“There’s no better way to celebrate 86 years other than an Original Glazed® dozen for just 86 cents!” On Friday, July 14, you will receive an 86-cent Original Glazed dozen when […]
Shopping
Popular local restaurant chain Guapo’s has temporarily closed its Bethesda location at 8130 Wisconsin Avenue for renovations. A representative from the restaurant let us know that they hope to reopen on Saturday, but to call ahead to make sure. Guapo’s has a second Montgomery County location in Gaithersburg at Rio Lakefront.
Late owner Hector Rincón, originally from Colombia, opened the original Guapo’s in Tenleytown in DC in the early 90s. Per Guapo’s, the Rincon family arrived in Virginia in the late 1970’s. All four children graduated from Fairfax County schools and universities and continued to invest in their community. They believed that their businesses should provide opportunity and pride to demonstrate the dedication to their hometown and the metropolitan area. Now their children continue the same aspirations as their grandparents did when they arrived over 30 years ago. Featured photo courtesy of Google Maps.
Per MCPD: Six suspects involved in a string of retail store pack thefts have been arrested. The six suspects; two adults and four juveniles, all from Washington, D.C., are accused of entering retail stores in groups and stealing large amounts of items from eleven Montgomery County stores between April 28 to June 15, 2023.
They are also suspected of pack thefts in D.C., and Anne Arundel County. During each of the thefts, the suspects used vehicles that were stolen or carjacked from D.C. The first of the two adults, 28-year-old Shaquille Pittman, is being held without bond. He is accused of stealing from Target on Western Ave (4/29/23), Ulta in the Congressional Shopping Center (5/8/23) and (6/15/23), Sephora in Pike and Rose (5/31/23), and The Nike Store on Arlington Road (6/8/23).
La Casita, founded in Montgomery County when the Silver Spring location opened in 2002, has announced an upcoming location in nearby Laurel. La Casita Pupuseria currently has locations serving Germantown, Gaithersburg, Nationals Park & Union Market District.
Per La Casita on social media, “We have a very special announcement to make (and please pardon our dust 👷🏽♂️)…a brand new La Casita Pupuseria is coming to Laurel, MD! Yes, we are super excited to finally be able to reveal after a long project that hopefully by Fall 2023 we will be able to serve the greater Laurel area right on Baltimore Ave.”
Target is kicking off its back-to-school and back-to-college season, announcing deep savings events and season-long deals to make back-to-school shopping easy and affordable for its guests. New this year, Target is also expanding its popular Teacher Appreciation Event to give teachers a one-time 20% discount on an entire shopping trip and bringing back a one-time 20% discount on an entire shopping trip for verified college students through Target Circle, the retailer’s free-to-join loyalty program. With deals starting at under $1 and most under $15, Target is offering even more ways to save as students and teachers prepare to return to school.
“Our back-to-school and back-to-college assortment features a broad range of essentials that are priced right for all families. From on-trend Cat & Jack outfits and fun and functional Room Essentials dorm décor, to supplies of all kinds from Mondo Llama and top national brands, Target has everything to help students from pre-K to college start the school year in affordable style,” said Jill Sando, executive vice president and chief merchandising officer, Target. “We’re also pleased to expand our 20% teacher discount across the entire store and on Target.com, to provide teachers with even greater value on the items they need for their classrooms. Both teachers and students can count on Target for all their school-year gear at great prices.”
Westfield Wheaton Mall (11160 Veirs Mill Rd, Wheaton, MD 20902), in partnership with The Music in Me Foundation International, has announced its inaugural PeerPositivePOWER CommUNITY Dance Party that will be free and open to the public. Set to coincide with International Anti-Bullying Month and take place in front of the Macy’s Lower Court from 2pm to 3pm on Friday, July 21, the event will shed light on anti-bullying and non-violence. Esteemed Broadway performer and Artistic Director of the Foundation, Danny Soto, will lead the dance party.
A celebration of unity and inclusivity, the event is aligned with Westfield Wheaton Mall’s ongoing mission to foster community connections in safe, vibrant public spaces. It will feature performances by over a hundred people from a myriad of local community groups, including teenage campers, senior citizens, a go-go band from the Washington Metropolitan Police Department, and visiting Senegalese youth as part of an exchange program. Retailers will offer special giveaways on-site and there will be a DJ and live on-air coverage by WKYS.
|
Fast food chain McDonald’s will be offering free fries of any size on Thursday, July 13. The deal is only available through the McDonald’s app and no additional purchase is necessary. The promotion is a part of National Fry Day, which technically falls on Friday, July 14. According to nationaldaycalendar.com, “In 2022, Checkers and Rally’s fast food restaurants went on a mission to petition National Day Calendar to change the date of National French Fry Day. Their goal was to change the July 13 date to the second Friday in July. Under advisement of Cal our Calendar Mascot, National Day Calendar changed the date. National French Fry Day would be celebrated each year on a Friday!”
McDonald’s currently runs a “Free Fries Friday” deal where customers get a free medium fries with any $1 minimum purchase when using McDonald’s app. On Friday, July 14, Burger King is offering free fries of any size with any purchase to its Royal Perks loyalty program members, Wendy’s is offering free fries of any size with any purchase made using the Wendy’s app, and Checkers is offering a free XL fries to Checkers Rewards app members.
With 16% of young Americans neither working nor in school, exposing them to greater risk of poverty and violence, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2023’s States with the Most At-Risk Youth, with Maryland coming in as the state with the 7th least at-risk youth.
To determine where young Americans are not faring as well as others in their age group, especially in a year made extremely stressful by inflation, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 15 key indicators of youth risk. The data set ranges from the share of disconnected youth to the labor force participation rate among youth to the youth poverty rate. At-Risk Youth in Maryland (1=Most at Risk; 25=Avg.):
|
Black Viking Brewing (BVB) was founded in August 2020 over coffee and pastries at the Black Lion Cafe in North Potomac by former Montgomery County basketball players turned beer lovers, Jamil Raoof (Wootton ’08; the brewer) and Shaun Taylor (Magruder ’99; the marketer). Now, the brewery is a finalist for a reader’s choice award for USA Today’s Best New Brewery (click the link to vote). Black Viking expects to open their own physical location by Summer 2024.
The co-founders first met while Jamil was a player at Wootton and Shaun was an assistant varsity basketball coach. Since they launched their first beer back in October 2021, Black Viking Brewing has shaken up the beer world with their ‘Zingabier’ aka “The World’s Most Drinkable Beer” (a deliciously drinkable golden ale, brewed with the perfect blend of zesty ginger and sweet, wildflower honey), their ability to build community through both beer and social media (Black Viking TV), and their strategic collaboration projects (most notably with Samuel Adams in April 2023).
|
Margarita Bar & Grill at 19201 Frederick Rd in Germantown has its beer, wine, and liquor license hearing with the Montgomery County ABS scheduled for August 3. The restaurant is taking over the space that was previously occupied by the Fraternal Order of Eagle #3509 and Captain Mori’s Seafood House. Seafood in the Buff, a mobile steamed crab business, operates out of the parking lot of this location in the summer months. Signage for Margarita Bar & Grill went up back in March. No additional information is known about the new restaurant at this time.
There are two Margaritas Bar & Grill locations in Georgia that use the same logo but it is unclear if the restaurants are related. Margaritas will join Mi Rancho (19725 Germantown Rd), Señor Tequila’s (20021 Century Blvd), La Gula (21030 Frederick Rd), Abi Azteca (11514 Middlebrook Rd), La Mexicana (13016 Middlebrook Rd), and Rio Grande (13541 Clopper Rd) as places to grab a margarita in Germantown.
USA Today recently released its “10 Best Indie Ice Cream Shops in the U.S.” list and Island Creamery, located in Maryland and Virginia, took the number 1 spot. Island Creamery opened up shop on Chincoteague Island in Virginia in 1975.l, where they still make all of the ice cream. They have since opened locations in Berlin, MD (Worcester County) and Salisbury, MD (Wicomico County)– both detours many here in MoCo can make on the way to the beach this summer.
Per the article, “Churning an all-natural premium ice cream mix from local cows, Island Creamery’s flavors are inspired by local fruit farmers. Some of the most popular homemade small-batch treats include Bourbon Caramel Crunch, Java Jolt, super rich double chocolate Marsh Mud and Cotton Candy Party.” Additional information can be found on the Island Creamery website.