, which I thought was odd. I have been taught to always open a bottle in front of the customer. So she returns 5 minutes later with the open bottle (foil at the top mutilated) and pours me a sip and I taste it (mind you I have a cold, so I ask my husband if he minds tasting it as well...and I didn't think it was corked I just wanted him to try it and she jumps in immediately to say she had tried the wine in the back and it was fine. Then she pours him a sip and he likes it, then she insists on decanting it, which I said wasn't necessary (2007 Tablas Creek from Paso) but she takes off with the bottle nonetheless.

The night came to a screeching halt when our entrees arrived. The food runner stood there for a moment(as if to insinuate - can I bring you anything else), so I kindly asked if they were going to bring a side of risotto that we had ordered with our entrees as well and then the food runner gets this confused look on his face and walks toward the kitchen and is intercepted by our server. The server then approaches our table and jumps down my throat and he says "he only has two hands. Your risotto is coming, he’s only allowed to bring out one dish in each hand, he only has two hands". The tone in his voice was so rude that we just asked for a check and we left without touching our entrees.

That server (I should have gotten his name, but I was close to tears and walked towards the front door) ruined not only a rare night out for us, but on top of it all it was also my birthday last night as well. We should have just stayed in Clarendon. My husband said they didn't charge us, but it didn't really matter to me at that point because the damage had been done.

I'll never go back….ever.

SEATING FUN -

Well, the seating situation at our wine bar has gone full scale Pentagon City Costco Parking lot. It's enough to give anyone bar rage.

Sooo this past Saturday we tried a wait-list, which worked wonders , and from now on if you come in when it's busy Amy, my awesome bar manager will take your name down and you will get the next seat/table available. I'm also working on installing a drink rail near the door within the next month, so that you have a place to sit your glass down while you wait.

Also to clear up any confusion about the two large tables in my retail area. Yes those are communal tables 90% of the time. So feel free to have a seat and make some new friends.

Each table seats 8 comfortably. Those two tables can also be reserved for parties of 5 or more, just call us at the shop 703-888-0845.

Thanks so much for all the wonderful support and feedback. It's been a wonderful two months and I look forward to many more years as an Independent Clarendon Business!

-Wendy

Wendy Buckley, Chief Executive Wino

Nice profile. Congrats.

Thank you so much!

We have been working really hard, and I am very happy that people are enjoying the bar.

I love the Poblano! My husband and I eat at the Harrison St. location about once every two weeks.

The food is always consistent and the margaritas hit the spot after a particularly rough week/end.

I order the pork tacos or tostada probably the most. Yum.

Well we have opened and everything is rocking and rolling (which is great). Unfortunately one of our cooks is moving to Portland!, so we need to start thinking about looking for a replacement for him.

The menu is super simple to execute and the pay is negotiable based on experience. Part time to start out is fine and the position has the ability to grow into something great for the right candidate. We are metro accessible on the Orange line.

Please email resume/or work history and any questions you might have to wendy@screwtopwinebar.com

Thanks!

-Wendy

Well we have been really really busy, which is a good thing. So busy that I am still looking for a full time chef, as well as experienced SERVERS, and two RETAIL POSITIONS as well.

Great Pay and Delectable Discounts!! Must Love wine and cheese.

Well we have opened and everything is rocking and rolling (which is great). Unfortunately one of our cooks is moving to Portland!, so we need to start thinking about looking for a replacement for him.

The menu is super simple to execute and the pay is negotiable based on experience. Part time to start out is fine and the position has the ability to grow into something great for the right candidate. We are metro accessible on the Orange line.

Please email resume/or work history and any questions you might have to wendy@screwtopwinebar.com

Thanks!

-Wendy

I saw the POS system go in yesterday so he has to be close now. I'm looking forward to trying out his cupcakes. I have heard great things about them from the Zoso staff!

after having registered many moons ago, i think this is my first actual post. damn if i won't be stopping through screwtop by weeks end.

i've yet to venture from courthouse over to the Zaso complex but man does it seem like there are some winners. thread is inspiring -- seems like a place i need to support asap! see you soon, wendy!

I know It's a cold walk down from Courthouse these days, so I truly appreciate your support!

Communal Table Added!!

Well, while I love the steady business in the evening, I feel awful to have people come in and not be able to get a seat.

So I did a little makeover of my retail area and there is now a beautiful communal table with seating for 6-7 there.

I love this table (it actually came from my very own dining room!)

Also I am trying to boost the lunch business. So here are some coupons for you guys this month as a little incentive.

http://www.screwtopwinebar.com/january_lunch_coupons_screwtop.pdf

Thanks to everyone for the support.

Have a great night.

-Wendy

Thanks so much! I'm definitely pleased with the turnout and trying to offer the best value possible...i.e. cheese plates.

My staff has been encourage never to serve an anemic cheese plate, so I am glad you were pleased with the portions.

John, it was a delight to meet you in the flesh!

Take care,

-Wendy

And the parking situation is...

Um...free.