One beer café closes, one to open (Virginia)

The closest thing we have in the Northern Virginia area to a chain of better beer bars is the Hard Times Café group of chili restaurants. (I'm a fan of its veggie chili.)

Thus it was bad news indeed to learn that the Herndon, Virginia Hard Times Café had shut its doors two weekends ago.

There is good news, however. A Manassas store will open in September (bringing the number back to 8), and an additional Hard Times Café Virginia location is slated for early 2009. [The on-line list of locations had not been updated as of this morning.]

There is also a Hard Times Café at the Nationals Stadium, Left Field Concourse, at which it may only sell its food, not beer.

At the upcoming Northern Virginia Summer Brewfest (21/22 June in Leesburg, VA), the Hard Times booth will be serving both its chili and its beer (Hard Times Select Lager).

Another multi-outlet group coming to the area is the Capital Ale House out of Richmond. Word is that it will open soon in Fredericksburg, Virginia: its 4th location.

And, of course, Sweetwater has three northern Virginia brewpubs: Merrifield, Sterling, Centreville.

Hard Times Select Lager is brewed by the Clipper City Brewing Company, for which I work.