Beeliner Diner Wins Best Taste At First Best Of The West Event

ALEXANDRIA, VA — West End Alexandria businesses got their time in the sun during the first-ever Best of the West event last Saturday. A highlight of the West End Business Association's event was tastes from restaurants, which led Beeliner Diner to win best taste.

"We were so excited to welcome more than 250 neighbors and guests to our first-ever Best of the West," said Mary Ann Burstein, a realtor who serves as president of the West End Business Association. "WEBA has been thinking about hosting an event like this for years and it's finally become a reality that our community embraced. There is a real desire for a greater sense of community and place on the West End."

The event included tastings from restaurants, small business vendors ranging from florists and fitness centers to imported goods providers, event businesses and nonprofits. Children could get their face painted, while Titans Robotics was on hand to provide demos of their drivable robots.

"We wanted to pull the big, wide West End into one room for everyone to experience, at once," said James Lewis, the West End Business Association's vice president and Best of the West organizer. "We knew that if we built it, people would come. Everyone wants a greater sense of community and who can resist free tastes from our delicious, local restaurants?"

Tastes included Beeliner Diner's famous funfetti and chocolate-chocolate tower cakes, Taste of Asia's sweet and sour chicken and sweet and sour shrimp, Armored Fresh's plant-based grilled cheese, Hangry Joe's Hot Chicken's chicken tenders, wings and sandwich with spice blends ranging from "no spice" to "hangry hot," Kungfu Kitchen's chicken and pork belly bao buns, potstickers and dumplings, and Cameron Cafe's fresh brewed cafe classic and breakfast breads.

Attendees were able to vote for their favorite vendors and restaurants. In the end, Beeliner Diner's sweet selections won over attendees.

Aside from restaurants, other vendors included ALX Dog Walk's Bark Bingo, Blooms of Paradise, City of Alexandria's Planning Department, Elancé at West End, Finca Co., First Home Mortgage, Alexandria Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Committee, Healthy Lives Journey, The Parlor Games, Safer Country, Sam Media Productions, Tenants and Workers United, Titan Robotics, Washington Insurance Consulting Group and The Worx by Maia.

The event drew attendance from city officials like Vice Mayor Amy Jackson, Councilmembers Canek Aguirre, John Chapman, Alyia Gaskins and Kirk McPike and Alexandria Fire Chief Corey Smedley.

The West End Business Association said the event was possible with support from the Patrick Henry Rec. Center's staff, Visit Alexandria, Del Ray Business Association/Taste of Del Ray, Old Town North Partnership, Old Town Business Association, Carlyle Council and Alexandria Chamber of Commerce. The Alexandria Economic Development Partnership provided seed funding to launch the event as part of a grant to the association for community programming and capacity building.