Ben’s Chili Bowl To Open On H Street

A longtime clothier on H Street NE will officially be replaced by a Ben’s Chili Bowl. George Butler sold his building at H and 10th Streets NE after selling men’s clothing for more than 40 years along the corridor.

We’ve known that the Ali family, the force behind D.C. institution Ben’s Chili Bowl, purchased the building. But it wasn’t clear whether H Street would get a Ben’s of its own, or whether the Alis would open a different kind of restaurant. Frozen Tropics reports today that a Ben’s will indeed open in the first floor.

Ben’s is as homegrown as it gets, so is having the restaurant replace a longtime H Street shop count as gentrification?


It became very clear at a public meeting last night that the first floor will become a Ben’s Chili Bowl.

Margaret Holwill, who live tweeted portions of the meeting, further reports that the upstairs will feature and open kitchen, and a bar (alcohol served upstairs only). But apparently, the grub upstairs will not be what you can get at Ben’s Next Door.

Read more at: frozentropics.blogspot.com