The restaurant and bar team behind Shaw's Ivy and Coney and Midlands Beer Garden in Park View has acquired a former auto shop at the Parks at Walter Reed, which they plan to convert into a casual restaurant for the growing community.
Walnut House LLC, managed by restaurateurs Trent Allen, Robin Webb, Chris Powers and Josh Saltzman, paid $1.7 million for the leasehold interest in the 1,965-square-foot auto shop along Cameron Avenue, adjacent to the Great Lawn and dog park, per the D.C. Recorder of Deeds. The historic property was listed for $1.5 million by Feldman Ruel, which represented the Parks at Walter Reed development team — Hines, Urban Atlantic and Triden Development Group — in the sale. Pat Slagle of Colliers represented the buyers.
"We have been looking for the right space for our next restaurant for five years,” Allen said in a statement. “As soon as we saw the Auto Shop, in this vibrant neighborhood so close to Rock Creek Park, we knew we were home.”
The future restaurant’s name and opening timeline will be disclosed at a later date. It was not immediately clear why the group named the LLC Walnut House.
The restaurant project is expected to advance in two phases, first this summer with an airstream trailer, rotating food trucks and community events on the patio, followed by a grand opening of the full-service bar and restaurant in spring 2025.
The Park at Walter Reed is the 66-acre redevelopment of the former Walter Reed Army Medical Center campus. Between its apartments, condos and townhomes, it is now home to more than 1,200 residents, a Whole Foods Market and a host of other retailers and restaurants.
Feldman Ruel continues to market for sale a former firehouse at 6801 Cameron Drive NW, across the street from the auto shop. The asking price for the 5,803-square-foot building is $2.2 million.