Food Hall Replacement for Isabella Eatery Opens Today at Tysons Galleria

A Taste of Urbanspace, the Tysons Galleria food hall that has recruited talent from established restaurants in D.C. and Virginia, is scheduled to open today inside properties vacated by the ill-fated Isabella Eatery at the luxury mall in McLean. According to a news release sent last night, the food hall will be open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Monday through Saturday and from noon to 6 p.m. on Sunday. It will not be open on Christmas Day.

Run by the New York-based Urbanspace company, the food hall will introduce Sen Khao, a new Laotian rice and noodle concept from the mother and son team of Seng Luangrath and Bobby Pradachith, the chefs behind Thip Khao in D.C. and Padaek in Falls Church.

An Instagram post from Luangrath indicates that Nyi Nyi Myint, the former chef de cuisine at Water and Wall in Arlington, will lead the Sen Khao kitchen. Myint, who has a Burmese background, was a longtime collaborator with chef Tim Ma (American Son, Kyirisan) at Water and Wall — which closed last year — and Maple Ave. Luangrath and Pradachith were in the process of preparing a new restaurant, Hanumanh, to open soon in Shaw when they were announced as part of the Taste of Urbanspace team just two weeks ago.

Stomping Ground, a Southern cafe from Alexandria known for its biscuits, will also open an outpost alongside new properties from D.C. companies Ice Cream Jubilee (Navy Yard, T Street NW) and Donburi (Adams Morgan, Dupont Circle). Andy’s Pizza, a storefront for D.C. pie company Eat Pizza, will also have a space. In addition to those businesses, three more restaurants are expected to join the lineup.

The Washington Post reports that every kitchen in the food hall will utilize existing infrastructure from Isabella Eatery, which Mike Isabella closed in August as his restaurant group was reeling following a sexual harassment settlement with former Isabella Eatery manager Chloe Caras. A comprehensive story on Isabella’s downfall that Washingtonian published last month details how employees’ paychecks were bouncing during the Eatery’s final days.

• Thip Khao Leads More Replacements Into Former Isabella Eatery Space [EDC]
• Stomping Ground Plans to Set Up Second Shop in Former Isabella Eatery [EDC]
• Isabella Eatery Has Closed [EDC]
• Thip Khao’s Owners Reveal Name of New Under-Wraps Restaurant [EDC]
• Thip Khao, Donburi and other D.C. food businesses to take over Isabella Eatery space in Tysons [WaPo]
• The Inside Story of Mike Isabella’s Fallen Empire [Washingtonian]