Restaurants

Crown Fried Chicken is now open at 1909 Seminary Rd in Silver Spring, taking over the former location of Krazy Steve’s (and Armand’s Pizza before that.) The restaurant is open 10am-9pm daily.

Crown Fried Chicken opened its first Montgomery County location at 9120 Rothbury Dr. in Montgomery Village (next to Athens Grill) in March of 2021 and closed the location in February of this year. The menufeatures various chicken and waffle combinations, omelets, wings, cheesesteaks, and gyros. The chain is known for using Halal chicken and has locations across the east coast. The closest franchise locations are in Hyattsville, Waldorf, and Washington, DC.


Gaithersburg

LensCrafters at 26 Grand Corner Ave in Gaithersburg is now open. This is the second new LensCrafters to open in MoCo in the past month, the other being in Pike & Rose at 901 Rose Ave in North Bethesda. The LensCrafters location inside of Lakeforest Mall is now closed.

LensCrafters offers eye exams and sells prescription glasses, sunglasses, and contact lenses. “Customers can expect to find innovative technology, the newest styles, and unparalleled personalized service. They offer a wide range of prescription lenses for eyeglasses and sunglasses, perfectly tailored to your lifestyle.”


Gaithersburg

The Pollo Campero located inside of Lakeforest Mall (701 Russell Ave) in Gaithersburg has officially announced it will  be closing when the new location at 426 N Frederick Rd, the former site of KFC, opens.  Representative from the Lakeforest location tell us that the new store is expected to open on July 17.

Pollo Campero has additional Montgomery County locations in Takoma Park and Wheaton. The Downtown Silver Spring location closed in December, 2021.


Restaurants

Lil’ Cakes & Creamery will be opening a new location at 844 Rockville Pike, the former site of Sam’s Cafe & Market, also known as Sam’s Hookah.  Sam’s closed permanently at the end of March.  Lil’ Cakes expects the new location to open in about 3-4 months.

Lil’ Cakes & Creamery offers a rotating selection of cupcakes and ice cream, as well as macarons, pupcakes, cookies, cookie sandwiches, pushpops, and milkshakes.


Pike & Rose

The grand opening for Roaming Rooster at 11586 Old Georgetown Road, North Bethesda, is set for June 21st. The 1,843-square-foot restaurant will feature its famous buttermilk fried chicken sandwiches, sides, salads and an all week breakfast menu. A minority- and family-owned business founded in 2015, Roaming Rooster began as a food truck that traveled across the Washington, D.C. metro region. Its popularity grew and today there are several food trucks and multiple storefronts. This will be the first Roaming Rooster in Maryland and Montgomery County and its sixth fast-casual restaurant in the region.

In early 2015, Roaming Rooster was founded in Washington, D.C. by a family with a unique concept. The idea of a food truck with fried chicken that you could feel good about eating: free-range, grain-fed, and antibiotic free chicken served fresh every day. Within months, word got out on social media about the delicious poultry menu and the demand for Roaming Rooster soon called for the expansion from one food truck to three and subsequently, to numerous brick and mortars. Since then, the popularity of the only food truck in D.C. serving tasty free-range chicken has grown massively. Requests for catering, private events, and scheduled food truck visits have been pouring in from D.C. and the surrounding areas of Maryland and Virginia. The fast expansion of Roaming Rooster in just under a year is easy to explain – where your food comes from matters, and we bring that ideal to every meal we serve.


Restaurants

Silver Spring Wings has announced it will be opening up a new location this summer in the Wheaton Urban District.  According to owner Evan Walton, Silver Spring Wings will also be sharing a space with its sister brand, District Teriyaki. He plans to announce more information, including the exact location and opening date, in the the next couple of weeks. Walton tells us, “I’m super excited to serve Moco again. It’s been a long stressful year and a half but I’m committed to my work and this community.”

Walton started Silver Spring Wings in 2020 around the start of the pandemic after all of his catering business events were suddenly cancelled. He decided to launch several food concepts out of his catering kitchen to  attempt to make up for the loss and keep his employees.


Gaithersburg

Lapu Lapu at 216 Market St W. in Gaithersburg has announced that they will be holding a soft opening this Sunday, June 5, from 7am-3pm.  The new restaurant is be taking over the 325 square foot storefront that was formerly home to Tex-Mex restaurant Peppers, located next to Vasili’s in the Kentlands. It will specialize in breakfast sandwiches and will have a few tables available for outdoor seating.

Lapu Lapu is the sister restaurant of popular Rockville restaurant Kuya Ja’s Lechon Belly. According to their social media accounts, “No better day to announce this than #nationaleggday 🥚🍳 The day has come! (Almost!) Come join us for our soft opening this Sunday from 7am-3pm! We can’t wait to see you.” Lapu Lapu has been holding “pop ups” at Kuya Ja’s Lechon Belly on weekends over the past few months.


Derwood

Feasty Crab opens today at 16811 Crabbs Branch Way (the former location of Red, Hot, & Blue) in Derwood. Red, Hot, & Blue closed permanently back in July of 2019 after serving the Derwood area for 30 years. After almost two years of inactivity, Feasty Crab signage was put up in April 2021. The menu features oysters, snow crabs, scallops, crawfish, mussels, and various Cajun sides and desserts. The restaurant is open Sunday-Thursday 11am-9pm and Friday & Saturday 11am-10pm and is currently hiring.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CePLRbLM6k6/


Gaithersburg

Back in January, we let you know that Pollo Campero would be taking over the location that was home to KFC until December 2020 at 426 N Frederick Rd in Gaithersburg. The exterior of the building appears to almost be finished (minus the signage) and the location is currently hiring.

A timeframe for the opening has not been provided, but we wouldn’t be surprised to see it open by the end of the summer. No official word on the future of the Lakeforest location, but based on other businesses relocating from the mall to nearby areas, we’d expect the current location to close prior to the opening of the new location.


Bethesda

Last March, Foxtrot, the modern corner store, café and delivery market, announced its continued DMV expansion with the planned opening of its first Maryland location at Bethesda Row (7262 Woodmont Avenue). It will be moving in to the space currently occupied by Mussel Bar & Grille, which closed in April.

Now, Foxtrot has put up “coming soon” signage in the windows ahead of a planned fall opening. Foxtrot will serve as a neighborhood destination where Bethesda residents can gather to grab a coffee, enjoy a meal, or pick up pantry staples and a bottle of wine.


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