True Respite Brewing Company’s last day in operation is today, September 2, 2023. True Respite owners Brendan and Bailey O’Leary opened up shop at 7301 Calhoun Place Suite 600 in Rockville in 2018 and the brewery made a name for itself in the local beer community by winning multiple Maryland Craft Beer Awards and hosting community events. The taproom is open today from 12-9pm and Steeze Burger’s will be there beginning at 2pm. Featured image courtesy of True Respite on Facebook. 

We couldn’t possibly capture all that has occurred, all it has meant to us, and all those involved in a single social media post. But one thing is clear: none of this would have happened if it weren’t for the love and passion of every single person involved.


Buena Onda Baja Taqueria is coming to 12107 Rockville Pike, the former home of Avail Vape/Kure CBD & Vape, in the Pike Center shopping center (home to TGI Friday’s), according to Kimco. The restaurant is a José Garces creation. Garces is an Ecuadorian-American chef, born in Chicago to Ecuadorian parents. He won in the second season of The Next Iron Chef and also defeated Bobby Flay in Iron Chef America.

According to the restaurant website, Buena Onda, celebrity chef Jose Garces’ Baja-inspired taqueria is more than a fast casual taqueria, it’s a mindset. In Spanish, Buena Onda means ”Good Vibes”. In a world full of fast casual options, Buena Onda offers a unique, casual Baja taqueria  experience for guests with an appealing menu, friendly service, and laid-back beach bum decor.


Per the Maryland Attorney General’s Office: Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown today announced that his Consumer Protection Division (CPD) has reached a settlement with 786 Property Management, Inc. t/a Real Property Management Capital (RPMC) and its owner, Suleman Hooda. RPMC is a Rockville-based property manager that the Office of Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division alleged was charging tenants illegal fees, was failing to properly maintain and return tenants’ security deposits, and was acting as an unlicensed debt collector. The company and its owner have signed an Assurance of Discontinuance agreeing to stop the practices the Office of the Attorney General alleged were illegal and to pay restitution and a penalty.

“When you are working hard to pay rent and put a roof over your head, every dollar matters.” said Attorney General Brown. “Marylanders need to know that my Consumer Protection Division is here to protect them and their hard-earned dollars, so I am very pleased that the money that was collected as fees and interest will be returned. Landlords must follow the laws put in place to protect tenants, especially those laws that limit the fees tenants can be charged.” Under today’s settlement, RPMC and Mr. Hooda have also agreed to an injunction that requires both to follow Maryland’s landlord and tenant and debt collection licensing laws. They also agreed to pay a penalty of $50,000, which will increase to $250,000 if they violate the agreement.


Five species are expected to be available. This list is subject to change and species preferences are not guaranteed:

Interested in planting more trees? The Rockville RainScapes Rebates offers rebates of up to $150 per native tree to single family residences, homeowners and condominium associations, and nonprofits in the City of Rockville. To learn more and apply, visit www.rockvillemd.gov/rainscapes.


Per the City of Rockville: The Chesapeake Bay Trust has awarded Rockville an Urban Trees Award Program grant of $199,930 to plant more than 1,000 trees and 500 shrubs in RedGate Park to reforest the area, as approved in the Mayor and Council’s RedGate Master Plan.  The city has until May 1, 2026, to use the funds.

At 131 acres, RedGate, located at 14500 Avery Road, is a former golf course converted to park use, and one of 67 parks in the City of Rockville. In 2018, following the course’s closure, the Mayor and Council voted unanimously to keep the open space as a park, with a lengthy period of community engagement to determine what facilities should be planned for the future.


In May we let you know that DMV Iron Gym, a world class facility that offers hand selected, state of the art gym equipment from the 1960’s up to the latest technology from the best manufacturers in the world, is coming to MoCo. The 16,000 square foot facility planned open in Rockville’s Federal Plaza in September 2023, next to Micro Center. The opening date has been finalized– Friday, September 15th.

Its mission is to provide members with the most effective equipment, to see the fastest results, allowing them to become the best version of themselves. “For years, we’ve been hearing from our members that they would love to see us expand into Maryland. We were excited by the central location of Federal Plaza in Rockville and look forward to bringing a state-of-the-art gym and training facility to Montgomery County,” says Leo Williams, Owner of DMV Iron Gym.


A couple weeks back we let you know that Luna Hall has signed on to move into one of the vacant spaces in the Pike Center (the shopping center that’s the longtime home of TGI Friday’s and the recently opened Golfdom), according to Kimco. The location is listed as taking is the former CiCi’s Pizza spot.

Luna Hall tells us that in addition to Rockville, Luna Hall also has new branches on the horizon in Tyson’s and Ellicott City, but that Rockville’s Luna Hall will be their “premier location.” The Rockville location will offer Hot Pot and Korean BBQ at Top Pot KBBQ, and food court with ten offerings, including Dumpling District, Kung Fu Tea, TKK Fried Chicken, Pollo Aria, Buena Onda by renowned Iron Chef Jose Garces, Mala Pot, Ramen, Kebob, a dessert spot, and a bakery. An opening date is not yet available.


Kung Fu Tea in Rockville Town Center (275 N Washington St) has closed permanently. Though Kung Fu Tea has opened various Montgomery a county locations in recent years, the store on N. Washington Street was the first to open in the county back in July of 2015. The store recently added ‘Neon Gaming’ this past spring in an effort to bring in additional customers.

A sign has been placed on the door that reads, “Dear Valued Customers, We regret to inform you that Kung Fu Tea Rockville has closed its doors. We sincerely thank you for your support over the years. Please visit our sister store KFT Rio 6 Grand Corner Ave Gaithersburg, MD 20878.” There are additional Kung Fu Tea locations across the county.


Per the City of Rockville: The city is seeking community input as work on Rockville’s first Pedestrian Master Plan continues this fall. The plan will guide the development, construction and maintenance of safe, convenient, and equitable walking and rolling facilities across the city. Walking and rolling describes mobility that does not use motor vehicles, e-scooters or bicycles. This includes walking with or without a white cane, audio-assistance device or walker; running; or using a wheelchair, knee-walker, mobility scooter or stroller. Find video of a staff presentation of the draft plan with the June 28 Planning Commission meeting listing at www.rockvillemd.gov/AgendaCenter.

View the draft plan and submit comments to city staff via email or through the Pedestrian Master Plan Draft Survey at engagerockville.com/pedestrian-master-plan. The survey asks community members to identify what parts of the plan work well, what changes are needed and what’s missing. All comments will receive a response and will be shared with the city’s Planning Commission and Mayor and Council for their public hearings.


Per the City of Rockville: In their ongoing fight to bring awareness to the national impact of opioid addiction and signal hope for recovery, Rockville’s Mayor and Council proclaimed September as National Recovery Month at their Monday, Aug. 7 meeting. The theme for National Recovery Month is “Recovery is for Everyone: Every Person, Every Family, Every Community.” The proclamation states that: “The Rockville Goes Purple initiative is increasing awareness of the dangers of opioids and other substances, and strives to reduce the number of lives lost to drug addiction in our community.”

Lights at City Hall, the Rockville City Police Department headquarters and other city and county facilities will once again shine purple throughout the month. The theme of the campaign is “Opioids: Let’s Talk About It,” which encourages dialogue about, and openness around, the problems of opioid addiction, and awareness about the dangers of stigmatizing addiction.


The Container Store, which currently has one Montgomery County location at 1601 Rockville Pike in Congressional Plaza, will be opening a second Montgomery County location in Gaithersburg.  The retailer specializes in storage, home office organizers and organization supplies, including custom closets and shelving systems. It provides an experience-driven shopping destination with more than 11,000 organizational products offered.

Representatives from the Rockville location were unable to provide us with any additional details about the exact location of the retailer, but we are told that the vacant space in Downtown Crown next to Woodhouse Day Spa is the likely location. The Container Store recently announced that it will be opening six new small format stores in fiscal 2023 and three new stores in fiscal 2024, with Gaithersburg estimated to open in Winter 2023. The Rockville location is approximately 24,000 SF and the small format stores tend to be approximately 15,000 SF.  Visit www.containerstore.com/locationsfor more information about store locations, the product collection, and the services offered. We will have an update with confirmation of the Gaithersburg location being in Downtown Crown as soon as we have it. Below is a list of the six new locations expected to open by the end of 2023.


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