Nine spots offer everything from Champagne and oysters to pizza and “pig sundaes”
Growing up in suburban New Jersey, chef Mike Isabella learned a thing or two about malls. Which is why the prolific restaurateur’s first-ever mall restaurant is anything but.
“I tried to stay away from malls,” says Isabella, who launches a massive Tysons Corner food hall, Isabella Eatery, on Monday. “Maggiano’s, Cheesecake Factory—people are tired of that. There’s nothing unique to anything there.”
The DC-based restaurateur’s solution: a vast culinary complex that spans 41,000 square-feet of the luxe Tysons Galleria and encompasses 615 seats for nine restaurant and bar concepts, both old and new. An inaugural trio opens Monday, including a full-service spinoff of Graffiato, Isabella’s flagship pizza and pasta joint. It also includes two new ventures: Nonfiction Coffee and Retro Creamery sweets parlor. Six other venues will debut over the coming month (see a full rundown below with opening dates).