via Pepe’s Pizza

On Monday we posted some scuttlebutt saying that Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana could be coming to D.C. We then learned form a source it would be in Montgomery County. Our good friends at WTOP have found out the location – “Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana, of New Haven, Connecticut — plans to open a new location in Maryland at Westfield Montgomery Mall in 2020.”

*I’m only including one exclamation point because it will be in Westfield Montgomery Mall. Happy for folks that live nearby but that’s a bit out of my coverage area.

REOPENING SUMMER 2019

PENN AVE
1750 Pennsylvania Ave NW

DUPONT CIRCLE
1200 19th St NW

PIKE AND ROSE
926 Rose Ave
North Bethesda, MD 20852

Thanks to Jess and Luke for sending word:

Taylor Gourmet closed their shops back in September 2018. In April Washingtonian reported:

“Taylor Gourmet’s assets–including trademarks, customer email lists, social media and domain names, and recipes–were acquired in March by a company called Source Cuisine, headed by Steve Kalifa, who works in real estate development and health care consulting. Kalifa beat out bids from fast-casual chain Cosi and Taylor Gourmet founder Casey Patten in a bankruptcy auction for the brand. Kalifa spent around $260,000 for the assets and says he has raised around $2.5 million to begin resurrecting the business.”

Stay tuned for exact opening dates – and taste tests to see how they match up to the original!

1310 East West Highway. Photo by Dan Lay

From a press release:

“District Taco, a popular fast-casual Mexican restaurant in the D.C. Metro area, is opening its second restaurant in the state of Maryland on July 1, 2019. The restaurant is located in The Blairs Shopping Center, on East West Highway. The restaurant, at 1310 East West Highway, will join Mamma Lucia, Giant Foods, CVS, and Peet’s Coffee among others in the shopping center.

This marks the second restaurant opening in Maryland for restaurateur Osiris Hoil and his rapidly growing restaurant chain. The company, which now employs more than 400 people and operates 13 locations throughout D.C, Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania, expects to expand with a restaurant in Abington, PA, and another Philadelphia location adding 100 employees to the company in 2019. From there, the restaurant chain plans to open multiple restaurants in 2020.

The Grand Opening for the Silver Spring location will be on Monday, July 1st at 12pm. Read More

Julie Verratti, Emily Bruno, Jeff Ramirez, and Kevin Ramsey. Photo by Liz Murphy

From a press release:

“Denizens Brewing Co. is excited to announce the opening of its second location at Riverdale Park Station, the transit-oriented living, dining, and shopping core located in the heart of Maryland’s Riverdale Park neighborhood.

4550 Van Buren St
Riverdale Park, MD 20737

The 12,000 square foot Production House & Taproom will greatly increase the availability of Denizens beer throughout its footprint in Maryland, Washington, DC, and Virginia. The 150 seat taproom will open to the public on May 25, 2019.

The 9,000 square foot production space will brew Denizens’ year-round offerings, including its four core beers: Southside Rye IPA, Born Bohemian Pilsner, Third Party Tripel, and Lowest Lord ESB. Read More

Blurbs from the ‘Burbs is written by Arlington resident Jeff Zeeman. After a brief six year sojourn, he’s back! You can see Jeff’s previous columns here.

Ed. Note: Thanks to commenters for clarifying public transit options – “Montgomery County Ride-On Bus 301 stops at Glenstone except on early morning trips before Glenstone is open.”

Glenstone is worth the journey (roughly 30 minutes from downtown D.C.) if you want to experience Smithsonian-level art and architecture, in a spectacular natural setting, at Smithsonian prices (free).  You must plan far in advance (visiting days are Thursday through Sunday, and tickets for July will be released on May 1st at 10:00 A.M. … I recommend logging on shortly thereafter), but it’s well worth it.  The art collection includes recognizable works from many of the most prominent contemporary artists – Warhol, Basquiat, Rothko, Jenny Holzer, Pollack, Jasper Johns, Rauschenberg, LeWitt, Ellsworth Kelly, Duchamp, De Kooning, Oldenburg, Hirst, Kusama, Bourgeois, Calder, Haring, and on and on – but also features some really interesting pieces from relatively obscure artists.  And the art collection is far from the only highlight, as the grounds, the staff, and in particular several dramatic outdoor works of art make any visit memorable and distinguishable from any other art viewing experience. Read More

“Founder of Behnke Nurseries, Albert Behnke around 1960” courtesy Behnke Nurseries

Thanks to Terry for passing on from Behnke Nurseries:

“As I look out over the garden center, it seems like a Spring season like all the others through our 89 year history. I see a nursery full of beautiful plants and fine staff, some of whom have worked here most their lives, and I’m so proud to be a part of this wonderful organization.

But with great sadness, I must tell you that this 2019 Spring season will be our last. Read More

Thanks to Emily for sending from “MtRainier at 28th place and Upshur”

It had been 2 days since our last stolen wheels report.

hahaha I spotted this guy this morning. To be clear this is not photoshopped (all I did was black out the numbers) there was a red taped arrow right on the car pointing to Maryland with the bumper stickers.  Just owning it.  I love it.

I needed this.

8455 Fenton Street via El Sapo

Well this sounds pretty great:

“I’m so happy to introduce EL SAPO, Cuban Social Club – a hip, festive, forward-thinking Cuban restaurant, and the first of its kind in the D.C. metro area. It’s been a long dream of mine to represent and promote my culture through my craft, and here it is. Bright,open, and brimming with energy, EL SAPO’s whole storefront lifts to let the breeze in. The fresh mojitos, upbeat music and bold island food really do require “no filter”. Our menu is rooted in tradition and unmistakably Cuban; full of intense flavors, colors and aromas. About half of the dishes are what I ate growing up at home or on the streets of La Habana, while the other half tell the story of my journey as a cook. Read More

3710 14th Street, NW

Taqueria Habanero not sitting by quietly while Mezcalero expands. The Taqueria Habanero vs Mezcalero wars rage on. Thanks to Elle for sending the photo above announcing a new location coming to 8147 Baltimore Ave in College Park. For those not familiar with Taqueria Habanero, I pity you. Also:

“Here, we strive to provide you with the exact ingredients used from the streets of Puebla, Mexico. Read More