Part of the fun of the staycation is discovering new places to eat right in your own hometown. For husband and me, we hit the town on Saturday night of our Labor Day staycation and found our new favorite restaurant in Arlington: Eventide

Located on the Wilson Blvd strip in the heart of Clarendon, Eventide offers three levels of culinary goodness, starting with bar eats and cheap drinks on level one, fine dining on level two, and rooftop fare on level three. Husband and I opted for the ground level offering and settled into a booth in the center of the restaurant.

What I liked most about the atmosphere was the cool local art hanging on the walls. I didn’t get a great picture of it but you can kinda get the idea here.

Once we were seated we were delighted to learn that we had arrived just in time for happy hour on a Saturday no less at a place with really good beers. Husband enjoyed his favorite Whit Allagash and I tried some local Whits and Heffs from Flyin Dog (not bad).

For an appetizer we had home made soft pretzels with Housemade peach mustard and deviled Virginia ham… this was TO DIE FOR. So much so it was gone before I could take a photo. We will go back for these pretzels alone. They were better than Auntie Anns I swear.

I also tried the fried oysters for an appetizer, they were ok but honestly it wasnt even fair to mention them against the pretzels. Ahhhh the pretzels…..

For dinner we both tried the Cuban Style Pan-Fried Skirt Steak with Chimichurri mashed potatoes, caramelized peppers & onions.

The portion size was ENORMOUS for only $16. Neither of us finished our steaks. We should’ve split one (word to the wise).

The chimichurri sauce was perfect. Upon first taste we were instantly transported back to memories of our time in Argentina in 2006. It was the perfect blend of herbs and spices. Delish.

After dinner we took the elevator up to the third floor to see what we missed. The dining patio looked awesome but the bar area was tiny and not worth it, especially when you could see the palatial rooftop bar at Clarendon Ballroom just two rooftops over. Our advice: if you want the rooftop experience at Eventide, be sure to opt to dine on the roof not just visit the bar.

We plan to go back to Eventide soon to dine in the main dining room and when we do I will be sure to post a brightside blog about the experience.