What’s round, new, and currently being served in Leesburg’s Chefscape? That would be everything at Chef Ed’s Fly Balls (It’s A Pop-Up!). Chef Ed Hardy has closed both the Ballston Quarter and Chefscape locations of his Rogi kiosk, which sold ambitious improvisations on the stuffed Polish specialty. But in Rogi’s place in Leesburg, Hardy soft-opened his new concept last weekend. “This has been years in the making. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs was a favorite childhood book,” said Hardy in a press release. “But it’s not just meatballs. If it’s spherical and delicious I’m going to serve it.”
The marquee item is Hardy’s “refined version” of his mentor, chef Marcus Samuelsson’s, Swedish meatball recipe. It’s served with lingonberry sauce and fresh dill over mashed potatoes. But that’s just one of four meatball entrees that retail for $10. Hardy also sells his creative takes on Italian, Thai, and Chinese meatballs. The first of those, pictured above, is a diverse collection of round foods, including pasta, cherry tomatoes, and mozzarella pearls. And it’s not all meatballs. There are also arancini–risotto balls filled with fennel, prosciutto, and mozzarella–and hushpuppies with Old Bay and lobster cream. Desserts include whiskey balls, fruit salad with popping boba, and cake pops.
Hardy says that he’ll continue the pop-up for “at least a month, and then decide the next move.” For the time being, that means balls on the menu from noon to close, Wednesday through Sunday. As for Rogi, Hardy hasn’t quite given up on it yet. He hopes to offer his stuffed foods in area stores and restaurants soon.
1602 Village Market Blvd. SE, Ste. 120, Leesburg
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