Can Bigger ‘Hooked’ Reel Them In?

Case in point is Doug Palley, managing partner of Loudoun’s own Hooked, a seafood and sushi restaurant with a devoted following. He had such a knee-rattling experience last fall when he had 5,000 square feet of expensive space lined up in Arlington to expand his eatery eastward.

“But then the market tanked,” he said of the soured economy, “I got cold feet and backed out.”

For fish-fans in Loudoun, luckily he did, because a scant month later, while driving along Route 7 in less-pricey Sterling, Palley spotted the path his restaurant would ultimately take: a bigger and grander version in a cavernous building at Potomac Run Plaza once home to the now-closed Pacific Rim restaurant.

Sometime in early October, Palley and his business partners will open the second incarnation of the popular Hooked restaurant, which used to take up a small space at the Great Falls Plaza in Lowes Island. It closed six weeks ago in advance of Hooked number 2.

“People miss us, but we’re lucky to have such loyal customers,” said Palley, 44, acknowledging he had hoped to be open in mid-September. But alas, when building something so big, dozens of booths need to be bought, wiring for more than 30 televisions needs to be installed and inspection after inspection has to occur. So, delays arise, he pointed out.

A resident of Lowes Island, Palley has been in the restaurant business for two years. He got in the industry after selling a technology support call center he once owned. Sitting at home and pondering life after the office, Palley’s internal light bulb clicked on: "Why not open a place I would go to?"

“I knew there was a need for what I wanted,” he said -- that being high-quality seafood in a setting rivaling spaces in Washington, D.C.

Soon enough, and with the help of a business partner, the first Hooked was up and running; and when customers starting showing up in droves, so did rave reviews. In 2008, Opentable.com diners voted Hooked the region’s best seafood restaurant. The year before, Northern Virginia Magazine declared that Hooked had the suburbs' best take-out sushi.

So why change what appeared to be working? An ocean of more space, for one. The old Hooked, which started out as a take-out restaurant, could seat only 50 and lacked a bar. The new Hooked is FedEx Field in comparison.

It can hold about 400 customers inside and will eventually have room for at least another 100 on an outside patio, which will soon have water fountains and a fire pit.

As for the interior, Palley described it as South Beach meets SoHo. “We were looking for something very unique,” he said of the club-lit space bathed in grays with pops of reds and decked out in sleek booths and black concrete floors. “You can’t compare this place to anything.”

 Perhaps he’s right. For instance, how many restaurants, especially in Loudoun, have plasma televisions installed at most tables, from which customers can watch their sushi being prepared?

Hooked also features a large bar, a stage for musical acts, a sushi bar and two large private red tables where customers can chat it up with the chef. In addition, there's a party room for 40, which is already booking up for the holidays.

“We were really trying to bring a downtown feel to Loudoun,” Palley said. “People shouldn’t have to drive into the city to have a good time.”

And with Hooked nearing its grand-opening, Palley and his partners are already looking ahead to other food ventures. Just recently, the group signed a lease to bring a Mexican-seafood restaurant to the Brambleton Town Center, a concept they hope to replicate throughout the region. Also in the works are more Hooked restaurants, possibly in Arlington and Bethesda.

“I rolled the dice,” Palley said of his expanding mini-empire, before almost forgetting he's not going it alone. “And, I know a lot of smart people who are helping me.”

Hooked is near the intersection of Route 7 and Cascades Parkway. To learn more, see www.hookedonseafood.com or call 703-421-0404.