Sir Walter Raleigh Inn is fondly remembered as an affordable steakhouse known for its extensive salad bar, making it a popular spot for homecoming dinners and birthday celebrations. The Montgomery Village location, now a CVS, closed in 2005, but the chain once had multiple locations across the DC Metro area, including Baltimore, Bethesda, Wheaton, and Alexandria.
The last remaining Sir Walter Raleigh Inn, located in Greenbelt/College Park, operated until 2020. The restaurant’s menu featured classics like prime rib, French onion soup, and lobster tails. A copy of the College Park menu can be found here.
Of the décor at the Wheaton location, a 1983 Washington Post review said “The decor at the inns was stamped out of the same colonial cookie cutter: the white frame “house” exterior with the electric candles in the imitation upstairs windows. The dark wood tables and the wainscotting. The pale stucco walls adorned with the collection of old farm implements, or pieces thereof. Stamped out or not, this is a comfortable place. The candlelight gives a soft glow and the carpeting yields relatively soft acoustics.”
A 1991 Baltimore Sun review said of the White Marsh location, “As enticing as the aroma was, the taste was even better. Seldom does beef served in Eastern restaurants reach this Midwestern level of tenderness and taste. “Mouth-watering” comes to mind. It was served with an equally good whipped horseradish sauce.”
- MoCo Show readers shared some of their Sir Walter Raleigh memories on a recent social media post:
- “When we were in our early 20s, that’s where we went for our “fancy” nights out. I just found an old credit card receipt from 1978. Dinner for 2 with a drink each was $32 including tax and tip”
- “The fire. The mints. Dressing up and going there with my grandparents and parents. Getting the salad bar. The grownups having after dinner drinks while we girls just wanted to go home. Getting to order our own special drink: a Shirley temple with extra cherries. Also, homecoming meals. I miss that place.”
- “Worked as a dishwasher in the Wheaton one in 72/73. First hourly wage job at $1.35/hour.”
- “Loved the place. The stuffed mushrooms. Crab Imperial. The strongest mudslide ever.”
- “The “fancy” place my parents would take us for special occasions! I learned to eat ribs there. Great memories!”
Former Sir Walter Raleigh location at 11301 Fern St in Wheaton, recently home to Nava Thai
While there are no more locations in the DMV, we were able to locate a Sir Walter Raleigh at 22 High Street EX9 7ED East Budleigh in the United Kingdom. We spoke to someone from the UK Pub and he told us that they are a “small pub in the village where Sir Walter Raleigh was born and spent his childhood!”
Courtesy Google Maps
