It seems only fair since my post on Sunflower Vegetarian Café appealed to the vegans and vegetarians in Northern Virginia that equal time should be given to those who like meat and potatoes.

Just about anyone who has lived in Northern Virginia for awhile has been introduced to Five Guys Burgers and Fries aka Five Guys by a friend.  When I learn that a client relocating to the area wants to bite down and a real hamburger, I direct them to Five Guys with a word of warning.  Do not order a large size fries unless you want to explode or have a few friends to share them with.  Each order of fries has a "topper" which means an overflow cup with another handful thrown in the bag and impossible feat for even those who haven't eaten all day.

Five Guys is consistently rated by Washingtonians as a "Best Bargain" and "Readers Choice #1 Hamburger."  It is easy to understand why.  In a world dominated by fast food, eating a hamburger that actually has flavor makes your senses come alive.  Want more than mustard and ketchup on your burger?  No problem you can add sautéed mushrooms fried onions, green peppers and all the rest of the usual suspects.

Five Guys has expanded outside of Northern Virginia over the last few years.  My son and his wife recently discovered the Five Guys in Colorado and were excited to learn that they would be opening soon in their neighborhood of Highlands Ranch.  If you are hankering for a good burger and fries at a reasonable price then head on out to one of the Five Guys Burgers and Fries locations in our area.  Grab your handful of peanuts when you walk in the door, put in your order and be prepared for the taste of a real hamburger.

When you live in Fairfax County you can see the beginnings of our nation's history in the estates of our founding fathers, attend schools rated among the best in the nation and visit the US Capitol to see our government at work.  Add to this list, neighborhoods that provide residents with numerous options to live, work and play and you will quickly figure out why Fairfax County has been one of the most popular counties in Virginia since it was founded in 1742.

If you like water then residents of Fairfax County can head out on not only the Potomac River but the Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean are only hours away.  If the mountains are more to your liking then drive west and you will be able to drive along the Blue Ridge Parkway and hike the Appalachian Trail. If you would rather stay close to home then you will be glad to know that the Fairfax County Park Authority has over 400 parks and 24,000 acres to enjoy and the Northern Virginia Park Authority has another 21 parks and 10,000 acres.

 
Residents of Fairfax County are as diverse as the neighborhoods and towns that make up the county.  Two of the largest employers in the county are the INOVA Health Care System and Booz Allen Hamilton and seven fortune 500 companies are based in the county as well.   Many residents take advantage of the extensive commuter network and work in DC.  Our strong military connection can be felt with Fort Belvoir and with the number of residents who commute to the Pentagon in Arlington County.

If a move to Fairfax County is in your future then give me a call.  It would be my pleasure to introduce you to all Fairfax County has to offer.

Photos istock.com

When you drive through the gates of Fort Myer and see the historic brick buildings and Victorian style mansions on Generals Row you realize that this post may be a bit different than any others where you may have visited before.  From the civil war when the post, then called Fort Whipple defended Washington DC from the Confederate Army to today the traditions of the Army stand strong.

Fort Myer is home to the US Army School of Music and The Old Guard the Army's premier ceremonial unit. Driving through Fort Myer you will find stables for the horses and the caisson used for both military and Presidential funerals. The most famous horse remembered from the Old Guard in Black Jack the riderless horse seen in the funerals of presidents John F. Kennedy, Herbert Hoover and Lyndon Johnson. 

How the land that makes up the Army post as well as surrounding Arlington Cemetery came into the possession of the US Government is an interesting piece of US history.  Originally owned by Mary Ann Randolph who married Robert E. Lee, the land was confiscated by the government when the Lee's were unable to pay the property taxes.  When the government took the land they created Arlington Cemetery and Fort Myer.  The Custis-Lee Mansion still stands on the Arlington Cemetery portion of the land.

If the information that the land that comprises the Fort Myer came to the US by tax confiscation isn't enough history it is also the site of the first military aircraft flight by Orville Wright and the site of the first military aircraft fatality. On the second flight attempt Orville Wright was injured and Lt. Selfridge was killed. So much for the fame of Kitty Hawk!



Fort Myer offers breathtaking views of the Air Force Memorial, Washington Monument and Arlington Cemetery at various locations throughout the post.  If you find yourself with orders to Fort Myer then be ready for a treat.  It may be small but the history and tradition connected with the post are some of the oldest in the US.

Are you relocating to Northern Virginia?  Are you worried about finding the right home in a neighborhood close to work or within a reasonable commuting time to your new job?  A standard question for anyone new to Northern Virginia to ask is "how long will it take me to get from here to there?"

Fortunately it is a question I can answer from years of experience.  Why would you take commuting advice from a Realtor®?   Let's face it most agents are not out at 7 am in Northern Virginia driving into the city, around the beltway or on the local parkways.   DC has been named the #3 worst commuting area by Forbes Magazine behind LA and SF so our ever changing traffic patterns can be a mystery for someone just moving to the area.
 

The reason I feel qualified to speak to the commute is because prior to getting my real estate license I had successful careers in the private sector which required me to commute throughout the area.   For years I lived in different neighborhoods in Northern Virginia and commuted to other parts of the area, DC and even for a year to PA.  I drove the streets during morning and afternoon rush hour, rode the metro, connector buses, VRE and even Amtrak.  For three years I picked up slugs every morning for a commute into DC.  

When a military family asks me if they can drive from Burke to Fort Belvoir at 7AM in the morning in less than 30 minutes experience tells me "yes" and I can give you multiple options for the drive.  Ask me if you can slug from Springfield to the Pentagon in 20 minutes and I'm going to tell you "yes" because I did it for years.  Ask me if you can commute from Springfield to Reston Town Center in 30 minutes and I'll tell you "no" because I did it.  Northern Virginia commuting changes with the seasons as well.  When the time changes in the fall the evening commute can get longer due to nighttime driving conditions.  And my best advice is if the weather channel even hints of one snowflake then you need to take public transportation if you want any chance of getting home at all.

If you are a buyer who is looking for realistic information about commuting in the Northern Virginia area give me a call.  I am still on the roads every day, finding new ways to get around both the old and new neighborhoods and keeping current on traffic patterns.  I can help you make buying decisions that include not only the neighborhood that works for your family but also an understanding of commuting patterns in Northern Virginia.

It seemed appropriate today to check in on the changes at DeWitt Army Hospital as Fort Belvoir gears up for an influx of over 21,000 new military and civilian jobs by 2011.  Why today?  It is my daughter Kara's birthday and she was born early in the morning at DeWitt 28 years ago.  Kara is just one of the 64,000 plus babies that have been born at DeWitt in the last 50 years.

The current DeWitt hospital is a typical military hospital with most of the clinics and services that you will find at any civilian hospital.  The outside of the building is showing its age and might remind someone arriving at the main door more of a bunker than a hospital.  Today the hospital  handles up to 150,000 patients including the families stationed at Fort Belvoir, retirees and their families as well.

Rumor had it that DeWitt was going to change to an outpatient clinic before BRAC was announced but those rumors were unfounded.  The plans for the new hospital were already underway prior to the 2005 BRAC announcement.

The new hospital is under construction as you can see from my photos.  Located just inside Pence gate the site is just down the road from the current hospital but it is easy to see how this new facility will eclipse the old one.  The new DeWitt Army hospital will not be a single building but a complex.  Featuring state of the art technology eliminating the need for hand carrying of medical records from one facility to another, top of the line clinic services and more inpatient services the hospital will rival any top of the line private hospital. 

The new DeWitt hospital is just one of the many changes coming to Fort Belvoir as a result of BRAC.  The final decision on where another 6500 personnel will be working is set to be finalized by September 30, 2008 and will be either Springfield or one of two locations in Alexandria.

If you are headed to Fort Belvoir or any of the other military bases in our area give me a call to discuss your housing needs.  Put my personal and professional experience with military relocations to work for you.

No, this isn't a personal question about your belly button.  Buyers moving to Northern Virginia often see the phrase "inside" or "outside" the beltway in MLS descriptions and wonder where are these locations on the map.   For those who have lived in the Northern Virginia most of our lives we have watched "outside" the beltway on the Virginia side expand far west and south of DC.

Just as the term "slugging" started as a phrase to describe riders using counterfeit tokens, the term inside or outside the beltway started with a different meaning in our area as well.  The phrase was originally used politically to describe the fact that most of the power in the DC area was located inside the beltway where the Federal Government is located. 

The first written reference to the term is found with the Warren Commission Report about Watergate printed in 1975:  

"In the White House of Richard M. Nixon, it was said that Watergate would become serious only if it "got outside the Washington Beltway."   Guess we know how that turned out!

Neighborhoods in Arlington, Alexandria, Falls Church and McLean are some examples of neighborhoods inside the beltway in Northern Virginia.  Neighborhoods inside the beltway used to lean towards smaller older homes on tree lined lots however there has been a boom of condo developments inside the beltway.  With the metro and buses within walking distance, many of the newer neighborhoods quickly gained popularity with buyers wanting to ditch their car for their daily commute.

Outside the beltway has expanded significantly over the past 10 years and some might say that it extends all the way to the Shenandoah Valley where you can find commuter lots for van pools to DC.   The selection of neighborhoods outside the beltway is generally more diverse if for no other reason than the space constraints of trying to squeeze homes within a smaller geographic area has been removed.  There has been significant new home development outside the beltway in recent years in the western part of Fairfax County, Prince William County and Loudoun County.  

So another mystery of local terminology is revealed.  If you want to know more about living either inside or outside the beltway give a native of the area a call.  I've got a few other localisms I can clue you into as well!

When you think of Fairfax County you most often think of traffic and suburban shopping malls not historic neighborhoods that retain a small town charm. 

 Located down a winding two lane road past horse farms and a few McMansions you will find the Town of Clifton one of the oldest in Fairfax County. Originally a hunting ground for George Washington and Lord Fairfax the town came into prominence during the Civil War.

When the Union Army commandeered the Orange & Alexandria railway in 1861, Clifton was the southern most station located on the track. Originally called Deveraux Station the Union Army set up camp and fought a number of skirmishes to hold the Confederate soldiers for moving further south. When the war ended one of citizens of the town purchased the railway station and opened a hotel which is now the Hermitage Restaurant. Over the years the town was known for its saloons and later it's hot springs. A little known fact about the town is that Clifton was the first location in Fairfax County to get electricity in 1925.






A number of the original homes that were built in the town are still there today:

The "Homestead" -1771
Mayhugh Tavern -1870
Clifton Baptist Church -1876
Hetzel House- 1908
Harris House-1850
Lucy Virginia Davis Virginia House-1913

Clifton was added to National Historic Register in 1984. The Heart and Hand Restaurant is a great place to enjoy Sunday Brunch or hold a wedding reception, the Hermitage Inn is always booked during the holiday season and a stop by the general store will make you realize you have stepped back in time. Enjoy an hour or two in Clifton and you will see why it is another secret we like to keep in Fairfax County.

If you are looking for a charbroiled steak and potatoes then you will drive right past the Sunflower Vegetarian Café in Vienna VA. If you do you will miss a great treat.

Our family first started dining at Sunflower Vegetarian Café about 5 years ago when it we discovered it had the best variety of vegetarian dishes in the Northern Virginia area. We are a mixed family of carnivores, vegetarians and vegans so finding a place where everyone could be happy was a challenge. Fortunately Sunflower Café fit the bill.

You can't help but smile when you walk in the door and realize that the sunflower theme is everywhere. From the real sunflowers out front (in the summer), to sunflowers on the table cloths and sunflower pictures on the walls you could feel as if you've hit upon the mother lode of yellow and brown. The staff is friendly, you will be seated quickly and your water glass will always be full.

Once you start looking over the menu though you forget the sunflower theme and you start trying to decide what you want to eat. Do you want your dumplings steamed or fried? Do you want your soup with Udon noodles or Jinenjo Sob? We never pass up the seaweed salad despite the fact that we always end up with the little seeds stuck in our teeth.

Then it is on to the main courses. With names like "Peace and Harmony, Popeye's Favorite and As You Wish Garden" you can't help but feel the Zen. The one dish that always satisfies the carnivores in the group is the General Tso's Surprise. Usually made with chicken in more traditional Asian restaurants, here it is made with nicely seasoned chunks of soy protein that you would swear is chicken and garnished with broccoli and carrots. My daughter never passes up the Almond and Blueberry Pie for dessert and you would never know that it has no dairy, no eggs or no honey in it.

If your family would like a little chance of pace then, head over to Vienna (Nutley and Maple) and be prepared for a nice treat. You won't find anyone asking "where's the beef" but you will see lots of satisfied diners with big plates of food.

Sunflower Vegetarian Cafe
2531 Chain Bridge Road
Vienna, VA

The pictures of the devastation left behind by Hurricane Ike are a reminder that mother nature has the upper hand when it comes to keeping us humble.  As families look through what remains of their personal photos and belongings it is a reminder that if we live in an area where a natural disaster can strike we need to secure our important family photos and papers. Moving them to the second floor might work in some cases but as we've seen with the recent huricanes it doesn't always work and certainly isn't a long term solution.

Now that technology has made the purchase of scanners affordable for everyone you should consider making copies of your personal documents such as social security cards, credit card numbers, bank accounts, investment accounts, wills, power of attorney and any other documents that you might need and save them to a computer disc. Make two copies of the disc and give one to a family member who lives in a different area and save the other one in a small fireproof box that you can grab in the case of an emergency or carry with you when you move.

The same goes for photos. If you have old non-digital photos scan them and save as well. If you have a computer full of digital photos you can upload them to one of the numerous online photo albums as a backup for you to be able to retrieve anytime you need them.

 Another option to consider is to have your documents and information professional stored by an online service such as VitaleSafe or a similiar service. Securing your documents through an online service means a second level of backup giving you even more security if you should lose documents or precious family photos.

As you take a look at your families emergency plan or plan for a move consider online options and backup discs of your data. Give yourself a little piece of mind. Remember your memories are priceless don't let them get away!

You often hear the news talk about eastern or western Prince William County but in reality it is one huge county that covers 338 square miles with no official dividing line.  Growth in county has spurred new development throughout the county and one such community is the Prince William County Center development that is located directly across the street from the Prince William County Government Center.

The first thing buyers considering the County Center development might be surprised to discover is the activities that take place across the street at the PW government center.  Did you know you could take in a ball game?  That's right the Potomac Nationals, the farm team of the Washington Nationals play their homes games there.  Looking for music thenbring your chair for the concert series that takes place at the Connaughton Plaza. The community itself sponsored evenings on the green this sumemr as well.   Enjoy an afternoon hiking in the Prince William Forest National Park, drop your boat in to the Occoquan River at Bull Run Marina, get in 18 holes of golf at the Old Hickory Golf Club or just lounge by the community pool. 

the opening of the new Harris Teeter less than a mile away and with Ruby Tuesday's, dry cleaners, hair salons and other business right in the neighborhood is easy to see why the County Center neighborhood has been a hit with for both new and old Prince William residents.   With detached homes, townhouses and condos there is a wide choice of not only the style of homes but prices as well.  Prices in Prince William County are less than in nearby Fairfax and Loudoun Counties which adds to the appeal for home buyers looking to get more for their money. 

If you work in DC or will be stationed at the Pentagon then Prince William County also offers extensive commuting options.  With the Woodbridge VRE station, multiple bus routes and, slug lines, easy access to both I-95 and I-66, the area offers commuters a quick way to get into the city if that's where they need to go.  For military and civilians who are relocating due to BRAC the drive to Fort Belvoir or Quantico you will be within 45 minutes of both at County Center.