Columbia Firehouse Opens, Reviving a Beloved Piece of the City's Culinary History

Photo by John Arundel/Local Kicks Orlando Hitzig is the new executive chef at Columbia Firehouse, after star turns at Vidalia, 701 and Old Town's Blue Point Grille.

For three decades, Portner’s at 109 South St. Asaph’s Street was an Old Town institution, the place to be seen for power lunch or happy hour for the city's elites, as well as those in for the day from the District.
 
Sam Donaldson came in every Sunday around noon for eggbeater omlettes after taping ABC's "This Week with Sam & Cokie," and New York Times bestselling author Richard Miniter penned three books on the war on terror at a booth near the bar, while taking overseas calls from Afghanistan and feeding his dog Boxer scraps from lunch. Yours truly founded The Alexandria Times at booth number three, meeting with potential investors and writers before the paper had money for office space.

Photo by John Arundel/Local Kicks "Bookbinder's came down from Philly and missed the mark," said bartender Stu Ellis, right, pouring wine with his fellow bartender, known as Boomer. "This is an institution created by Alexandrians for Alexandrians...Somehow a very sterile atmosphere was created."

It was that kind of place, full of lore and legend. Once Zagat’s highest-rated Alexandria eatery, it was operated for many years by Beverly Hills-based Hamburger Hamlet, which shuttered the venerable restaurant in 2006 to make way for Philadelphia-based Bookbinder's, itself a storied institution dating back to Civil War days.

Towards the end -- which came suddenly on May 31 -- the investor group behind Bookbinder's had even less of a go of it, with a bar which sat empty many nights and a dining room that was sparsely populated with diners.

Locals howled about the pricey $14 martinis and $36 steaks, and pined away for the days when legendary bartender Harry Williams (who worked 19 years and 11 months at Portner's) called them out by name when they walked through the door, their drink perfectly stirred by the time they hit the barstool.

"Bookbinder's came down from Philly and missed the mark," said bartender Stu Ellis. "This is an institution created by Alexandrians for Alexandrians...Somehow a very sterile atmosphere was created."

Alexandria-based Neighborhood Restaurant Group is now running the place, which reopened July 15 as Columbia Firehouse. Gone is the out-of-town attitude and the $14 martinis. In its place is a warm, inviting atmosphere not unlike the old Portner's.

Photo by John Arundel/Local Kicks Built as the Columbia Firehouse in 1883, Mickey said that the recent makeover works to preserve much of the old millwork and nostalgic environment which characterized both Portner's and Bookbinder's. "It's a timepiece," he said.

"I grew up coming here with my parents as a kid," said restaurant manager Chris Mickey, a Bishop Ireton graduate whose father once managed Union Street Pub. "It's a timepiece."

Built as the Columbia Firehouse in 1883, Mickey said that the recent makeover works to preserve much of the old millwork and nostalgic environment which characterized both Portner's and Bookbinder's.

"We casual'd it up a bit," Mickey said. "We took out the booths, put up some fresh new wallpaper  and we removed the 25-foot fake palm tree which made the place look like a hotel lobby."

Back at the oak-paneled bar are Harry and John, who between them served up three decades of collective good cheer at Portner's bar. "It's great to have Harry back to where he belongs," said a longtime regular, Realtor David Samson of Old Town. "They'll definitely get some of the old magic back."
 
Michael Babin of Del Ray, the creative brainpower and leadership behind Neighborhood Restaurant Group's breathtaking and unbroken steak of dining successes locally (think Del Ray's Evening Star Cafe, Arlington's Tallula and EatBar, and Old Town's Buzz Bakery, Rustico and Vermilion), told me Tuesday that he had put a lot of thought into recreating some of the old magic of Portner's.
 

Photo by John Arundel/Local Kicks "I grew up coming here with my parents as a kid," said restaurant manager Chris Mickey, a Bishop Ireton graduate whose father once managed Union Street Pub. "It's a timepiece."

"We're focusing on the highest quality of ingredients and local sourcing of our menu items," he said. "This is a real institution that we're committed to preserving and making successful."
 
Babin, a known eye for good talent in the kitchen (Vermilion's chef Tony Chittum won Chef of the Year last month at the Rammys) has picked Orlando Hitzig as his executive chef, after star turns at Vidalia, 701 and Old Town's Blue Point Grille.
 
His newest neighborhood restaurant will offer two distinct, chef-driven dining experiences.
 
Downstairs, the 120-seat dining room now offers a casual menu with a focus on modern American comfort food, small plates and sandwiches, such as dry-rubbed and smoked chicken wings with buttermilk blue and firehouse BBQ sauces, Maryland crab cake with jicama slaw and Dijon aioli, the firehouse burger - using angus beef - and a Virginia bouilliabaisse.  
 
Columbia Firehouse is now home to two bars. The main bar, located on the ground floor, specializes in pure, authentic versions of classic cocktails including Rickey’s, Fizzes and Sazeracs. The bar also features a large selection of microbrews, as well as an extensive wine list designed to highlight good vintages at affordable prices. The Firehouse bar is also offering 13 wines available by the glass.
 
The second floor bar and adjoining lounge will be open for special events, and will allow cocktail enthusiasts to sample a rotating menu of creative concoctions, as well as aperitifs and after-dinner drinks.  They have left the upstairs design, decor and wood that the previous restaurant, Bookbinders had put into place.
 
The 80-seat upstairs dining room, which tentatively opens next month, will serve as a classic chophouse with most of the restaurant's meats and all of its charcuterie selected, butchered and prepared in-house by Red Apron, NRG's resident butcher now housed at Tallula.
 
"All of the meats served at Columbia Firehouse will be sourced from pure breeds at carefully selected farms only," Hitzig said. "Most cuts will come from local Virginia and Maryland farms that practice responsible farming methods – pasture raised, without the use of preservatives or hormones."
 
Red Apron's popular charcuterie and sausages will also be staples on a menu that will boast updated classics such as Steak Tartare with pickled mushrooms, caramelized onion aioli and spicy cheddar “chz-its” and Steamed mussels with Dijon mustard, smoked bacon and cornbread croutons. We are told that caribou and venison will make the occasional appearance on the menu.
 
Fresh local oysters from Dragon Creek Aqua Farm will be a mainstay, as will steakhouse side dishes featuring seasonal ingredients, such as white corn succotash with Virginia ham and summer squash ratatouille. The restaurant also will be buying all their vegetables and fruits locally. The restaurant's seafood is also being purchased from a local vendor.
 
"We know this is a place that a lot of people here came and enjoyed, and we want to recreat that new level of service," Babin said. "We're going to turn this into a very special place."
 
Columbia Firehouse is located at 109 South St. Asaph Street in Alexandria. For reservations or call (703) 684-7008 or visit their Web site at www.columbiafirehouse.com.