Most of Rosslyn's holiday calendar this year happens at Central Place Plaza, 1800 N. Lynn St. On the evening of Thursday, Dec. 3, a 24-foot tree will be lit there. Over the six weeks before and after the lighting, the same plaza hosts a holiday market, a morning hot chocolate handout, an ornament giveaway and a dog-friendly happy hour. Upside on Moore, the food hall at 1700 N. Moore St., runs its own November program of classes, a cocktail week and a whole-tuna carving.

Across the river, getting into the city on foot or by bike got harder this fall. Taken together, Rosslyn's best stretch of the year is on its own side of the Potomac, at two addresses.

The crossing that closed in September

The bike and pedestrian trail on the Theodore Roosevelt Bridge closed on Monday, Sept. 21. The District Department of Transportation expects to reopen it in September 2027, ARLnow reported. Signed detours send walkers and cyclists to Key Bridge or Arlington Memorial Bridge. DDOT's detour plan lists the Key Bridge route at 2.3 miles, about 47 minutes on foot, and the Memorial Bridge route at 2.4 miles, about 50 minutes. According to ARLnow's coverage, Friends of the Mount Vernon Trail told regular users to "plan some extra time and a new route before heading out."

The trip home by car changed too. The I-66 westbound exit to Route 50 westbound, which leads toward Arlington and Rosslyn, closed the same day and is expected to stay closed until March 2027. Drivers are directed to continue on I-66 to Exit 73 and follow the posted Arlington/Rosslyn detour. The full rehabilitation replaces the bridge deck, widens the north sidewalk to 10 feet and is expected to finish in spring 2028, according to the DDOT project advisory summarized by ARLnow.

These closures cover the whole holiday season. A December evening in Foggy Bottom or at the Kennedy Center now starts with a longer walk or a detour, while Rosslyn's holiday program sits within the neighborhood itself.

Central Place Plaza, date by date

The Rosslyn Business Improvement District runs the season under the name Rosslyn Cheer 2026. Every dated event on its plaza schedule is at the same address.

The market is the longest event of the season. The BID's page says it features one-of-a-kind gifts, handmade goods and festive finds from small-business vendors across the region. During market hours, Brightside Blend will serve its winter menu, and family activities are free. Santa's two-hour visit closes out the afternoon, so families planning around it can arrive after lunch.

The rest of the BID's program is spread through the neighborhood:

• Find Cheerio, Tuesdays and Thursdays from Dec. 1 to Dec. 17. The holiday mascot is hidden somewhere in Rosslyn during 10 to 11 a.m. windows, and finders have six chances to win a restaurant gift card. Clues run through @RosslynVA.
• A winter clothing drive, Nov. 25 to Dec. 3, collecting gently used winter clothing for the local nonprofit PathForward.
• Open Rewards through December, with 5% back at participating Rosslyn restaurants and businesses.

The clothing drive ends the same day as the tree lighting, and Open Rewards begins two days earlier. A Dec. 3 visit to the plaza can cover the donation, the lighting and dinner on the rewards program in one evening.

The food hall's November, stall by stall

Upside on Moore's November calendar draws on the same vendors who work in the hall every day, ARLnow reported. The centerpiece is Fall Cocktail Week, Monday, Nov. 9 through Saturday, Nov. 14. Each retail bay contributes a drink, poured all day at the bar for $12.

• Ghostburger: Bourbon Bacon Old Fashioned
• Neko Panchi: Dragon Lychee Cocktail
• Lightning Coffee: Hazelnut Espresso Martini
• La Michoacana: Mezcal Margarita
• Tony Boloney's: Jersey Shore Lemonade
• The Sweet District: Pumpkin White Russian
• Lili's: Lili's Moscow Mule
• Little Tiger Dumplings: Ginger Pear Mule

The two ticketed events fall at the end of that week. On Friday, Nov. 13, from 6 to 7:30 p.m., the owner of Little Tiger Dumplings teaches a hands-on class. Participants make fillings and learn to wrap 12 dumplings in several styles, and the $38 ticket includes snacks and a boba tea. On Saturday, Nov. 14, from 5 to 9 p.m., Chef Saran "Peter" Kannasute of Yume Sushi and Upside executive chef Chafik Hocine break down an entire tuna for sushi, nigiri and sashimi. The evening also includes oyster shucking and a Japanese tea tasting, at $85 per person.

The hall closes the month with a Friendsgiving on Wednesday, Nov. 25, from 5 to 9 p.m., with music, food and drink specials and a gift card raffle. That is also the first day of the BID's clothing drive. The night before Thanksgiving can start with a donation and end at the food hall.

The weekday menu changed this fall as well. Arlington Magazine's running list notes that Bullfrog Bagels became available at the Ghostburger stall in late September, so the hall that runs the evening events now covers breakfast too.

A terrace opened and a corner closed

Two changes on the dining map affect where a Rosslyn holiday evening can begin or end.

Noble Fox Bar & Terrace opened this fall on the fourth floor of 1121 19th St. N., next to the Le Méridien lobby. Its terrace overlooks the Potomac. It serves breakfast from 6:30 to 10 a.m. on weekdays and 7 to 11 a.m. on weekends, closes in the afternoon, and reopens at 4 p.m. for dinner, with happy hour from 4 to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, according to ARLnow. Chef Francecil Ponte leads the kitchen and described the concept in the launch announcement that ARLnow quoted:

"The menu is rooted in seasonality, curiosity, and a genuine love of bringing people together. We've created a place where guests can slow down, connect, and discover something new with every visit."

The menu fits a December evening. Breakfast includes croissant French toast and the Noble Fox Omelet, and dinner includes seared salmon and the Noble Fox Burger with gruyère and truffle mayo. Happy hour starts at 4 p.m. and the Dec. 3 tree lighting starts at 5 p.m., so the two fit together on the same Thursday.

Noble Fox is also hosting a BID event this week. Rosslyn x Pitch-a-Friend takes place there on Thursday, Nov. 5, from 6 to 8 p.m. General admission is $12 and includes one drink, with a limited number of $15 tickets at the door.

The neighborhood also lost a longtime restaurant this fall. Tupelo Honey, at 1616 N. Troy St., closed on Sept. 28 after 11 years when its lease expired, ARLnow reported. A note on the storefront thanked the community for more than a decade of meals and company. Anyone who used to plan a holiday brunch there will be looking elsewhere this year.

The walking map in 2027

The current arrangement has a set end date. DDOT expects the Roosevelt Bridge trail to reopen in September 2027 and the Route 50 off-ramp in March 2027. Rosslyn's own pedestrian links are scheduled to change around the same time. Arlington County lists Gateway Park, at 1300 Langston Blvd. just south of Key Bridge, as in design, with final engineering underway and construction projected to begin in 2027. The adopted plan calls for safer pedestrian access and a replacement pedestrian bridge over N. Fort Myer Drive, at the park site just south of Key Bridge.

Until then, this year's calendar ends with Find Cheerio's final search window on Thursday, Dec. 17, and Open Rewards runs through the end of the month.

If the Roosevelt Bridge closures have you thinking about how Rosslyn connects to the rest of the region, from daily routes to where your next home might be, Premier Partners DC can help you weigh what these projects mean for your corner of Arlington. Contact Us whenever the time is right.