Rockville

Z&Z Manoushe Bakery, owned and operated by the Dubbaneh family, opened in the exact location their grandfather opened a deli in 1982– the store that was home to Slice of Rockville for the last 11 years (1111 Nelson Street). Since September 2021, the restaurant has specialized in manoushe, a flatbread consisting of a simple yeasted dough which can have a variety of different toppings. The Dubbaneh family has told us that they look to “share the extreme generosity and hospitality that exists in Arab food culture with the local community.” and national food website, bon appetit, has noticed– including Z&Z in its “50 Best New Restaurants 2022” list.

Per the article: The Dubbaneh family started selling manoushe, a type of Palestinian flatbread, from a stall at Washington, DC’s Foggy Bottom farmers market back in 2016 and quickly gained a loyal following. Six years later, their products are available in 14 mid-Atlantic Whole Foods locations, and they finally have a permanent home base bakery located, fittingly, in the same Rockville, MD, strip mall restaurant space where their grandfather once ran a fried chicken shop. Here the manoushe emerge puffed and blistered from the saaj, a traditional convex metal griddle, and come with toppings that range from the expected to the inventive. If you have a hard time deciding, go ahead and overorder; you’ll be thankful for leftovers later. What to order: Classic ($8); Toum Raider ($11); Hot Halaby Honey ($15); Lahm Bi Ajeen ($15).

Ding Tea opened in January 2020 at Ritchie Plaza next to Kiim Imm Thai restaurant (785 Rockville Pike). According to a listing, the bubble tea shop is now available for sale and can be purchased for $650,000. It is the only Ding Tea franchise in the state of Maryland.

Per the listing, the shop is being sold due to the owner moving out of state. There is currently 2 years left on the lease, with an option for an additional 5 years. Everything in the store would be included in the purchase of the store, which touts “no competition” since it’s the only Ding Tea store in the area.

Back in July we let you know that Miller’s Ale House would be closing permanently on Sunday, September 25th, after approximately a decade at 1471 Rockville Pike in Rockville. This evening we were told that the restaurant expects to operate at 100% until the last day. The location was previously home to Hooters before it moved across the Pike (and later closed) and Shakey’s before that. Miller’s Ale House is a Florida-based American restaurant and sports bar chain that was founded in 1988. The restaurant serves steaks, chicken, burgers, salads, seafood, and more. Though most of their locations are in Florida (over 50), there are over 30 other locations open across the east coast. Miller’s Ale House has nearby locations in Hyattsville and Sterling, VA locations.

In what was one of our most popular articles of the summer, over 500 readers chimed in with comments on the impending closure. Comments, which were mostly positive, included: