On a Friday at Chesterbrook Shopping Center, the Safeway lot along Old Dominion Drive now has a margarita counter open until 2 a.m. Surfside Taco Stand opened at 6218 Old Dominion Drive on Oct. 22. On Fridays and Saturdays it closes at 2 a.m. On other nights it closes between 8:30 and 9:30 p.m., according to FFXnow. A few doors away, at 6224B, the McLean Art Gallery is in its final weeks. It leaves in January 2027 to make room for Glenwood's, a Maryland steak-and-sushi restaurant that plans nightly live music and valet parking.
The taco stand's late hours and the gallery's closing date both come from new restaurant leases at the center. Chesterbrook is becoming a place McLean goes in the evening, and the free daytime art space is giving up its storefront to make that happen.
Surfside Is the First Late-Night Sign
Surfside's McLean location is a taco stand. It is not the full-service restaurant of the Tenleytown flagship. The space is about 1,700 square feet, in a freestanding building it shares with Sweetgreen. It is Surfside's first Virginia location. The company behind it, Bo Blair's Georgetown Events Hospitality Group, also runs Millie's Spring Valley and Jetties in the District. Blair told FFXnow that diners from McLean and Arlington have been regulars at those D.C. spots for years.
The schedule is what's new for Chesterbrook:
| Day | Opens | Closes |
|---|---|---|
| Monday to Thursday | 10:30 a.m. | 9:30 p.m. |
| Friday and Saturday | 10:30 a.m. | 2 a.m. |
| Sunday | 10:30 a.m. | 8:30 p.m. |
The menu covers tacos, enchiladas, fajitas, quesadillas and rice bowls. Nacho and fajita boxes feed up to 10 people, and there are kids' meals. Drinks include regular and spicy margaritas, beer, Mexican sodas and a coconut-pineapple Montego Bay punch. Dessert is soft-serve, flan or tres leches cake. The restaurant scheduled its grand opening party for Saturday, Nov. 7, with live music, face painting and free samples, Patch reported. You can find hours and online ordering on Surfside's site.
The opening took longer than planned. FFXnow first reported Surfside for Chesterbrook in July 2025, and the opening was later expected in summer 2026. It came in late October.
Glenwood's Will Take the Evening Further
Surfside starts the late-night shift, and Glenwood's is built around evenings. Federal Realty announced on Oct. 14 that Glenwood's had signed a lease for about 7,000 square feet at the south end of the center, near Small Door Veterinary. FFXnow's report lists what the restaurant plans:
- Seating for about 170 diners and 90 full- and part-time jobs
- Live entertainment every night
- An outdoor patio
- Valet parking
- A private dining room with a temperature-controlled, floor-to-ceiling wine display
Some McLean diners may already know the restaurant by an older name. Glenwood's opened in Columbia, Maryland, in May 2010 as Stanford Grill. It added locations in Rockville in 2015 and in Owings Mills in 2018, then took the Glenwood's name in 2024. The owner, Blueridge Restaurant Group, also runs Copper Canyon Grill. McLean will be the company's first restaurant in Northern Virginia and the first step in a planned regional expansion. The menu covers sushi, prime rib, steak, burgers and crab linguine.
Construction is expected to start in early 2027, with a target opening in fall 2027. Those dates explain the gallery's timeline.
The Gallery Was Always Holding a Space
The McLean Art Society opened its pop-up gallery in September 2025. Chesterbrook's owner, Federal Realty Investment Trust, supported it, and it was always meant to be temporary. For more than a year, that storefront has hosted exhibitions, workshops and local artists' work, with free admission. Now the space has a signed tenant. The society says the gallery will close sometime in January 2027 so Glenwood's can take over.
The society's own announcement, quoted in FFXnow, reads:
"The coming months [will be] a final opportunity to experience the creativity and talent of local artists, explore original artwork, and celebrate the vibrant arts community that has made the gallery so special."
The gallery has two programs left on its calendar:
- "City Life," through Nov. 29. This exhibit features art inspired by city streets, architecture and cityscapes. It hangs alongside a rotating collection of original work by society members. The work of Nancy Megas appears on the society's current flyer.
- "Watercolor for All Levels" with Raj KC, Tuesdays through Dec. 15. The class is five two-hour sessions from 1:15 to 3:15 p.m., for $250. The first session is Nov. 17.
The gallery is free and open from noon to 6 p.m., Wednesday through Saturday. The McLean Art Society's gallery page lists current hours.
Chesterbrook Has Been Swapping Uses for Five Years
The gallery isn't the first longtime use to leave the center. Federal Realty bought Chesterbrook in 2021 and finished an $8.5 million renovation in fall 2025. Since then, newer arrivals have included Sorn Thai, the Maryland boutique Sassanova, the membership-based Small Door Veterinary clinic and Sweetgreen, which opened in December 2025. The Chesterbrook Barber Shop left the center and moved just next door to 6262-F Old Dominion Drive, with help from neighbors, FFXnow reported.
The current tenant list on Federal Realty's Chesterbrook page shows the mix. Errand stops such as Safeway, Bank of America, Chesterbrook Cleaners and Framebridge sit alongside fitness and wellness studios such as CorePower Yoga, Potomac Pilates and SkinSpirit. Food runs from Starbucks and Call Your Mother to South Block, Mylo's Grill, Sorn Thai, Sweetgreen and Surfside. Glenwood's is already on the list. In announcing Surfside, Federal Realty's Mike Ennes called it "another significant step in the evolution" of the center, according to FFXnow.
Where the Art Society's Work Hangs Next
The society is looking for a new gallery space and hopes to announce one by the end of this year. It told FFXnow it will stay active either way. These are the places to see its members' work:
- McLean Community Center, 1234 Ingleside Avenue. A society art show hangs here through Nov. 20. That same morning at 11 a.m., watercolor artist Marni Maree gives a free sketchbook journaling demonstration.
- Spring Hill and Oakmont Rec Centers. Society artists show work at both from September through May each year.
The community center's own holiday calendar adds more local art in the same weeks. The McLean Holiday Art & Crafts Festival brings 80 regional artisans to 1234 Ingleside Ave. from Dec. 4 to 6. Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Admission is $5, and children 12 and under get in free.
The Next Twelve Months at Chesterbrook
| When | What changes |
|---|---|
| Now | Surfside is open daily from 10:30 a.m., until 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays |
| Through Nov. 29 | "City Life" at the McLean Art Gallery, 6224B Old Dominion Drive |
| Through Dec. 15 | Tuesday watercolor classes at the gallery |
| January 2027 | Gallery closes |
| Early 2027 | Glenwood's construction expected to begin |
| Fall 2027 | Glenwood's targeted opening |
Until January, 6224B Old Dominion Drive is still a free room of local paintings, open Wednesday through Saturday from noon to 6 p.m.
Chesterbrook is a good example of how a neighborhood shopping center can change around the homes near it. Watching how new restaurants, evening hours and turnover show up block by block is a big part of how we advise McLean clients. If you'd like to talk through what changes like these mean for your street, TSR Homes is happy to walk Old Dominion Drive with you.
