Burtons Grill & Bar at 109 Commerce Square Pl at the Kentlands in Gaithersburg, which was originally scheduled to open in late May, will now be opening in mid-June, according to representatives from the location. We’re told the delay is due to shipping issues with some of the restaurant’s equipment. The restaurant is currently hiring and permanent signage was installed on the building earlier this month.  Menu items will include braised short ribs, filet mignon, chicken risotto, and market fresh seafood.


A representative from the Ladurée Paris location at 3060 M St in NW, DC tells us the upcoming Bethesda location at 4808 Bethesda Ave will be opening in about two weeks. Permanent signage was installed on the building earlier this spring. The French café and pastry shop has U.S. locations in New York City, Los Angeles, Miami, and currently has a pop-up/kiosk location inside of Montgomery Mall.

Dating back to 1862, Ladurée is known worldwide for their macarons.  The Bethesda menu will also feature chocolates, pastries, teas and more. Feature photo courtesy of @pike.and.rozay on Instagram. Photos below courtesy of the Ladurée Facebook page.


In March we let you know that Scratch Kitchen & Bistro will be taking over the location that was formerly home to CB Acai and House of Fortune at 18062 Georgia Avenue in Olney. The new restaurant has previously announced on Instagram that it planned to hold its grand opening on Sunday, May 15th, but a few construction delays have pushed things back and the restaurant is now hoping to open in late June.

The restaurant is described as a family-owned bistro and cafe. It will serve breakfast and lunch classics made from locally sourced ingredients. Breakfast will be available all day, according to Scratch Kitchen’s Instagram account.


Franchisee Sasha Gatling has signed a multi-unit agreement with the fast-growing fast casual barbeque franchise

Mighty Quinn’s BBQ, a fast casual restaurant group founded in Brooklyn, is excited to announce its first franchise location in Maryland. Franchisee Sasha Gatling, an experienced hospitality executive, former Department of Defense Comptroller, spouse of a retired Army Officer and successful franchisee of the Tropical Smoothie Café system, has signed an agreement for multiple locations with the first Mighty Quinn’s opening in Columbia’s Meriweather District.


Updated on 5/16 to reflect the new opening date of Friday, May 20th

A couple weeks back we let you know that Doki Toki, a dessert shop that will offer Japanese desserts, including ice cream, mochi donuts, milk tea, and a “lot of other desserts”, will be opening in Gaithersburg’s Downtown Crown neighborhood. Last week signage went up, and we have been told that the dessert spot will be opening on Friday, May 20th.


Corner Pizza & Subs at 18503 N Frederick Ave. will be holding a soft opening on Saturday, May 14, with the official grand opening scheduled for June 3. The restaurant is located in the former Jasmine Bakery Café location (that was previously home to Classic Bakery) in the Gaithersburg shopping center that is also home to Brewster’s Ice Cream. We spoke with owners Nishade and Prabath who told us that the restaurant will specialize in what’s sometimes referred to as “Maryland Style Pizza“, the rectangular pizza you find at local restaurants like Stained Glass Pub, Continental, Gentleman Jim’s, and 4 Corners Pub. Nishade has worked in pizza restaurants since he came to America from Sri Lanka over twenty years ago.


HalfSmoke at 36A Maryland Ave. in the Rockville Town Center is expected to open in about three months. Representatives from the restaurant told us that construction and supply chain issues have been the cause for the delay, and that they were originally planning to be open last year.  The new Rockville location will take over the spot that was previously  home to Pandora, American Tap Room, and Austin Grill.  According to the Washington Business Journal, “the  50-employee Rockville location will be 6,000 square feet with 150 seats inside under normal capacity and seating for 30 outside. Baltimore will have 4,000 square feet, with 80 seats inside and 40 outside, and 30 employees.” 

HalfSmoke was the first restaurant of its kind to serve gourmet sausages via an assembly line format. Its sausages and toppings can be fully customized to create over 50,000 variations. The HalfSmoke menu also features craft beer, mac and cheese balls, tater tots, milkshakes, funnel cakes, wine, cocktails, and more.  Earlier this week we reported that the upcoming HalfSmoke location in Montgomery Mall is scheduled to open in “about four weeks.” HalfSmoke will be located in a kiosk in the food terrace that was the former home of Coldstone Creamery and more recently Gelato Galaxy. This will be the first restaurant/bar in the food court to serve alcohol. The menu will consist of the best selling sausages and sides from their DC location, as well as boozy milkshakes and a funnel cake bar.


Rumali roti is a thin flatbread originating from the Indian subcontinent, popular in India and in Punjab, Pakistan. It is eaten with tandoori dishes. The word rumal means handkerchief in many north Indian languages. Kebab is a cooked meat dish, with its origins in Middle Eastern cuisines, but commonly used in many other cultures as well. Many variants are popular around the world. In most English-speaking countries, a kebab may be the classic shish kebab or souvlaki – small cubes of meat cooked on a skewer– or, outside of North America where it is better known as the more recent and now-ubiquitous fast-food doner kebab. By contrast, in Indian English, Bangladeshi English, Pakistani English and in the languages of the Middle East, other parts of Asia, and many Muslim communities, a kebab is any of a wide variety of grilled meat dishes.

 


A few months ago, a mysterious boat was seen in Pike & Rose being lifted by crane into Canopy. Hello Betty confirmed that this boat will be part of their restaurant’s decor. The restaurant opened last month inside of Canopy by Hilton in Pike & Rose, replacing the Canopy Central Cafe– the restaurant that was there previously. Now, it’s 40-foot boat bar is also open for business.

🛥️ Our 40-foot deadrise boat bar is NOW OPEN! 🛥️


Back in February we let you know that Bethesda favorite Raku will open Rakugaki at the Shops at Wildwood in the Fall of 2022. The 2,188-square-foot restaurant that will offer sushi will be located at 10223 Georgetown Road near Sarah’s Handmade Ice Cream. Raku’s Bethesda and Cathedral Heights locations as well as Rakuya at Dupont Circle remain open. The restaurant has a hearing with Montgomery County’s Alcohol Beverage Services (ABS) on Thursday, May 19th at 9:30am for a “Class B Beer, Wine, and Liquor License, On Sale Only.” The restaurant is still aiming for a Fall 2022 opening.

When deciding on a new location, co-owner Marcel The said, “We love the Bethesda community which we have served for the past 25 years. We feel that Wildwood is the perfect choice for our newest restaurant where we will feature favorite menu items as well as introduce new offerings.”


Back in January, we let you know that Buffalo Wings and Beer had closed in the Cloverly Village Center (15412 New Hamphire Ave). In February we let you know that the restaurant will once again open, as it will be taken over by the owners of Dominic’s Italian Grille in Colesville. The BWB name will remain, but the acronym will have a slightly different meaning as the restaurant will now be named Bourbon, Wings, and Beer.

B.W.B. LLC has a hearing with Montgomery County’s Alcohol Beverage Services (ABS) on May 19th at 10am for a “Class B Beer, Wine, and Liquor License, On Sale Only.” While we don’t have an opening date yet, the approval of this license will bring the restaurant/bar closer to opening.


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