Chick-fil-A’s new ghost kitchen is scheduled to open in College Park on Thursday, Sept. 14.

Called Little Blue Menu, the kitchen delivery service will be located at 7242 Baltimore Ave., the former site of the Applebee’s restaurant.

The ghost kitchen will prepare food for pick up, delivery and catering, including standard Chick-fil-A items as well as wings and burgers.

Although Little Blue Menu will not have indoor dining, there several outdoor tables with blue umbrellas for customers picking up.

The kitchen will deliver within a 10-mile radius of the location, including most of the Route 1 corridor, using hybrid electric vehicles.

The College Park location is the second for Little Blue Menu, which started in Nashville in 2021.

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Community Forklift will hold its last “First Friday” event of 2023 on Sept. 1.

The nonprofit reuse warehouse at 4671 Tanglewood Dr. near Edmonston will be open late, with discounts on modern and vintage salvaged material as well as live music, food and drinks and booths featuring local artists and vendors.

Live music will be provided by jazz-influenced pop Band Brûlée, with a food truck from Catalyst Hotdogs and beer from City-State Brewing Co.

Local artists and vendors include Delia Mychajluk, Blue Basset Barkery, painter Joseph Rogers, Grimshank Art, Skye Marinda Tarot, Monica Creates Daily, Meredith Esguerra and Peijian Art.

There will also be free face painting by Rachel Israel.

Community Forklift is asking for people to RSVP for planning purposes, but it isn’t required to attend.

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Zeke’s Coffee recently began construction on the expansion of its Route 1 location in the Woodridge neighborhood of D.C., just south of Mount Rainier.

“It’s been a long time coming, but today we started our buildout next door,” the local coffee roaster posted on Instagram.

The new space will more than double its footprint, adding 1,500 square feet from the former Kaaos Gym at 2304 Rhode Island Ave.

The added space will be used for Zeke’s main coffeeshop while its current space at 2300 Rhode Island Ave. next door, which it has been at since 2013, will be used for production only.

Zeke’s owner John Kepner told the Hyattsville Wire they will hold in-person gatherings in the new space such as coffee cuppings and tasting events and add more outdoor seating on the sidewalk in front.

He said they were working on plans for the buildout with Bandura Design, an all-women hospitality interior design firm, just a few doors down. They too are renovating their space on Rhode Island Avenue.

Zeke’s opened its third location in D.C. at 4602 14th St NW this past spring, joining its downtown location at 731 15th Street NW and it’s roastery and coffee shop in Woodridge.

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A pop-up brunch spot on Route 1 run by refugees and asylum-seekers has moved in permanently.

Earlier this summer, New York-based nonprofit Emma’s Torch held pop-up brunches at 2212 Rhode Island Ave. NE, on Route 1 in the Woodridge neighborhood, just south of Mount Rainier.

Now, Emma’s Torch is returning to the same location, offering brunch on Saturdays and Sundays with students who have gone through its culinary training program for refugees and asylum-seekers.

Founder Kerry Brodie told the Hyattsville Wire that she first came up with the idea behind the nonprofit when volunteering at a D.C. soup kitchen and working at the Human Rights Campaign.

Brodie told the Wire that she was also inspired to start the program by the work of organizations like Sunflower Bakery in Rockville, which works with young adults with learning differences.

To sign up for a brunch at Emma’s Torch, go to Eventbrite. Ticket prices for the Saturday and Sunday meals, taking place through the end of September, start at $20. You can also donate online here.

Why did you choose the Woodridge neighborhood for your expansion?

We were so fortunate to learn about the space in Brookland when we were trying to find our first location in Washington D.C. We knew we wanted to be in the D.M.V., and finding this beautiful kitchen, in such a welcoming community was a dream come true! We love how friendly our neighbors are and how everyone feels invested in our success. Whether it is stopping by to say “hi!” or asking about our indoor garden, it is so nice to feel this welcome.

Where do you find the people who work in the kitchen?

We work with a range of partner organizations that refer candidates to our program. We onboard a new cohort each month, and are grateful for other social service providers, English classes, and community centers who connect us to people interested in this program.

Any success stories so far? 

Even though we are just getting started, we have been so excited to watch our new graduates begin new jobs and launch their careers. We love to celebrate major accomplishments and milestones for each of them. One particular moment stands out. One of our students recently reflected that this was their very first paycheck, and how proud they felt receiving it.

Who have you worked with locally?

We are working to build our partnerships with local restaurants. We have been so grateful that so many places have reached out about working with us. So far, we are working closely with Rasa, Tatte, Whole Foods, and many others in the area. We look forward to adding even more.

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The New Deal Cafe is looking for a new partner to manage the long-running restaurant in Greenbelt’s historic town center.

A member-owned cooperative with a 25-year history of food and live music, New Deal is looking for a contractor/owner-operator for the restaurant, which is turnkey-ready.

The facility seats 120 guests in three spaces (the coffee shop, event space and an outdoor patio) with a fully equipped commercial kitchen, pastry cabinet, and commercial espresso machine.

The co-op also stresses that the location has ample foot traffic and free parking as well as access to mass transit.

The cafe is currently open seven days a week with live music six nights a week and a full calendar of community events. It was among the Washington City Paper’s “Best of DC 2020” and has won other regional awards.

Experienced restaurant industry professionals ready to take over the cafe’s food and beverage operations in the next three months are invited to send a letter of interest to ndcvendorselection@gmail.com to receive a full prospectus.

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Another apartment building is coming to University Town Center in Hyattsville.

A lot located at the northeast corner of Belcrest and Toledo roads, currently a surface parking lot, will be home to a five-story building with 361 apartments.

The building will also have several amenities, including a fitness center, bike room, pet wash area, courtyard, pool, and lounge areas.

Two investment firms, EJF Capital and the NRP Group, have secured a $61 million loan to construct the building, which is expected to be finished in late 2025.

“Hyattsville is an exciting submarket that benefits from its proximity to one of the most powerful regional economies in the country,” said Asheel Shah, head of real estate development at EJF.

Funding for the project came in part because that part of Hyattsville is an opportunity zone, a special tax area designed to encourage development as part of the 2017 tax cuts legislation.

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Denizens Brewing Co. garnered attention recently for being a majority woman-owned brewery now in its 10th year in business, breaking the barriers in a heavily male-dominated industry.

This past week, Co-founder and Chief Brand Officer Julie Verratti, who co-owns Denizens with her wife Emily Bruno and their brother-in-law Jeff Ramirez, appeared on the TV news show “Morning Rush” for a segment on women in craft brewing.

Verratti, who is also an associate administrator at the U.S. Small Business Administration under the Biden administration, said the biggest challenge in starting Denizens in 2013 was getting startup money, saying 11 out of 13 banks they approached wouldn’t even meet with them.

“If you are someone who does not have those built-in networks already, getting a bank to take you seriously and sit down with you can be difficult,” she said.

According to a recent survey by the Brewers Association, a trade group for independent and craft brewers, only roughly one out of every four brewery owners are women. Even in breweries with multiple owners, the majority had no women.

At the same time, women beer drinkers under 25 now outnumber men, and analysts worry that may leave the industry with “blind spots” on its own best customers.

You can check out the full interview on “Morning Rush” here.

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