Joia Burger is expanding into Logan Circle. Eater DC reported that chef-owner Patrice Cleary's Wagyu smash burger brand plans to open a takeout-only window at 14th and T streets NW by the end of 2026, in the kitchen space that once belonged to Bar Pilar before the neighborhood bar closed.
From Mount Pleasant Storefront to Late-Night Counter
The new outpost will be takeout-only and is expected to keep late hours, according to Eater DC: until 2 a.m. on weekdays and 3 a.m. on weekends. Those hours would distinguish it from Joia Burger's other locations, which close by 10 p.m. Cleary told Eater the Logan Circle stretch is “more of a late-night area.”
The space has a notable neighborhood history. Bar Pilar, an iconic dive and small-plates spot at 1833 14th Street NW, opened in March 2005 after coming to be in 2004 and later faced rent challenges, according to PoPville. Before Bar Pilar, the kitchen was used by Cafe Saint-Ex, according to Eater. Joia Burger plans to rebrand and remake the space before opening, Eater reported.
A Corridor Shaped by Rising Rents
What public records confirm
The available reporting does not identify a publicly documented permit, business-license record or property record that independently confirms Joia Burger's planned takeout window at 1833 14th Street NW. The location, proposed format and timing remain based on the reported plans cited above rather than on records supplied for this article. The opening date and operating hours also remain unconfirmed beyond Eater DC's report that the window is planned for the end of 2026, with service until 2 a.m. on weekdays and 3 a.m. on weekends. Joia Burger's website identifies Patrice Cleary as the brand's owner and describes her as a restaurateur and chef, but it does not, in the supplied material, provide additional confirmation of the Logan Circle schedule.
The move fits a broader pattern along 14th Street NW, where commercial rents roughly doubled over a decade to between $75 and $90 per square foot, according to a DCist analysis of the corridor's turnover. The corridor includes compact, takeout-oriented formats alongside full-service dining rooms like the one Bar Pilar ran. The immediate area is also seeing new late-night entertainment arrive — Buffalo Billiards, the Dupont Circle gaming bar that closed in 2019 after a 25-year run, is making a comeback on the same strip as Joia Burger's Logan Circle location, with plans announced for the former Source Theatre space.
Joia Burger's menu at the new window will carry over its signature items: Wagyu beef smash burgers and a vegetarian bean patty, served with one, two, or three patties on potato or gluten-free buns, alongside thin-cut fries. The Mount Pleasant original, which opened on March 6, 2024, at 3213 Mount Pleasant Street NW just a block from Cleary's flagship restaurant Purple Patch, built its reputation with a chopped topping of lettuce, tomato, onion, and pickle mixed to order with special sauce. The brand also serves purple ube soft serve, a nod to Cleary's Filipino roots.
Arena Kiosk Lands Ahead of Garth Brooks Shows
Joia Burger is also planning its first kiosk inside Capital One Arena's Section 105 in early October, according to Eater. Cleary's other restaurant, Purple Patch, has also secured a two-week residency inside the arena's Vaults concession area, scheduled for either the first half of November or January. The venue is set to host a two-night Garth Brooks performance. Purple Patch's arena menu is expected to feature Filipino dishes, including pork sisig and longanisa, according to Eater's reporting.
The arena expansion comes as D.C. leaders channel a $515 million public funding package toward an $800 million overhaul of Capital One Arena. The deal, reported by Facilities Dive, keeps the Capitals and Wizards downtown through 2050 and expands concession space by 65 percent. The venue has also regularly hosted Washington Wizards Filipino Heritage Night events, giving Cleary's Filipino-inflected food brands an audience familiar with the cuisine.
A Decade-Long Path From Mount Pleasant
Cleary opened Purple Patch in March 2015 as one of D.C.'s pioneering brick-and-mortar Filipino restaurants, a run that saw Washington Post critic Tom Sietsema name Purple Patch his favorite restaurant of the year. Joia Burger followed nearly a decade later, expanding in April 2025 to a second, larger location at 2414 Wisconsin Avenue NW in Glover Park, per Washingtonian. Hoodline previously ranked Purple Patch fourth among Washington's top five cocktail bars, underscoring how long Cleary's original restaurant has anchored the neighborhood before this latest wave of expansion.
