Business Ins & Outs: Bombas, Café Tulúm, Alfies, Kith, Edikted
By • August 17, 2026 4 1054
In the weeks and months ahead, as previously forecast, we will see an interesting mixture of retail and restaurants making their Georgetown debut: Uniqlo, Beso Besu, Garage, Joe & the Juice, Dayglow, Puree Juice Bar, Spicewalla, East Fork, Jones Road, Delhi Belly, Pop Mart, Dutch Darlings and Thursday Boot Co. as well as those listed below. Get ready for a busy fall season.
“The momentum just keeps building for Georgetown’s retail scene,” wrote the Washington Business Journal last week, as if to underline what this column has been writing for a while.
Citing several top-name, soon-to-open stores, WBJ continued: “All that activity has helped make Georgetown one of the District’s tightest retail markets, per a spring market report from Dochter & Alexander Retail Advisors. The retail vacancy rate on M Street, Georgetown’s main retail drag, came in at just shy of 7.66%, and Georgetown as a whole came in at 8.34%. That compares to a District-wide average of 13.96%. It’s a far cry from how things stood in the Covid-19 pandemic, when Georgetown was one of the hardest hit parts of the city for retail vacancies.”
In: Bombas
“The comfort-focused apparel brand known for its One Purchased = One Donated mission,” Bombas opened its first Washington, D.C., store at 1400 Wisconsin Ave. NW. on Aug. 14. The socks-and-more retailer was co-founded by Georgetown University alum Randy Goldberg in 2013.
To celebrate the opening, Bombas offered opening-day surprises, “including exclusive Crab Socks, available to the first 150 customers” with a D.C. signature.
The clothing store is at the corner of Wisconsin Avenue and O Street, in the space that previously housed shoe and apparel retailer Dolce Vita.
In: Café Tulúm
Bringing beach vibes to Georgetown, Café Tulúm offers “the vibrant flavors and lively atmosphere of southern México. Specializing in tacos, tostadas, oysters and ceviches, our restaurant offers an authentic culinary experience with top-quality ingredients.” The restaurant joins the Grace Street Collective at 3210 Grace St. NW.
Part of Hamilton Collective, Alfie’s is between Flora Pizzeria, also opening soon, and Two Nine Sushi along the Congress Court alley. Georgetowner photo.
In: Alfie’s (in the Alley) on Sept. 2
Alfie’s, the short-lived Thai pop-up restaurant from the chef behind Lucky Buns, will soon be resurrected in a Georgetown alley. The Washington Business Journal reported in 2025: “Chef Alex McCoy has inked a deal for space at 1228½ 31st St. NW, part of Hamilton Court, which is undergoing a major renovation from developers Ezra and Jessica Glass, as The Georgetowner recently reported. McCoy is teaming up on the second iteration of Alfie’s with chef Justin Ahn of Annandale Korean fusion restaurant Incheon.”
On Sept. 2, Alfie’s —a northern Thai restaurant and natural wine bar—will reopen in a custom-built space in Georgetown. A soft opening kicks off the weekend before, according to Washingtonian.
“It’s got a bit of that feel of a hole-in-the-wall wine bar in Europe, but it also has the feel of a shophouse in Thailand,” McCoy said. “This wasn’t a restaurant before, but we worked really hard to make this place feel like it had been here for 40 or 50 years.”
Alfie’s is between Flora Pizzeria, also opening soon, and Two Nine Sushi along the Congress Court alley.
In (Again): 7th Street Burger
The smash burger and fries joint at 1424 Wisconsin Ave. NW, 7th Street Burger, has reopened after being closed for renovations.
In: Ciao Bella
Casabella Salon at 1436 Wisconsin Ave. NW is now Ciao Bella Nail Salon. The new ownership under Ravi and Justin Benedict will continue the natural nail services such as manicures, pedicures and nail enhancements.
Coming: Pop Mart
It’s another cult favorite. Pop Mart, a Beijing-based toy company, is heading to 3221 M St. NW, the former spot of Barbour which moved around the corner to Wisconsin Avenue. Think Hello Kitty and beyond — toys like Labubu, Harry Potter and the Powerpuff Girls and other pricey designer toys.
Coming: Kith
“Plans filed with the Old Georgetown Board show that Kith, the cult sneaker-and-streetwear label, is moving into 3040 M St. NW, adjacent to Barnes & Noble,” reports Urban Turf.
The real estate blog added: “Kith has built a devoted following since Ronnie Fieg opened his first store in New York in 2011, growing into one of the more prominent names in the streetwear-meets-luxury space through collaborations with brands like Nike, Adidas, and New Balance. Its stores are as much a draw as the merchandise: locations typically include Kith Treats, a cereal-and-ice-cream bar, and increasingly Ronnie’s Pronto, a grab-and-go café concept the brand has rolled out in its newer flagships in London and West Hollywood.”
Coming: Edikted
As reported by the Journal: Edikted, the women’s clothing retailer popular with Gen Zers, which plans a 3,890-square-foot store in the space at 3135 M St. NW, formally occupied by Allbirds, which closed its store in February. It’s also got a presence at Tysons Corner Center. Founded in Tel Aviv, Israel, in 2020 by entrepreneurs Dedy Shwartzberg and Zvika Alon, the Los Angeles-based company lists 18 U.S. stores in 10 states.
The vacancy comparison — 7.66% on M Street versus 13.96% district-wide — gives the openings useful context. A quarterly table showing announced openings, actual opening dates, closures, and net occupied storefronts would help readers separate momentum from the pipeline. For smaller operators, even a broad rent or foot-traffic range by block would make the column more actionable.
The mix of new restaurants and retail openings shows how much a neighborhood depends on clear visual identity. For small businesses turning a menu or product launch into a short social video, removing a distracting background can keep attention on the food, product, or storefront while the message stays consistent across channels.
The comparison of incoming stores, openings and vacancy figures is much easier to follow when the retail pipeline is treated as a sequence. A simple visual flowchart could help local operators track announcement, opening, and occupancy milestones without losing the context behind each change.
The running list of openings feels especially useful because it shows how a neighborhood’s identity changes block by block. A short visual timeline of announced, opened, and closed spaces could make those shifts even easier to follow for local readers.