If you’ve been missing the relaxed bar vibe that was Whitlow’s on Wilson, Nettie’s Tavern aims to fill that void. At the same time, the new gastropub is an entity all its own in the Clarendon dining scene.
Opening today, Nettie’s is the passion project of Reese Gardner, an Appalachian native turned Arlingtonian who also owns Brass Rabbit Pub and Quinn’s on the Corner. He has two goals for the space. Firstly, he hopes to bring a laidback bar back to the Whitlow’s space, which closed in 2021 after 26 years.
“When the space became available, he jumped on it,” says Victoria Johnson, the restaurant’s marketing director.
The building had a short stint as music venue B Live and tropics-themed restaurant Coco B’s. Gardner wants to bring it “back to what this corner was 10 years ago, which is that down-home, fun bar,” she says.
His other goal is to pay homage to an Italian immigrant who called Appalachia home. Gardner met Nettie six years ago in West Virginia and they became fast friends. They’d chat over beers and football games until she died in 2021.
Gardner “was fascinated by who she was, her story and her background,” Johnson says. He even wrote a book about her titled Nettie: An Appalachian Story.
That’s why the menu focuses on comfort food with an Italian bent. The specialty is a pepperoni roll made with house-made marinara and fresh dough. It’s a staple in West Virginia and the Pennsylvania area, where coal miners brought it as a snack because it doesn’t need to be refrigerated.
A menu item that’s been getting buzz since the restaurant’s soft opening Aug. 5 is The Burra-Della. It’s a sandwich stuffed with mortadella, burrata cheese, pesto, pistachios and hot honey.
Find venison meatballs and fried ravioli under “Starters” and Spicy Vodka Rigatoni under “Entrees.” Or try a long bread, a 14-inch-long flatbread pizza with toppings such as mushrooms and truffle oil or chicken and pesto. Cap off the meal with a serving of lemoncello panna cotta.
“Our kitchen is a scratch kitchen, so our staff makes all the dough, all the sauces, everything in-house,” Johnson says.
The restaurant is open for lunch and dinner, plus brunch on the weekends from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. “We’re expecting to have a very busy brunch crowd,” Johnson says, adding that a standout on that menu is the Tiramisu French Toast. It’s got mascarpone cream, cocoa, ladyfingers and maple syrup. Wash it down with a $2 Bellini in flavors such as apple and black cherry.
The star of the cocktail menu is Nettie’s Tea, made with moonshine, crushed lemon and mint syrup. Other signatures include the Hillbilly Cosmo (Tito’s, triple sec, cranberry and Sprite) and the Ginger Jar Margarita (ginger-infused Casamigos Blanco Tequila, lime juice and Cointreau). There’s also a moonshine flight in seasonal flavors, beer, wine and Prosecco.
Where the menu trends Italian, the decor swings Appalachian. Covered in wood that Gardner imported from his West Virginia property and green walls, the ambience is cozy.
“On the walls, you’ll find some memorabilia that give an Appalachian vibe, like a deer head,” she says. Nettie’s wedding dress also sits in a frame on one wall.
“We’ve got plenty of TVs because we are hoping to fill the bar [during] football games,” she says. During Monday Night Football, get a $5 bucket of Bud or Bud Light.
Other weekday deals include $5 burgers on Wednesdays, 11 a.m.-2 p.m., and $3 Mug Night on Thursdays, 6-9 p.m. “Back in the day, Whitlow’s used to have Mug Night, so we’re hoping to attract old Whitlow’s customers with that,” Johnson says. (Mug nights are when bars serve large amounts of beer in their branded mugs.)
Nettie’s also has daily happy hour deals from 3-6 p.m., when beer, wine, whiskey and pepperoni rolls are each $5.
Find Nettie’s Tavern at 2854 Wilson Blvd., Arlington (Clarendon).