WASHINGTON — Ashburn, Virginia, has become a red-hot spot for new businesses in the region.
Just months after a new Whole Foods opened, two restaurant chains are opening their first D.C.-area locations in Ashburn, and both are hiring.
The Habit Burger Grill, a California-based fast-casual chain, is in preview mode before its official opening on Saturday, Dec. 5, in Ashburn’s Belmont Chase shopping center.
“It’s growing; it’s a great area to be in,” says Steve Pirato, the company’s vice president of East Coast operations, says of the Loudoun County community.
“Ashburn was where we landed because there’s a new development here. We like the development, and we feel that we want to be part of it. But we are looking at sites all over. This just happened to be the first one in the market.”
Pirato says the chain is famous for its Charburgers, but it has a wide-ranging menu that includes tuna steak and tri-tip steak sandwiches, sides, salads and handmade shakes and malts.
Last year, Consumer Reports named the Charburger “The Best Tasting Burger in America.”
“We make everything fresh. It’s fresh hamburger. We make it fresh to order. We don’t stage anything. We don’t have any microwaves in our kitchen,” he says.
The restaurant is doing several preview events this week as they prepare for its grand opening.
Between 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 3, and Friday, Dec. 4, the first 200 guests can enjoy a free menu item.
On Thursday, all of the restaurant’s proceeds between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. will be donated to The Stonebridge High School Booster Club.
Pirato says it’s still hiring, because some employees brought in from California to help with the opening will leave in a few months. It will also need to hire employees for another location scheduled to open in Rockville, Maryland, in May.
Steps away, in the same shopping center, Cooper’s Hawk Winery and Restaurant is still under construction and set for a February opening.
Why Ashburn?
“Things are new and different and exciting, and we like to be a part of that,” says Marikate Langan, the company’s director of new restaurant openings and operational development.
Most of its wine is produced in suburban Chicago, where the restaurant group is based.
“Our restaurant concept is all about the wine, so we actually pair our menu items with our wine for every single thing on our menu,” she says.
“We have menu items that are regular steak and seafood like you’re going to enjoy at a lot of other restaurants, but then we also have Asian fusion … Mexican-inspired dishes and Mediterranean-inspired dishes.”
The restaurant will include a Napa-style tasting room, and you’ll be able to buy bottles of wine and Cooper’s Hawk brand food items, such as olive oil and sauces, to take home.
The restaurant is hiring about 200 people, and you can apply online through apply.chwinery.com, or by submitting a resume at indeed.com.
You can also apply in person at the restaurant’s on-site hiring office on between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 2.
