The more things change in Tysons, the more they stay the same, it appears.
Food Corner Kabob House, located at 8315-B Leesburg Pike, closed last month after more than a dozen years in the Tysons Square shopping center. Signage has since appeared signaling a new tenant that will also be a kebab shop.
Hawasana Kabob Restaurant will become the storefront’s newest occupant, though it is unclear when the eatery might open. A message sent to a phone number listed on the signage went unanswered.
It appears as if the restaurant will be the brand’s first, though Hawasana has history as a local catering business.
Led by chef Farhad Ashkyar, Hawasana Catering was established shortly after Ashkyar immigrated from Afghanistan in 2015.
“The main goal of Mr. Ashkyar is to introduce Afghan cuisine to different races,” his website says.
Before coming to the U.S., Ashkyar “served in the culinary sector with embassies and international organizations and coalition forces,” according to his website.
A targeted opening date has not yet been made public for the new restaurant.
It is unclear why exactly Food Corner Kabob Shop opted to close, as a call placed to the brand’s remaining Annandale location did not provide any clarity.
The move does not necessarily signal the end of the brand’s second location, however, as the restaurant’s owner is still seeking “another spot in the area,” one local real estate broker posted on Facebook.
Per its website, the original Food Corner Kabob was established in 1997 in Annandale by owners Abdulfatah Abbasi and Najib Sidiqi, who enjoyed cooking kabobs while growing up in Kabul, Afghanistan, and wanted to share “homestyle” Afghani recipes with the local community after immigrating to Northern Virginia.
At one point, the business had expanded to five locations, though spots in Centreville, Springfield and D.C.’s Dupont Circle have since closed.
The space adjacent to Food Corner Kabob in Tysons Square has also been vacated. According to a sign posted to the door at 8313 Leesburg Pike, the weightloss clinic Cōpare Health has moved to a new office at 5600 General Washington Drive, Suite B214, in Alexandria.
