Last summer we let you know that 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. In January,  a representative from Andy’s let us know the restaurant is “approximately six months away from opening”, which makes an early summer opening likely. In addition to progress with construction, the restaurant also has its hearing with Montgomery County’s Alcoholic Beverage Services (ABS) on Thursday, May 18 at 10am.

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. According to Business Journal, “The Bethesda location will also have more space than average — its other locations run roughly 1,800 square feet — to accommodate larger parties.”


Greek Aroma Grill has closed the Montgomery Mall location the restaurant opened back in the fall of 2022. The restaurant was located in the food terrace and offered items that included, dolma, gyros, kababs, salads, souvlaki, and baklava. Greek Aroma has additional location/ at 177 D Thomas Johnson Dr. in Frederick, MD and at 4555 Woodberry St, in LeFantome Food Hall (Riverdale, MD).

According to Greek Aroma, “every dish is created using only the freshest and finest ingredients. We serve only the finest meats, freshest vegetables, and desserts that are baked fresh daily. Our authentic menu and atmosphere create a truly enjoyable dining experience. Every dish is made to order.” For a full list of what’s new and what’s coming soon at Montgomery Mall, check out our recent update here. The news of Greek Aroma’s closing was first reported by Robert Dyer.


Vine Alley, located at 114 Market St. in Gaithersburg’s Kentlands neighborhood, has reopened after a very brief closure (video below). The wine bar and restaurant has added new partners Ken and Rebecca Smondrowski to the original restaurant group, which is the same one that owns Brew & Barrels (also located in Kentlands), Royal Tandoor (820 Muddy Branch Rd, Gaithersburg),  and Creek Lodge Bar & Grill in Rockville.

Vine Alley originally opened in February 2022 in the location that was home to Wine Harvest, which closed in June of 2019 after 23 years. The Park Potomac Wine Harvest closed back in November 2020. The menu has been updated with a variety of wine and full bar, as well as small bites that can be seen in the video from this weekend’s grand reopening:


Japong Bakery, which opened at 785 Rockville Pike in the Ritchie Center nearly five years ago in October 2018, closed temporarily on April 17th with a plan to reopen  approximately three weeks later at its new location at 765 A Rockville Pike within the same shopping center. The reopening has been delayed until June 1st “due to unforeseen circumstances.”

The original message read, “Dear Japong Customers, We will be moving to our new and improved location, to better serve you in the future! Please excuse our closing from 4/17/2023 to 5/09/2023, as we transition our operations to the new storefront. We thank you for your continuous support and understanding, and we look forward to seeing you again soon for our grand reopening! Let’s Japong! 765 A Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20785.” The following update has since been provided via social media:


Just days after the Nike store in Georgetown closed its doors,  a new Nike store put up signage in January at 7117 Arlington Rd in Bethesda– the former home of Amazon Books. “Nike By Bethesda” has now set a tentative opening date for the 6,063 SF store– Thursday, May 25th. Though Google lists this as the opening date, the recent Silver Spring Nike Unite store pushed the date back a few times before actually opening on February 23.

In addition to the Silver Spring Nike Unite store, Nike operates a Factory Store at the Clarksburg Premium Outlets. The Bethesda store will be a retail store. Nike retail stores offer shoes and apparel that are new and come directly from the warehouse. They are generally priced at the normal retail price. This is different than a Nike Factory store, which sell products made specifically for the retail outlet or outlet out-of-season discounted goods.


Capo Italian Deli is now open in Cabin John Village, taking over the location that was previously home to Goldberg’s New York Bagels, which closed last year, at 7731 Tuckerman Lane. The menu includes Italian classics like Chicken Parmigiano, Hot Italian Beef, Prosciutto & Provolone, and more.

The Italian delicatessen was previously available for carryout and delivery in Montgomery County out of sister restaurant Brickside Food & Drink (4866 Cordell Ave) in Bethesda. The deli’s first location opened at 715 Florida Ave in NW, DC.  Using a a prohibition style speakeasy gimmick, the deli used their old school Italian deli as a “front” to it’s back bar. Capo gained attention in the area in the summer of 2020 for their popular “Fauci Pouchy” carryout cocktails. The deli has since opened a Western Market location and has a Tyson’s Corner location coming soon.


Carmen’s Italian Ice opens today at the Clarksburg Market at 23329 Frederick Rd. The market will have two walk up windows and several outdoor tables. According to Carmen’s owner Jason Mandler, the market will have two custard machines and 8-10 Italian ice flavors and the menu will consist primarily of ices, custards, gelatis, and shakes. Hours of operation today will be 2pm-9pm. The Clarksburg Market is a gas station/convenience store that also serves breakfast, hot and cold deli sandwiches, as well as pupusas and tacos. Carmen’s Italian Ice has locations in Rockville and Olney.

About Carmen’s: It started with a simple idea. Introduce homemade gourmet Italian Ice to the Washington DC area. Jason Mandler – a native of Parsippany, New Jersey – opened Carmen’s Italian Ice & Cafe in Rockville, MD in 2001. Tracing its roots back to Philly and South Jersey where this dessert has been a mainstay for years, Carmen’s offers homemade, gourmet Italian Ice in over 60 flavors. It also now offers frozen custard, shakes, and a toppings bar.


Yogi Castle has closed its Rockville location in Federal Plaza (12274 Rockville Pike Suite E) permanently, announcing the closure via social media earlier this week. “YogiCastle of Rockville is officially Closed for Business. Farewell everyone. Feel free to DM or comment if you have any questions” the frozen yogurt wrote on its Facebook page.

it will be replaced by local shop, Mimi’s Handmade ice cream, which opened its first location almost two years ago in Arlington. Mimi’s is named for one of owner Rollin Amore’s two daughters. Amore credits his extensive travels over the last 30 years for the unique flavors like roasted banana nut, olive OYL, butterfly pea, maple cashew, and more, offered at the ice cream shop. The shop offers a wide variety of other flavors, including more traditional options. More on Mimi’s Handmade here. Featured photo courtesy of Google Maps.


Mimi’s Handmade ice cream is coming to Rockville’s Federal Plaza this summer, taking over the location that was recently home to Yogi Castle (12274 Rockville Pike Suite E). Yogi Castle closed permanently last week and Mimi’s Handmade has just taken possession of the space. After renovations take place in the coming months, the hope is to open by the end of this summer. Mimi’s is named for one of owner Rollin Amore’s two daughters. He credits his extensive travels over the last 30 years for the unique flavors like roasted banana nut, olive OYL, butterfly pea, maple cashew, and more, offered at the ice cream shop. The shop offers a wide variety of other flavors, including more traditional options. The first Mimi’s Handmade location opened in Arlington in the summer of 2021.

Per Mimi’s Handmade: “With both Italian and German grandmothers, I inherited the secret family recipes from many generations including the most delicious desserts. I can still taste Nona Concetta’s hand cranked gelato and Oma Annamarie’s Bavarian creamy custards and sweets. Over the last 30 years, I have worked extensively in Asia allowing me to explore the wonderful tastes and flavors of the rich cuisines of Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, China, Hong Kong, and Korea. Coming home from my trips, Alexandra, Mimi and I would try all new recipes from my trips, exploring sweet Thai basil, azuki beans, black sesame, ube, jackfruit, lychee and so many other flavors.


Daytime Eats at 7889 Cessna Ave in Gaithersburg has closed. The restaurant made the following announcement on its Facebook page: “With great sadness and after much thought, we will be closing Daytime Eats. To all of our friends we have made, we are better people because of you. We are so thankful and appreciative of every guest that walked through our doors. Your support and generosity will never be forgotten. The new owner should be reopening the doors soon and we wish them much success. Feel free to reach out or stay in touch on Facebook. We will miss you immensely”

Daytime Eats was a fast casual restaurant which served breakfast all day. We will post an update when additional information is available. Featured photo courtesy of Daytime Eats on Facebook.


Signage is up for Charleys Cheesesteaks & Wings at 19877 Century Blvd in Germantown. Charleys is taking over the location that was previously home to Roll by Goodyear and Yogi Castle in the Shops at Town Center & Century Station shopping center. The restaurant is being opened by the same franchise group that opened a location last year at 405 N Frederick Ave in Gaithersburg, in the spot that was previously Teriyaki Express. A representative from the store tells us that the opening date is still to be determined.

In March, we reported that signage went up for Charleys Philly Steaks inside of the Germantown Walmart at 20910 Frederick Rd, taking over the space formerly occupied by McDonald’s. No opening date for the Wal-Mart Charleys has been announced.


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