Photo courtesy of JMc Architects of Alexandria
Diners are in for a visual treat at Finn & Fire in Old Town Alexandria.
A new seafood-and-steak destination has arrived in Old Town. Finn & Fire is now welcoming guests at 111 N. Pitt St., the former home of Kismet Modern Indian, with a globally minded menu and an interior designed to whisk diners somewhere a little more tropical.
The name says it all. Finn leans into the sea — sustainably sourced fish, sushi rolls and a raw-bar sensibility — while Fire turns up the heat with char-grilled steaks and surf-and-turf. It's a fusion concept built for lingering dinners, and a notable step up in ambition for Old Town's ever-growing restaurant row.
The woman behind it
Finn & Fire is the latest venture from chef and owner Ghazal Amir, the self-taught restaurateur behind Crab Cab, the crab-and-shrimp favorite she grew from a 2013 food truck into a brick-and-mortar kitchen in Fairfax County. With Finn & Fire, Amir trades the casual counter for a polished, sit-down concept — her most upscale project yet, and her first in the heart of Old Town.
One of the cornerstones of the menu is sushi.
"I love sushi," Amir said this weekend, a few days into the opening of her new restaurant. "I can eat it almost every day of the week."
A Miami chef introduced Amir to Nikkei-style cuisine, a fusion of Peruvian and Japanese cooking which is a driving force at her new eatery.
She noted that "people are raving" about the steak on the menu and the seafood pasta. "It's delicious."
Amir grew up in Alexandria, attending then-T.C. Williams High School. Her mother was a vendor at the Saturday farmers market selling sterling silver jewelry for 37 years. Amir now lives in Maryland near one of her other restaurants, Crab Cab. A second Crab Cab is located at 6328 Richmond Highway.
The single mother of three notes that all of her children are also involved in the business.
Also read: New Restaurant to Open in Old Town Alexandria
A Miami-meets-Tulum transformation
The space itself is a big part of the story. The restaurant was designed by Alexandria's own JMc Architects in collaboration with Sanctuary Room Interiors, who reworked the former Kismet restaurant into something warmer and more transporting. As the architects describe it, the build-out was conceived to "evoke an ambiance of Tulum and Miami" — think effortless coastal luxury softened with earthy, organic texture.
JMc is a small, locally focused firm with a growing footprint in Old Town hospitality; its recent neighborhood work also includes Little Birdie Cafe, Bollywood Masala and Connect & Sip Cafe. For Finn & Fire, the team gave the storefront a refreshed face — among the updates, the old aluminum-and-glass entry gave way to wood doors and a decorative wood surround, a subtle signal of the more elevated experience waiting inside.
How to visit
Finn & Fire is open for dinner, with reservations currently handled through the restaurant's Instagram — the best place to check the latest hours, menu updates and opening news as the team settles into its new home.
With its arrival, Old Town gains one more reason to wander down to Pitt Street: a little fire, a little sea and a lot of Miami warmth, right around the corner.
Hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m, Sunday-Thursday; 11 p.m. to midnight Fridays and Saturdays.
Finn & Fire, 111 N. Pitt St., Alexandria, Va. Follow @finnandfireva on Instagram.
