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 recently completed “front of house” training and plans to officially open on Tuesday, February 7th, according to a post on the restaurant’s Facebook page.

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). The restaurant will offer high casual cuisine created by Webb, who has competed against Bobby Flay on The Food Network, and won numerous ‘chopped style’ competitions put on for various local charity and fund raising events, including DC Central Kitchen’s Chefs Cook Off.


Restaurant news is a staple here at The MoCoShow and TasteMoCo (our food division that “shows you the dish”). Below we’ve created a list of five recently opened restaurants across Montgomery County that have created the most buzz on our social media accounts and website. Check them out below, listed below in no specific order:

Grandma’s Ice Cream and Waffles (Rockville): Grandma’s Ice Cream and Waffles at 389 E. Gude Dr in Rockville, next to the former Branded 72/O’Brien’s restaurant space, opened last month. Grandma’s is owned and operated by the same owners as “Grandma Kona’s” Kona Ice franchise in Gaithersburg/Germantown and offers liege waffle sandwiches with a variety of options including vegan and “soft serve ice cream with unbelievable flavor (including dairy free options) with Grandma’s twist of injecting flavor into the ice cream and if wanted dipped in chocolate or caramel.”


Since 1974, Jimmy’s Famous Seafood has served the Baltimore community with iconic culinary creations. Founded by the late Dimitrios “Jimmy” Minadakis, the restaurant quickly became synonymous with crab cakes and Maryland seafood in general. Today, Jimmy’s Famous Seafood carries on his vision through his sons, who have grown the business into a nationally known brand, shipping their food across the country.  The restaurant’s soups, dips, and crab pretzels are now available through 197 Weis Markets locations. Weis currently has two Montgomery County locations (Damascus and Gaithersburg) with a third on the way in Clarksburg.

The restaurant announced today that “You can now find our Famous soups, dips, and crab pretzels at 197 Weis Markets! We’re thrilled to enter this partnership, which brings us closer to new customers via the most convenient method possible! Thank you for your unwavering support. Be sure to share your photos with us when you discover our products at a location nearest you!” We recommend checking with your local Weis, as the partnership is new.


Update: Laperaux will open on Tuesday, February 7

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 recently completed “front of house” training and plans to open in the coming days (possibly by the end of this weekend).


Shouk, which recently opened two MoCo locations– Rockville at 5568 Randolph Rd in the Montrose Shopping center in November 2021 and Bethesda at 5436 Westbard Avenue in the Westwood Shopping Center in 2022, has closed its Bethesda location permanently. The plant-based Kosher street food restaurant was operating as a pop-up shop in Bethesda and the plans no longer include a permanent location.

Shouk is best known for its plant-based, Kosher street food. Per their website, their menu is “Inspired by the bold flavors of the world’s liveliest street markets, we craft our food from real ingredients you can pronounce. Fresh vegetables, beans, grains, and lots of spices.” Shouk’s offerings include stuffed pitas, homemade veggie burgers (known as “Shouk Burgers”), eggplant burgers, mushroom shawarma, different flavors of hummus, salads with mediterranean ingredients, plant based side dishes (shouk’n nuggets, red lentil soup, cashew labneh), desserts, and more.


Earlier this month it was reported by Source of the Spring that Mark’s Kitchen, a Takoma Park staple for 32 years, would be closing permanently. Recently, a sign was placed on the door stating the following: “Sorry for the confusion. Mark’s Kitchen will remain open until the business is sold.” A second sign below it states: “We do not know what is the last day. Sorry.” A third sign below that one states: “Thank you for your patience with this ongoing uncertainty.”

About Mark’s Kitchen: “Welcome to Mark’s Kitchen, a small neighborhood restaurant with an amazingly big menu full of so many choices that everyone can easily find something that will make them happy. Mark’s Kitchen is a very friendly place. It’s vegetarian-friendly, vegan-friendly, carnivore-friendly, kid-friendly, traditional family-friendly, alternative family-friendly and everyone else-friendly. A full meal or a light meal, a complete breakfast – most of which is available all day long – fresh juices, craft beers, wines, wonderful milkshakes, great ice cream desserts. That’s Mark’s Kitchen, a Takoma Park institution since 1990.


Gordon Ramsay’s new two-story waterfront restaurant, Hell’s Kitchen DC, sits in The Wharf (652 Wharf Street SW, Washington D.C., District of Columbia, 20024) with views overlooking the Potomac River. The space is over 14,000 SF and offers dining room, patio,  or terrace seating. It officially opens to the public today, Monday, January 30th. The menus offered at the restaurant can be seen here.

Hell’s Kitchen, Washington, D.C. serves iconic Chef Ramsay dishes like Beef Wellington, Pan-Seared Scallops, Lobster Risotto, and one of Chef Ramsay’s personal favorites, Sticky Toffee Pudding. “The design considers the waterfront location and ensures a relaxing yet luxurious experience. With beautifully-plated dishes, experiential cocktails being served in smoking lanterns, delectable desserts, and the famous red and blue kitchen, Chef Ramsay brings the energy of Hell’s Kitchen to Washington D.C.”


Poke Bros, which opened its first restaurant in 2016 and has since expanded to over 75 restaurants across the country, will be opening its first MoCo location in Gaithersburg’s Kentlands neighborhood. The restaurant will be taking over the space that was previously home to Next Day Blinds at 107 Market St W until 2020.

More bout Poke Bros: After the founders were introduced to the Hawaiian staple on a trip to California. The appeal of this fast and casual—while healthy—concept immediately inspired the founders to begin thinking how they could bring this unique dish to the midwest. From its inception, we were confident the foodies of Columbus would love the poké concept, but wanted to provide an inexpensive and accessible product in the larger market. After some intense research and trial and error, the Poké Bros founders developed their own brand of poké bowl flavor they are proud to share and call their own. Modeling similar assembly line casual dining concepts, we developed a unique way to build your “sushi in a bowl” and have fun doing so! As the poké movement has caught on, Poké Bros has rapidly expanded into multiple states across the Midwest and East Coast, offering the same fresh and authentic cuisine to a wider range of customers. We will continue to stick to our roots, as Poké Bros continues to grow, and offer only the best fresh ingredients that fill you up but don’t slow you down.


Gordon Ramsay’s new two-story waterfront restaurant, Hell’s Kitchen DC, sits in The Wharf (652 Wharf Street SW, Washington D.C., District of Columbia, 20024) with views overlooking the Potomac River. The space is over 14,000 SF and offers dining room, patio,  or terrace seating. The restaurant is currently holding “preview nights” from 1/25-1/27 (bookings no longer available), but is expected to open soon after. The menus offered at the restaurant can be seen here.

Hell’s Kitchen, Washington, D.C. serves iconic Chef Ramsay dishes like Beef Wellington, Pan-Seared Scallops, Lobster Risotto, and one of Chef Ramsay’s personal favorites, Sticky Toffee Pudding. “The design considers the waterfront location and ensures a relaxing yet luxurious experience. With beautifully-plated dishes, experiential cocktails being served in smoking lanterns, delectable desserts, and the famous red and blue kitchen, Chef Ramsay brings the energy of Hell’s Kitchen to Washington D.C.”


Fresh and seasonal ingredients are integral to their menus, and cooking from scratch allows the team to cater to guests with many different lifestyles and dietary preferences. All staff members, both front of house and back of house, are trained in strict allergy protocols that allow them to safely serve most guests with food allergies. The dedication to accommodating gluten-free and celiac diners is one of Burton’s well-known trademarks.

Burtons Grill – Gaithersburg is located at Kentlands Market Square, 109 Commerce Sq. Place. Telephone: 240-798-2021. Other DC-area locations include Riverdale Park, Alexandria, and Sterling.


Last June Philz Coffee closed its Bethesda location, located at 7247 Woodmont Avenue in Bethesda. Philz Coffee opened its Bethesda location in December of 2018. At the time, DC Area locations in Adams Morgan, Navy Yard, and Ballston remaine open, but have since closed. On Tuesday, the company tweeted that it would be exiting the DC market:

As we look to the future, we have made the difficult decision to exit the DC Metro market. We loved serving this community, but business conditions and our desire to provide the best possible experience to our customers led to our decision. Thank you all for the years of support.


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