Restaurants Opening in MoCo in 2023

Over 100 new restaurants opened in Montgomery County in 2022 and below you’ll find a list of restaurants that are scheduled to open in 2023.
Aloha Poke Co. – Gaithersburg
Chicago based Aloha Poke Co. has announced that it will be opening a Gaithersburg location sometime in 2023.  Aloha is a fast-casual style restaurant that serves “fresh-packed and tasty bowls filled with sushi-grade fish and Hawaiian-inspired raw ingredients.” Franchise operator Mary Grace Barnebey is currently considering several options for the location, according to a report by WTOP.  Aloha has area locations at 1333 19th St and 50 Massachusetts Ave in NW, Washington, DC.
“Delicious and healthy are two things I aim to provide my family in every meal,” said Barnebey in a press release. “When I decided to bring Aloha Poke Co. to our community, I knew that the menu needed to be aligned with the way I think about taste and nutrition. I also like the franchise support system and the brand’s cornerstone belief of in fast, beautiful, sustainable foods. I am proud to that Aloha Poke Co. will dramatically expand our community’s access to health-minded food options.”

Andy’s Pizza – Bethesda
Andy’s Pizza, the 2021 winner of the International Pizza Challenge™, is coming to Montgomery County with an upcoming location at 4600 East West Highway– the former site of sandwich shop Booeymonger in Bethesda, according to a report by Biz Journals. Andy’s Pizza currently has locations in Adams Morgan, NoMa, Navy Yard, and Shaw in DC, with an additional NoVa location at Tysons. Another upcoming location is planned for Old Town Alexandria. Owner Andy Brown, who grew up in Bethesda, stated that he had been looking in the area since his restaurant began expanding. Per the article, “The Bethesda location will also have more space than average — its other locations run roughly 1,800 square feet — to accommodate larger parties.”

The pizza dough undergoes a 72-hour cold ferment and is cooked in a New York deck oven. The process creates a crispier crust with a chewy interior, and a hint of a sour flavor. Andy’s Pizza will also offers salads, wings, fries, and more. Last year Andy’s got 1st place in the International Pizza Challenge™, which has evolved and grown in stature and prize money to become one of the most prestigious pizza-making competition in North America.

Baskin Robbins- Montgomery Village
We first reported in January that Baskin Robbins would be coming to the Montgomery Village Shopping Center. The ice cream shop will be coming to the vacant space next to Suburban Hair and Linda’s Nails. Baskin Robbins joins a growing list of restaurants that are all expected to open in the redeveloped MV shopping center in the first quarter of 2023.

Black Lion Cafe – Silver Spring
Over a year ago we let you know that Black Lion Café, which has a location in Rockville, will be opening a new location in the Fenton Silver Spring apartments at 8240 Fenton St in Silver Spring. After a previously planned November 1st opening that was pushed back, a new opening date has been set– Monday, January 2nd.  The cafe opened its first location at the Traville Gateway shopping center in late 2016. Black Lion Café sources its coffee from three regions of Ethiopia known for producing some of the best tasting coffee beans in the world. Keffa, the region of Ethiopia that gave the name ‘coffee’ to the bean, Yergacheffe, and Harrar. The news was previously reported by Source of the Spring.

BooBoo Pho – Montgomery Village
Permanent signage is up at BooBoo Pho at 19230 Montgomery Village Ave. The restaurant, which specializes in Vietnamese cuisine, is expected to open in January.

Buffalo Wild Wings GO – Kensington
Buffalo Wild Wings opened its first ‘Buffalo Wild Wings GO’ location– a scaled-down version of the restaurant that focuses on the to-go and delivery format in Georgia back in 2020. Now, the company will open its first MoCo ‘Go’ location in the upcoming Kensington Crossing– a new retail development that will be located at 10619 Connecticut Avenue (at Plyers Mill Road) in Kensington.

Charley Prime Foods – Gaithersburg 
Coming soon signage is now up around the exterior of Charley Prime Foods, the new restaurant from Jackie Greenbaum & Gordon Banks (Little Coco’s, El Chucho, Bar Charley, Quarry House Tavern) that will be replacing Tara Thai on the Rio boardwalk at 9811 Washington Blvd in Gaithersburg. The restaurant is also scheduled to have its Class B: Beer, Wine, & Liquor license hearing on August 4. The restaurant scheduled to open “early 2023”.

According to a press release, the team envisions the restaurant as a mature version of their popular DC restaurant Bar Charley, with an expanded menu, but keeping its lively cocktail forward energy. The broader menu will remain steak focused, but will also feature house made pastas (a la Little Coco’s) as well as other items unique to just this location. The group has tapped Editlab@Streetsense to design the space. Explains Greenbaum, “We can’t wait to do our first suburban project and think the timing is perfect. We’ve always done restaurants that are near and dear to our hearts and that we feel are right or needed in the particular neighborhood. My partners both have young families and Rio has been a frequent destination for them for years, as it is for tons of people in north Montgomery county. This is especially true for our chef and partner in this project, Adam Harvey, who lives nearby. We’re really thrilled to bring something unique to the mix out there.”

Chip City – Bethesda 
Five years ago, cookies were a side hustle for Theodore Gailas and Peter Phillips. Since then, they’ve opened over a dozen Chip City cookie shops in and around New York with its first Maryland location opening at the Shoppes of Bethesda, replacing Fancy Cakes By Leslie at 4939 Elm St. Fancy Cakes by Leslie closed in October and the space has since been cleared out. The new cookie shop rotates through 18 flavors, allowing customers to choose from those that make it on to the weekly menu. The weekly roster can include “core cookies” like chocolate chip or dairy free chocolate chip, other flavors like blueberry cheesecake, peanut butter and jelly, Nutella sea salt, and more. Currently, location are offering seasonal Thanksgiving cookies with flavors like Pecan Pie, Sweet Potato S’mores, Pumpkin Spice Latte, and White Chocolate Cranberry Oatmeal. Chip City is expected to rapidly expand, with over 20 stores expected to open in 2023. According to Forbes, The rollout plan will be supported by the founder of fast casual restaurant Shake Shack, Danny Meyer, who recently invested $10 million in the cookies. While no opening date is currently available, we expect Chip City to open in early 2023.

Chopt- Potomac
Chopt is opening a new location in Cabin John Village (Potomac), in the space next to Boulangerie Christophe, according to the Edens website. We stopped by this morning and there is plenty left to go, so we expect an early to mid 2023 opening for the salad chain. This will be Montgomery County’s fifth Chopt restaurant, with locations currently open in Gaithersburg, Rockville, and two in Bethesda.

Cinnabon/Auntie Anne – Gaithersburg
A new permit is up confirming the impending arrival of an Auntie Anne’s/Cinnabon combination restaurant at 220 Boardwalk Place in Rio, set to take over the location that was recently home to Lilly Magilly’s– the cupcakery is preparing for a move to a new location. The two brands, popular for their presence in malls, are co-branding to open locations across the country. I’m recent years, Cinnabon left then returned to Montgomery Mall. There’s also an existing Cinnabon location in Wheaton Mall. Auntie Anne’s has locations at the outlets in Clarksburg, Ellsworth Place Mall, Montgomery Mall, and Wheaton Mall in MoCo. An opening date has not yet been provided, but we would expect a mid-2023 opening for the co-branded restaurant.

Dickey’s BBQ – Montgomery Village
In May we reported that Dickey’s Barbecue Pit will be opening a new location in the Montgomery Village Center, next to the upcoming Kobe Japan (which is next to the Moe’s). Dickey’s Barbecue Pit previously opened a Montgomery County location in Germantown back in February 2013. The restaurant closed the following year and reopened under new management in July 2014 before closing permanently in early 2016. The first Maryland location was in Gambrills, but has since closed. Currently there are nearby locations in Pasadena, MD, two in Fairfax VA, and one in Alexandria VA. There is currently no opening date announced.

Dunkin’- Montgomery Village, Rockville, and Silver Spring 
Since Inspire Brands acquired Dunkin’ and Baskin Robbins in late 2020 for $11.3 billion, the company has been opening in former bank locations that allow for easy installation of a drive-thru window. Dunkin’ has also aimed for non-traditional development that includes opening in airports and on college campuses, including the University of Maryland, but the three newest Dunkin’ coffee/donut shops that are coming to MoCo will all be in locations that were formally banks. One of the latest upcoming Dunkin’ locations is currently under construction at the Layhill Center (14328 Layhill Rd) in Silver Spring. The new location, which will have a drive-thru, will be located next to Sole D’Italia, in the space that was formerly home to Truist and BB&T Bank. Dunkin’ also has an upcoming location coming to the Traville Village Center in Rockville. It will be taking over the former Capital One Bank building at 9761 Traville Gateway Dr. We expect more news coming out of the shopping center regarding the former Nantucket’s Reef location very soon. Dunkin’ is also working on an upcoming location coming to the Goshen Crossing Shopping Center in Gaithersburg/Montgomery Village. It will be taking over the former Capital One Bank building at 20000 Goshen Rd.

EggMania – Gaithersburg
EggMania is coming to 385 Muddy Branch Road in Gaithersburg, taking over the space formerly occupied by Curry Place, next to Indian Bazaar. Representatives from the restaurant tell us they plan on opening this spring. The menu consists of egg-centric Indian street food, including a masala omelet, egg curry, and Goti Fry (sliced boiled eggs cooked with ginger, garlic and chili. Topped with American cheese and onion-tomato based gravy). EggMania currently has franchises in several states and is currently opening new locations throughout the U.S.

The restaurant tells us, “There’s lots of misconception when it comes to “EggMania”. In American culture eggs based dishes are primarily used during breakfast whereas in popular Indian street food culture, eggs based dishes are made for entrees and served during lunch / dinner and full menu items, not just breakfast. EggMania is not breakfast place. Hope to serve the community and bring this delicious food options for our MoCo residents and surrounding very soon…!!”

Grandma’s Ice Cream and Waffles – Rockville 
Grandma’s Ice Cream and Waffles is coming to 389 E. Gude Dr. in Rockville, which is located next to the former Branded 72/O’Brien’s restaurant space. Grandma’s is being opened by the same owners as the “Grandma Kona’s” Kona Ice franchise in Gaithersburg/Germantown. Permanent signage was recently installed and the new ice cream shop is expected to open soon.

HalfSmoke – Rockville
Will 2023 be the year that HalfSmoke finally opens in Rockville? Back in August of 2020 we let you know that HalfSmoke would be opening a location in Rockville Town Square, taking over the spot that was previously  home to Pandora, American Tap Room, and Austin Grill.  The latest update we received is that the restaurant is now scheduled to open in 2023. Back in May we were told that construction and supply chain issues have been the cause for the delay. In July, HalfSmoke opened a kiosk in the Montgomery Mall food terrace. The kiosk menu consists of the best selling sausages and sides from their DC location, as well as boozy milkshakes and a funnel cake bar. HalfSmokes sister restaurant Butter Me Up opened its Montgomery Mall location in May.

Hangry Joe’s – Montgomery Village
In August we reported that Hangry Joe’s Hot Chicken is coming to the Montgomery Village Shopping Center and will be located in the brand new space next to the recently opened Starbucks. In 2022 Hangry Joe’s opened locations at 2533 Ennals Ave in Wheaton, 10050 Darnestown Road in the Travilah Square shopping center, and 718-B Rockville Pike.

Isaac’s Poultry Market – Gaithersburg
Coming soon signage is up at Isaac’s Poultry Market at 12167 Darnestown Rd in Gaithersburg, the former site of Pizza Hut. The restaurant is being opened by Rob Gresham, a lifelong MoCo resident and the former Director of Operations at CAVA. The restaurant will feature American roasted chicken, wings, sandwiches, and salads. Issac’s is currently targeting a February opening. Gresham tells us that everything they sell will be made from scratch and that the menu will feature plenty of healthy options. Isaac’s will also feature frozen custards and a variety of baked goods and desserts. Featured photo by Todd Apna.

Jersey Mike’s – Aspen Hill
Jersey Mike’s will be opening a new restaurant in the Northgate Plaza in Aspen Hill. The restaurant, which is currently hiring, will be taking over the  location that was formerly home to Body & Brain Tai Chi– between Dunkin’ and Roy Rogers. Jersey Mike’s was founded as Mike’s Submarines in Point Pleasant, New Jersey in 1956. Peter Cancro started working at the restaurant in 1968 when he was 14 and the shop was on its third hour. Three years later the shop went up for sale again and with the help of a local high school football coach who was also a banker, Cancro was able to pull together $125,000 to buy it at age 17. He began to franchise the restaurant in 1987 and now has over 2,000 locations with various locations across Montgomery County.

Kabob N Karahi – Gaithersburg
Kabob N Karahi, a Pakistani restaurant that also serves some Indian cuisine, is aiming to open in spring /summer 2023 (currently in permitting stage) at 18232 Flower Hill Way (Previously Aaron’s location). The menu also consists of a variety of kabobs, curries, stews, and tandoori naan The owners have a current location in the Cloverly Village Center located at 15521 New Hampshire Ave, Silver Spring., where it has operated since 2008 and has become a staple in Cloverly. Per Kabob N Karahi: “Welcome to Kabob N Karahi, Maryland’s best family restaurant to find fresh, casual, authentic Pakistani-Indian kabob and curry cuisine. KNK is completely a Halal restaurant. We use only Halal meat, house sauces and salads are made fresh daily. We specialize in delicious chicken, beef, lamb, kofta kabobs and tikkas as well as Karahi. We provide catering for all the occasions (Birthday,Wedding and Engagement etc).”

Kobe Japan- Montgomery Village
Construction is ongoing at the site of Kobe Japan Hibachi And Sushi . The restaurant has additional locations at 1163 University Blvd E in Takoma Park and 13623 Georgia Ave. Suit A in Aspen Hill. According to their website, the menu features, sushi and sashimi, bento boxes and hibachi.

Laperaux, the Journemanchef’s Bistro- Germantown

Back in April we let you know of the impending arrival of Laperaux, the Journeymanchef’s Bistro,  the new restaurant coming to 18056 Mateny Rd in Germantown- the former home of Gumbo Ya Ya, Dickie’s BBQ Pit, and Cafe Mileto (located in the Cloppers Mill shopping center, in the same strip as Shoppers). The French bistro has made a lot of progress, adding an illuminated sign and awning covered patio, with plans to open in January.  Chef and owner Gregory Webb, who has earned such accolades and awards as “Chef of the Year 1998” in Houston, Texas, “Winner all Categories” at the Texas Open Wild Game Cookoff, “Top Chefs of Mexico City” and many others, will be bringing a French bistro to the location (menu available below).

Le Macaron
French pastry shop Le Macaron is coming to 7 Grand Corner Ave (next to BurgerFi) in Gaithersburg’s Rio.  Menu items will include macarons (available in 20 flavors), gourmet chocolates, French gelato, specialty European style coffees, classic French pastries, and homemade candies.  The store is scheduled to open in spring 2023.  La Macaron joins Miss Toya’s Southern Kitchen and  Charley Prime Foods on the list of restaurants coming to Rio. According to its website, “Founders, Rosalie Guillem, who was living in Florida and her daughter, Audrey Guillem-Saba, living in France, had a dream to share delectable French macarons with the world and to reunite their family. The family, originally hailing from France, were surprised to find that the American take on the “macaron” was often simply sugar spun into a cookie shape or confused with the familiar coconut cookie “macaroon”. They knew that with a little consumer education, and by treating the American palate to true French macarons, they could bring a taste and texture sensation to the marketplace.

Miss Toya’s Southern Kitchen
Coming soon signage is up at Miss Toya’s Southern Kitchen at 229 Boardwalk Pl. in Rio. The restaurant will be located in the 2,741SF space previously occupied by BGR, which closed back in June. Miss Toya’s Southern Kitchen in Rio will be a fast-casual restaurant, while the recently opened Miss Toya’s Creole Kitchen at 923 Ellsworth Dr in Downtown Silver Spring is full-service (wait staff, etc.) The restaurant is part of Jeffeary Miskiri’s Miskiri Hospitality Group, which describes itself as a unique collective of Black, family and woman-owned products and restaurants in the DC area. Miss Toya’s will serve southern-influenced dishes such as red beans and rice, macaroni and cheese and a southern fried chicken sandwich.

Mezeh Mediterranean Grill – Kensington
Mezah will be opening a new location in upcoming development Kensington Crossing. The restaurant has signed on to take over a new 2,350SF space with plenty of outdoor seating. Mezeh is a fast-casual eatery with a buffet-style of offerings that include rice and salad bowls, wraps and a variety of sauces and toppings. Mezeh currently has locations in Gaithersburg and Germantown. A Wheaton Mall location closed and was supposed to relocate to Aspen Hill, but that upcoming location has been removed from the Mezeh website.

Mochinut- Rockville
Mochinut, a restaurant that serves mochi donuts, Korean rice flour hotdogs, soft serve, and bubble tea drinks (menu available below), is coming to 838 Rockville Pike– the current location of Tea-Do. Mochinut offers mochi donuts, which is described as “a donut that originated from Hawaii which is a combination of American doughnuts and Japanese mochi.” Up to 25 different flavors are available, but flavors will vary by location. The Mochinut menu also consists savory treats in the form of Korean hotdogs and offers other sweet menu items like soft serve ice cream and bubble tea drinks. An opening date is not yet available.

Pho28 & Grill- Gaithersburg
Pho28 & Grill, a Vietnamese and Pho style restaurant will be opening in spring/summer 2023 (currently in permitting stage) at 18222 Flower Hill Way (previously Kick’s Karate location).  The owner has a sister fast food carry out place called Li’s BBQ located inside of Great Wall Supermarket in Rockville and will expand his Pho concept to a full service sit down restaurant in Gaithersburg.

RASA- Rockville
RASA, a fast-casual Indian restaurant with four locations in DC and Virginia, is coming to 12033 Rockville Pike in the Montrose Crossing shopping center, the former site of Slapfish. The restaurant, founded by Rahul Vinod and Sahil Rahman (combined to create the name, RASA), opened its first location in Navy Yard in 2017 before opening a location in Mt. Vernon Triangle in 2020, Crystal City in 2021, and Fairfax this past summer. The menu offers seven chef-curated bowls under the “We Got You” portion of the menu, that includes their signature bowls like the “Tikka Chance on Me”, “Open Sesame”, “Eat Your Veggies”, “Home Cooking”, “Goa Your Own Way”, “Aloo Need is Love”, and “Caul on Me” or the “You Got It” portion of their menu that allows customers to “DIY” and design their own bowl using the assembly line format of a base, main, sauce, veggies, toppings, and chutneys/dressings. The full menu can be seen here.

Red Ribbon Bakeshop – Wheaton
Red Ribbon Bakeshop, a Filipino bakery chain, is coming to Wheaton. The bakery will be located at 2501 University Blvd W right next to the Anchor Inn sign that still stands. Currently, Red Ribbon Bakeshop has over 200 locations across the Philippines and 39 in the United States. In 2005 it was acquired by Jollibee Foods Corporation, which opened its first D.C. area Jollibee location at Wheaton Mall in 2021. Red Ribbon Bakeshop announced on its social media last month that it is hiring a General Manager for the location, “Come Join Our Team! We are hiring an experienced Bakeshop General Manager for our beautiful UPCOMING Wheaton, MD location! If you or anyone you know are interested in discussing this opportunity, contact me to set up an interview. [email protected] Or, apply here: https://harri.com/…/job/1748005-bakeshop-general-manager“

Rise Southern Biscuits & Righteous Chicken – Gaithersburg 
Permanent signage is up at Rise Southern Biscuits & Righteous Chicken (16248 Frederick Rd) on the border of Gaithersburg/Rockville, in the recently renovated Rock Grove Center on the corner of 355 and Shady Grove Rd. The center is also home to Minerva Indian Cuisine, Qdoba, and the recently relocated Dunkin Donuts. The North Carolina-based biscuit chain is known for their buttermilk-brined chicken and currently has Maryland locations in Columbia and Towson.  Menu items include biscuit sandwiches, biscuits & gravy,  fried chicken strips, and donuts. Originally scheduled to open this fall, Rise is now targeting an early 2023 opening.

Sweetgreen- Gaithersburg
Last October we let you know that Sweetgreen would be moving in to the former Verizon Wireless space, located next to Downtown Crown Beer & Wine, in Gaithersburg. Verizon has since moved within Crown, and construction on the upcoming Sweetgreen restaurant began a couple months back. Permanent signage is now up at the restaurant and while we don’t have an expected opening date, we anticipate an early 2023 opening. Sweetgreen currently has three MoCo locations, in Bethesda, Downtown Silver Spring, and Pike & Rose. Crown has been without a salad fast-casual restaurant since Chopt closed in early 2020 and has since moved that location to the Kentlands neighborhood. Sweetgreen is joining Lovesac and Bath and Body Works, which are both also planning to open new locations in Downtown Crown.