Top 2018 Business Stories In Del Ray: Best Southern Eatery, More

ALEXANDRIA, VA—It's been a big year for business in Del Ray with exciting new openings to the Amazon announcement and goodbyes to beloved businesses.

From a love story at a Del Ray restaurant and plans for a future beer garden, there was plenty of business news to talk about in 2018.

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Here are the top business stories around Del Ray over the last calendar year:

Alexandria Eatery Named A 2018 Best Southern Restaurant

Alexandria's own RT's Restaurant is the only Virginia restaurant claiming a spot on Open Table's list of 50 Best Southern Restaurants in America 2018. The Mount Vernon Avenue restaurant has been offering authentic Cajun and Creole cuisine for over 30 years.

Alexandria Restaurant Ranked Best Cheap Eat Of The Year

Alexandria's own Royal Nepal was ranked the best cheap eat of 2017 in the Baltimore-Washington region restaurants by food critic Tim Carman. The restaurant serves Indian and Nepalese specialties.

Innovation Campus, Other Amazon HQ Impacts Coming To Alexandria

A new Amazon headquarters site will be located in a newly branded neighborhood called National Landing, which includes parts of Pentagon City and Crystal City in Arlington and Potomac Yard in Alexandria. While Amazon itself will be headquartered in Crystal City, a new Virginia Tech Innovation Campus in Potomac Yard comes along with the Amazon development.

• Amazon HQ2 Decision Spurs Major Change To Potomac Yard Metro
• Amazon Team Visited Del Ray Eatery Before HQ2 Selection: Report

Catch On The Ave To Opens In Del Ray

Catch on the Ave, a restaurant with a seafood focus, opened in December. It replaces SnackBar at the former Caboose Cafe location.

• SnackBar And Bagel Uprising Close In Del Ray: Report

Charlie's On The Avenue Gets Beer Garden, Extended Hours

Alexandria City Council approved an outdoor beer garden area and extended hours for the new Charlie's on the Avenue restaurant at 1501 Mount Vernon Avenue. The restaurant opened in late summer at the former FireFlies location.

Fast Casual-Type Dining Coming To Alexandria Schools

Student feedback led Alexandria City Public Schools to fast casual-type dining dining program based out of Sterling. The program started at T.C. Williams High School's King Street campus and will expand to other secondary schools throughout the year.

Del Ray Eatery Mentioned As A Top 'Delicious Destination' In U.S.

A group of four travel writers for Expedia recently compiled a list of their top "delicious destinations" around the country. The 11 picks included big cities to small towns, and Alexandria was one of those choices. Travel blogger Chloe Mulline said Del Ray Cafe impressed her in particular.

Del Ray Beer Garden Could Soon: Report

Matt Rofougaran and Paymon Hadjiesmaeiloo of Tysons Biergarten will open a beer garden and restaurant called Hops 'n' Shine. The team acquired the space at 3410 Mount Vernon Avenue that housed Señor Chicken, which Hadjiesmaeiloo's father owned.

Couple's Love Story Begins At Del Ray Pizzeria

Sarah Goodman and Umair Khan's wedding is not only the story of love conquering all. It's the story of Alexandria. She was a Jewish special education teacher and he was a Muslim banker when they met working part-time jobs at Del Ray Pizzeria.

Image via M. Enriquez/Visit Alexandria