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A collage promoting Alexandria, VA, featuring people dining, enjoying a park, smiling staff, and the text Expand Your ALX and explore even more of the city’s neighborhoods.

Expand Your Alexandria

O

Old Town Alexandria never really gets old. But there’s so much you’re missing until you explore more of Alexandria’s neighborhoods. Uncover everything from globe-spanning eats and award-winning brews to eclectic live music and inspiring green spaces.

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A chef in a red uniform and black hat is cooking with a wok in a commercial kitchen, tossing vegetables as steam rises from the pan.
KungFu Kitchen
Two people jog on a paved path in a green park with trees and grass. In the background is a white arched structure labeled Fort Ward. The scene is bright and sunny.
Fort Ward Park
A woman in a yellow dress and a man in a striped shirt sit on teal stools at a retro diner counter, smiling and talking, with a server in the background holding milkshakes and smiling at them.
Van Dorn Diner
A woman and a man sit across from each other at an outdoor table, clinking glasses and smiling, with Port City Brewing Company in the background and string lights overhead.
Port City Brewing Company
A live band performs in a colorful, lively restaurant as three people sit at a table in the foreground, smiling and enjoying food and drinks together. The atmosphere is cheerful and festive.
Makeda Ethiopian
A woman in a blue dress and denim jacket stands outside a white house-turned-café with a red door and a “Del Ray Café” sign, next to a chalkboard menu surrounded by greenery and a white picket fence.
Del Ray Café
A person in a blue shirt and black apron shapes dough with their hands next to a container of dough in a kitchen setting.
El Pulgarcito
A bakery display case filled with a variety of cookies and pastries, including several cookies decorated with red smiley faces on the middle shelf.
Veronica's Bakery
A long hallway with red carpet and walls covered in framed photos, posters, and album covers, creating a colorful and artistic gallery effect under bright ceiling lights.
The Birchmere
Three cans of Lost Boy Ciders Comeback Kid dry cider are displayed side by side, featuring a silhouetted figure with mountains and an apple in the background. The cans highlight that the cider is sugar-free and gluten-free.
Lost Boy Cider
A tray of barbecue food with ribs, baked beans, macaroni and cheese, collard greens, cornbread, sliced brisket, cucumber salad, a side of barbecue sauce, and a glass of beer on a wooden table.
Sweet Fire Donna's
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Global Cuisine & Green Spaces in Alexandria's

West End

The West End is home to the city’s craft beer scene with Mieza Blendery, Aslin Beer Company and the headquarters of award-winning Port City Brewing Company as well as critically-lauded international dining, including some of the best Ethiopian food in the region. Plus, don’t miss expansive green spaces like Ben Brenman Park and Fort Ward.

Join Nomarama as they discover Alexandria’s West End below.

Three people eating traditional Ethiopian food with their hands from a large platter of injera topped with various colorful stews, vegetables, and salads. Their hands are reaching for different dishes.
A smiling man in a black t-shirt holds a large plate of assorted food in a lively restaurant or bar with people and colorful lights in the background.

“When I came back from Ethiopia, I didn’t know where to start. We decided to open Makeda in Alexandria given the large Ethiopian community. It’s been six years now and it’s going very well.”

-Daniel Solomon, Owner of Makeda

 

 

Things to Do in Alexandria's West End

White arched entrance to Fort Ward with 1865 and a shield above, flanked by trees and greenery, sunlight streaming through leaves in the background.

Explore More in Alexandria's West End

People sit at outdoor tables under string lights outside Port City Brewing Company during sunset, with dramatic orange clouds filling the sky. A tent, sign, and parked cars are visible in the foreground.
Main Street Reimagined

Del Ray

Wander along Mount Vernon Avenue for raved-about brunch destinations, outdoor drink spots and al fresco festivals. Experience new restaurants including fusion flavors at Zuki Moon and Hi/Fi Tex-Mex BBQ. Plus, Del Ray is known for its Wellness District, a large community of holistic health businesses, and a creative streak energizing made-for-strolling streetscapes.

Four people are at an outdoor café in front of a colorful Greetings from Peoria mural; two sit at one table talking, a third person sits alone with coffee, and one person walks by in the foreground.

Things to Do in Alexandria's Del Ray Neighborhood

A woman in a yellow shirt kneels and plays with a black-and-white dog in front of a wall covered with colorful painted portraits of various dogs.

Explore More of Del Ray

Two women in athletic wear walk together on a tree-lined sidewalk, each holding a yoga mat. They are smiling and passing by a restaurant with outdoor seating and a “Holy Cow” sign overhead.
A colorful mural features bold illustrations of fists, butterflies, and books. Spanish text reads Educación No Encarcelamiento, meaning Education Not Incarceration. The mural surrounds two windows.
The D.C. Region's Chirilagua

Arlandria-Chirilagua

Catch a concert from a favorite artist at the Birchmere, enjoy Salvadorian, Peruvian and Nepalese dining and admire powerful murals in Alexandria’s Arlandria-Chirilagua neighborhood, steps from bustling Del Ray. Named for its proximity to Arlington and the municipality of El Salvador from which many of the neighborhood’s residents hail, Arlandria-Chirilagua offers backyard biergartens and some of the best pupusa spots in the area.

 

Three people stand under an umbrella at an outdoor table covered with pineapples, watermelon, spices, and snacks, appearing to select items. Several other people are visible in the background near a building.
A smiling woman in a black polo shirt holds a pink basket filled with assorted breads and pastries, standing in a bakery with displays of baked goods in the background.

Bustling Veronica’s Bakery specializes in Latin American Pastries, desserts and cakes, as well as Salvadorian, Mexican and Honduran traditional cuisine. Choose from a wide selection of panes dulces like conchas, orejas and churros or try a savory Honduran baleada.

Pictured: Rebecca Salinas, Co-Owner of Veronica’s Bakery

A colorful mural features bold illustrations of fists, butterflies, and books. Spanish text reads Educación No Encarcelamiento, meaning Education Not Incarceration. The mural surrounds two windows.

Things to Do in Alexandria’s Arlandria-Chirilagua Neighborhood

A colorful mural covers the entire side of a building, featuring various artistic designs. Green trees with yellowing leaves line the sidewalk in front, and a clear blue sky is visible above.
The Heart of Innovation

Carlyle

As an economic engine of Alexandria just outside of Old Town, the Carlyle and Eisenhower neighborhoods celebrate the spirit of science and innovation, boasting the National Science Foundation and the National Inventors Hall of Fame inside the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Discover everything from outdoor spaces hosting community events and pop-up shops to Northern Virginia’s first urban cidery. And in spring 2024, check out the opening of D.C.-based Atlas Brew Works, with a brewery and taproom running on sustainable energy.

A modern glass building is framed by lush green trees and a row of illuminated pillars lining a walkway under a clear blue sky.
A large metal geodesic sphere sculpture stands on a lawn in front of a modern glass-fronted building in the evening, with lights illuminating the building’s interior and a person walking nearby.
A smiling person with curly hair, glasses, and a green Lost Boy Cider shirt holds three cans of Lost Boy Cider. The background is blurred, suggesting an indoor setting, possibly a cider brewery.

“Over the past three years, Lost Boy Cider has grown from our founder, Tristan Wright, crafting cider in his home, to becoming a loved staple in many homes across Alexandria and NOVA. We continue to grow alongside the Carlyle neighborhood and we are very excited to see where our community will take us!”

– Annemarie Bresson, Tasting Room Associate and Cellar Assistant at Lost Boy Cider

Things to Do in Alexandria's Carlyle and Eisenhower Neighborhoods

A tray with barbecued ribs, pulled pork, macaroni and cheese, collard greens, cornbread, barbecue sauce, a glass of beer, and bottles of barbecue sauces sits on a wooden table in the heart of the Carlyle Neighborhood.

Explore More of Carlyle

A white lion statue stands atop a large stone pedestal engraved with the word CARLYLE, surrounded by greenery, flowers, and a curved brick building in the background.

Keep Exploring

Things to Do in Alexandria's Old Town North Neighborhood

A modern mid-rise apartment building on a sunny day, surrounded by trees and parked cars, with shops at street level and a red fire truck at the corner intersection in an urban neighborhood.

Top 18 Things to Do in Old Town

Spite_House

Old Town

A man in green clothing and white sneakers smiles while walking past outdoor seating at OConnells Bar and Restaurant, with people dining under red umbrellas and vibrant green plants in front.

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