Dahlia, the Spring Valley restaurant owned by St. Albans-grad chef David Scribner, is changing course. Photograph by Matthew Girard.

There was no “going-out-of-business” plan in mind for Dahlia chef/owner David Scribner. But two weeks ago, the DC native closed the doors to his Spring Valley dining room (4849 Massachusetts Ave., NW) and decided it was time to re-focus his energies on a new idea for the space. He hopes to combine aspects of neighborhood-friendly Dahlia with Jetties, the sandwich shop he co-owns in the Palisades.

“This won’t be another Jetties,” Scribner promises. But since the casual, eating-on-picnic-benches vibe has clearly worked at the laidback spot, where madras pants-wearing families and Georgetown students nibble on roasted turkey sandwiches, he’ll definitely mimic the same easy-living feeling.

Since Scribner--who once ran the kitchens at Felix and Smith Point--is still very much in the early planning stages and still discussing details with his landlord, he can’t divulge much. He says that he'll unveil the new concept with a new name, sometime “September-ish.” He says he'll stay focused on the student- and family-heavy clientele that Dahlia has served, and thinks they want something low-maintenance and inexpensive, maybe pasta, pizza or sandwiches. Though he doesn’t want an elementary school playground atmosphere, Scribner, a dad himself, is very amenable to a creative kids menu. No fried stuff (most moms and dads wouldn't approve) but something fun and easy like individual-sized pizzas, which were a favorite at the old Dahlia.