WOODBRIDGE — The newest destination theater in Woodbridge is set to open next month.
Alamo Drafthouse Cinema will be located in Stonebridge at Potomac Town Center where the old “Toby Keith’s I Love This Bar and Grill” once stood. The old restaurant was demolished to make way for the 41,000 square-foot theater.
At the Alamo, it’s a different kind of movie-going experience where patrons are encouraged to arrive 30 minutes before their showtimes and order from a full menu of food and drinks — to include beer. The chain also has a strict no-talking or texting policy, something it likes to point out in a 2011 public service announcement posted to the company Youtube page.
“We do not tolerate people that talk or text in the theater. In fact, before every film, we have several warnings on screen to prevent such happenings. Occasionally, someone doesn’t follow the rules, and we do, in fact, kick their asses out of our theater. This video is an actual voicemail from a woman that was kicked out of one of our Austin theaters. Thanks, anonymous woman, for being awesome,” the YouTube page states.
Because of this, Stonebridge at Potomac Town Center spokeswoman Anastasia Podorski says the Alamo will be different than the nearby AMC Theatre which opened in its current location in at Potomac Mills mall in 2003.
“This will be a great place for date night, and for family night,” she says.
The Alamo will have eight theaters and will seat 868 people when full. The space the theater will occupy is one of the last large areas in the shopping center in need of a tenant. }
Come fall, a Spirit Halloween store is expected to return to the shopping center, to a storefront once held by Golfsmith.
Next to the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, a new open space is also being constructed. It will be used to host events and festivals during the summer and for ice skating in winter.
