Reinventing with Food and Fizz

A little more than a year ago, Eric Nelson was helming four locations of his Artfully Chocolate empire—two stores in Alexandria, one on 14th Street in the District and another in Chevy Chase.

With just the two Alexandria spots remaining a year later, Nelson’s thoughts went to reinvention.

“I really had to rethink how we were going to generate revenue,” Nelson said. “I had intended for a long time to ramp up our offerings in the Del Ray store. With the closings, I had a good amount of time to do some deep thinking about the remaining stores.”

Over the spring, Nelson renovated on Mt. Vernon Avenue, an art gallery and chocolate shop with a strong emphasis on milkshakes and hot chocolate.

After shuffling the interior elements for more seating and reworking the kitchen, the store reopened as Artfully Chocolate Food and Fizz Bar. A new expanded menu boasts creative sliders and soda bar selections.  

The slider idea was generated one evening at dinner when Nelson and his partner, Edward Hart, were thinking of a way to satisfy the appetites and wallets of local families. 

“Parents oftentimes have to buy more food than their kids can eat,” Nelson said. “I was just trying to think of what would be something to solve that dilemma. …

With sliders, the size and price points are good for kids.”

There’s also variety; the slider menu includes everything from a basic cheeseburger to chicken curry salad and a vegetarian black bean burger with a selection of sauces.

To pair with the sliders (which run for $2.95 a pop), there are 10 side-order choices including broccoli salad and mac-and-cheese nuggets.

The fizz menu features some inspired choices like a dreamsicle float and a piña colada float made with pineapple soda and coconut ice cream. There are also retro favorites like a chocolate egg cream soda and a Coke float.

But fear not, diva lovers: Nelson’s screen siren-themed shakes and hot chocolates remain, as do chocolates from Kingsbury Confections.

“We have the same quantity and variety we’ve always had,” Nelson said. “Now there’s just more space and more stuff.”

The shifting of the interior created more space for about 10 more seats inside the store. There’s also a new colorful countertop that Nelson designed himself that creates a more authentic malt shop atmosphere.

The reinvention didn’t end on Mt. Vernon Avenue, either. Nelson has started offering cheeses, Italian salami and other gourmet choices at in the Carlyle neighborhood. He said he’d like to start selling bottles of wine at that store, too.

“We’re really well positioned to go into the future,” Nelson said.