Openings

Damascus

That Smoothie Place is Coming to Damascus

By MCS Staff

That Smoothie Place is coming to Damascus, taking over the location that was formerly home to Sprint in the Damascus shopping center at 9815 Main Street, suite 106. That Smoothie Place has been operating as a food truck since 2018, frequenting Damascus and other surrounding areas.  Coming soon signage has been put up in the upcoming storefront, but we are not yet aware of an opening date.

That Smoothie Place offers a variety of smoothies known as “Rock Star Smoothies” named after popular rock stars of the past and present. The featured photo shows a special known as “The Lennox” named after Annie Lennox of the popular 80s group Eurythmics and contains apple, banana, apple cider  and a few other ingredients. Other smoothies on the menu include the Ozzy, Ringo Starr, Jagger, Morrison, and more.

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Downtown Silver Spring

J. Hollinger’s Waterman’s Chophouse to Open on May 10

By MCS Staff

J. Hollinger’s Watrerman’s Chophouse will open on Tuesday, May 10 in Silver Spring, according to a report by Source of the Spring. It will be located in the Lee Plaza building at 8601 Georgia Avenue, in the space that was previously home to Ray’s the Classics (later known as just the Classics) from 1998 until 2018. The restaurant is being opened by Jerry Hollinger and Mike Ellis. Hollinger currently has two other Montgomery County restaurants- The Daily Dish on Grubb Road and The Dish & Dram on Kensington Pkwy in Kensington.

Executive Chef, and Olney native, Mike Ellis was most recently the executive chef at Charlie Palmer Steak in DC. He helped open the restaurant as a sous chef under Bryan Voltaggio and came back in 2016 as executive chef after earning a Michelin star at Charlie Palmer’s Dry Creek Kitchen in Sonoma County. According to a recent report by Eater, “Look for a la carte cuts of meat along with produce sourced from D.C.-area and Pennsylvania farms.” and “Sundays will be a busy affair, with a live jazz brunch followed by prime rib night.”

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Restaurants

Progress at Naz’s Halal in White Oak

By MCS Staff

Signage is up and construction is ongoing at Naz’s Halal at 11209 New Hampshire Ave in White Oak, the former location of White Oak Dry Cleaners. Workers let us know that the restaurant is likely “a couple months away.” In December we told you Naz’s would expanding to Germantown, Rockville (1040 Rockville Pike), and Takoma Park (7653 New Hampshire Ave)

The first location outside of New York was also in MoCo, at the Burtonsville Town Center, next to Tropical Smoothie Cafe. That location opened in August 2020 and has become a local favorite with late night hours, remaining open until 2am Sunday through Thursday and 4am on Friday and Saturday.

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Gaithersburg

Coming Soon Signage Up at New Five Below in Gaithersburg

By Patrick Herron

Coming soon signage is up at the upcoming Five Below at 516 N Frederick Ave in Gaithersburg, the former location of Chuck E. Cheese. No opening date has been announced but but according to the sign it will be opening this spring and the store is currently hiring.

Five Below has additional Montgomery County locations in Gaithersburg (Kentlands), Germantown, Rockville, and Silver Spring.  A representative from the Kentlands location told us last year that the new Gaithersburg store is not replacing the current Gaithersburg location.

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Bethesda

New Toy Store Now Open in Montgomery Mall

By Patrick Herron

Alex Baby and Toys, a new concept from FYE, is now open in Montgomery Mall. The store is located downstairs next to Old Navy.  According to Westfield Montgomery, “from legos and baby essentials to LOL’s and STEM, they are your one-stop-shop for all things play.” We’re told the store offers toys for all ages, not just toddlers and young children.

According to Billboard, FYE was purchased by Sunrise Records in 2020. Sunrise paid $10 million to take over ownership of the 200-store chain. The purchase included assuming some of the chain’s liabilities including, accounts payable, store leases, and the chain’s frequent buyer membership program while also gaining a target inventory of $40 million. It also took on all FYE employees. FYE closed its Wheaton Mall location in January 2019 and its Lakeforest Mall location one year later in January of 2020. There is another Alex Baby and Toys listed as being in Holyoke Mall at Ingleside in Massachusetts, but the phone number is not currently active, so it may also be opening soon.

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Downtown Silver Spring

Kusshi Ko Update in Downtown Silver Spring

By MCS Staff

Last September, we let you know that Kusshi Ko, a restaurant by the folks who have brought you Kusshi Sushi (Pike & Rose), Hanaro (Bethesda), and Poke Dojo (Bethesda Row), will be moving into the location formerly occupied by Gusto in Downtown Silver Spring (8512 Fenton Street).The restaurant has a hearing with Montgomery County’s Alcohol Beverage Services for a Class H, Beer and Wine License scheduled for Thursday, May 5th at 11:30 am as it moves closer to being ready to open.

Management tells us they know that sushi will be part of what the restaurant offers, but they’re looking into doing more than just sushi with the space. “We know it‘ll be more quick service style,” says owner Wesley Yao. He told us they are about 60% of the way done with construction and that he thinks the restaurant will open in the next 2-3 months, so a summer opening is very likely.

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Rockville

Coming Soon Signage is Up at Future J.Crew Location in Rockville

By MCS Staff

Back in January we let you know that Loft is closing its Congressional Plaza location in Rockville and that J.Crew Factory would be its replacement at 1637 Rockville Pike. A Federal Realty Representative told us that they are “excited to welcome yet another favorite brand to Congressional Plaza. J.Crew will join a robust retail line-up including most recent additions Athleta and Lands’ End. J.Crew is expected to open in summer 2022, and will be located between Ulta Beauty and Appalachian Springs.”

We are told everything is on schedule and that the store still expects to open for business this summer. Coming soon signage, sent in by Kristen Rahman, can now be seen in the windows of the upcoming store. According to the signage, the store is also currently hiring, with additional information available via the JCrew website.

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Gaithersburg

True Food Kitchen Opens Rio Location This Monday, April 25th

By MCS Staff

True Food Kitchen, the award-winning, seasonally-inspired restaurant and scratch bar, opens Monday, April 25 for lunch, dinner and weekend brunch in Gaithersburg’s Rio Lakefront. This marks the second Montgomery County location (Bethesda), third Maryland location for True Food Kitchen, and the 41st nationwide.

The full-service restaurant features a spacious dining room with 171 seats, an open kitchen designed to bring guests closer to the restaurant’s culinary craft and a full-service bar joining the dining room. An outdoor covered patio overlooking rio’s lake seats an additional 124 guests. A private dining room accommodates 12 guests. Natural woods and vibrant, locally inspired artwork add a contemporary touch to the restaurant’s earthy color scheme, natural elements and greenery, including indoor and outdoor garden basins filled with fresh herbs and spices. Eco-friendly materials are utilized throughout, and dining chairs are made of recycled soda bottles.

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Restaurants

Signage is Up at Crown Fried Chicken; Opening Date Set

By MCS Staff

Over a year ago, we let you know that Crown Fried Chicken: Homemade Waffle & Breakfast would be coming to the 1900 block of Seminary Rd in Silver Spring, taking over the former location of Krazy Steve’s (and Armand’s Pizza before that) at 1909 Seminary Road. At the time the restaurant believed it would be opening within a month or two, but various issues have led to delays, but progress has been made as Crown Chicken signage is now up at the restaurant, according to instagram food blog Silver Spring Eats. Per its Google listing, the restaurant is scheduled to open on Saturday, April 30th.

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 menu features 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.

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Gaithersburg

New Japanese Dessert Spot is Coming to Crown in Gaithersburg

By MCS Staff

A new dessert spot will be opening next month in Gaithersburg’s Downtown Crown, as Doki Toki Dessert Shop prepares to take over the location formerly occupied by Mango Mango at 202 Ellington Blvd next to Burger IM. Mango Mango was an Asian dessert spot that opened its first restaurant in New York’s Chinatown in 2013 and served traditional Hong Kong style sweet soup dessert, modern fusion sweets, and pastries. It was in the location from October 2019 until April 2021.

Doki Toki will offer Japanese desserts, including ice cream, mochi donuts, milk tea, and a “lot of other desserts”, according to the representative we spoke with earlier today. They are hoping for a May 15th opening.

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