Montgomery County’s dining scene is thriving. These new upscale eateries prove why. (2024)

If ventures from savvy restaurant groups during and after the pandemic are any indication, there’s gold to be found in Montgomery County. Alexandria, Virginia-based Common Plate Hospitality opened The Heights, a 10,000-square-foot food hall, in Chevy Chase in December, and The Grove, an upscale Mediterranean restaurant, in Potomac’s Cabin John Village in November. Jackie Greenbaum, who owns several restaurants in Washington, D.C., and Silver Spring’s Quarry House Tavern, has been doing booming business in Gaithersburg from the day she opened Charley Prime Foods at Rio last May. Long Shot Hospitality has a winner with its first Montgomery County location of The Salt Line, which opened at Bethesda Row in July. Olney resident Mike Friedman, the chef and co-owner of D.C.-based RedStone Restaurant Group, is confident that the prospects are good at Aventino and AP Pizza Shop, which debuted in Bethesda in January. “We are thrilled to go into a new community and give our special brand of hospitality,” Friedman says. “Bethesda and Montgomery County are especially important because a lot of these residents have been our clients in Washington for years. We are so excited to be closer to home for them.”

Aventino

One of the best dishes at Aventino, a Roman-Jewish-inspired Italian restaurant that opened in Bethesda in January, is a secret—diners have to ask for it. With the off-menu item, chef and co-owner Mike Friedman has managed to indulge three of my favorite pastimes—snacking, sipping and splurging—in one perfect starter for two. A 12-gram tin of Osetra caviar served on ice comes with two half-pours of Prosecco and cunning conveyances for the roe: three perfectly spherical, light-as-a-feather, golf ball-size potato buns (maritozzi) filled with whipped crème fraîche (think cream-filled Pac-men) and topped with chopped chives and a few droplets of olive oil. The $60 price tag makes it an extravagance to be sure, but on a special occasion it’s a delightful way to luxuriate and relax before looking at the menu. (I downed my Prosecco and moved on to a terrific Sicilian spritz made with Lambrusco and blood orange, thrilled to see underappreciated Lambrusco getting attention.) Post-caviar, I indulged in warm, roasted Campagna olives sprinkled with fennel seeds, coriander, pink peppercorns and rosemary, a welcome treat offered to all Aventino diners.

The look of the 4,000-square-foot, 135-seat bi-level restaurant, which is named for one of Rome’s seven hills, is the work of D.C.-based Grizform Design. To have the best vantage point of the goings-on, ask for the captain’s table just past the host stand; it affords a view below to the buzzy 50-seat bar outfitted with emerald-hued tile and gray marble, a tucked-away open kitchen and a dining room with tufted blue-velvet semicircular banquettes, marble tables and gold velvet and caned bistro side chairs.

Aventino (plus its adjacent 30-seat AP Pizza Shop) has been much anticipated, with the dual opening delayed for nearly a year due to construction and supply-chain issues. But good things have come to us who waited, not surprising given the experience that 42-year-old Friedman brings to the table. His RedStone Restaurant Group, which includes business partners Mike O’Malley, Colin McDonough and Gareth Croke, includes three D.C. restaurants: the Red Hen and two locations of All-Purpose Pizzeria. (Hence AP Pizza Shop’s name.) Friedman met O’Malley in 2004 when he bluffed his way into a cooking job at Mon Ami Gabi, where O’Malley was assistant manager, with little more experience than having worked in a deli in Westfield, New Jersey, the predominantly Italian suburb of New York City where he grew up.

Before starting his own company, Friedman, who lives in Olney, earned an associate degree in 2007 from The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, then worked at several notable D.C. restaurants, including Zaytinya and Jaleo, both owned by José Andrés, and Proof and Estadio, both now closed.

The chef’s fondness for Italy began when he visited there in 2006 with his father. The trattorias of Rome impressed him, particularly those in Aventino, the area where Jews lived until the 1500s, when they were forced into a cramped ghetto until 1870. He pays homage on the menu to their cucina povera (literally “poor kitchen”), cooking made from the most economical ingredients, such as artichokes—too hard to clean and eat, so cast aside by highbrow Romans—and variety meats, the “undesirable” parts of the animal. Friedman’s sweetbreads, dredged in seasoned flour, fried like chicken and served with creamy tuna sauce and a celery root and apple remoulade, are sumptuously desirable in their velvety texture and subtle offal tang. Artichokes, halved lengthwise through the stem and trimmed of choke and tough outer leaves, are braised in white wine, anchovies and olive oil, roasted to order and topped with parsley sauce, toasted breadcrumbs and fresh mint. They are delectable but should be served with bread for sopping up the liquid gold.

Another appetizer not to be missed: suppli al telefono, meaning “telephone cords” and referring to the strings of melty mozzarella cheese that result when these crispy risotto fritters are pulled apart. “We also put chicken livers cooked with chicken stock in them as a nod to Rome’s offal tradition,” Friedman says. That boost of umami makes these nuggets otherworldly. I’m a mortadella fan, so I am thrilled with the gnoccho fritto—fried ribbons of yeast dough that serve as crackers for thin slices of luscious, upscale, bologna-like charcuterie larded with cubes of fat and made in-house. Its dried cherry mustard compote is a perfect complement to the richness.

Many Aventino pastas are Roman classics—spaghetti-like tonnarelli cacio e pepe (with Pecorino Romano cheese and freshly ground black pepper); rigatoni carbonara; lumache (snail-shaped pasta) all’amatriciana (with tomatoes, Calabrian chiles and guanciale). All the pastas are homemade. Don’t miss the spaghetti and manila clams “diavolo,” bathed in white wine, olive oil, garlic and chiles and topped with toasted breadcrumbs laced with bottarga (cured mullet roe) and a dollop of neonata, a Sicilian hot sauce that Friedman makes with Fresno chilies, ginger, red vinegar, lemon juice and anchovies. Also divine are the cappelletti stuffed with ricotta cheese served atop sunchoke puree, bathed with a preserved white truffle butter sauce and sprinkled with sunchoke chips. (I would prefer the pasta rolled a little thinner.)

For entrees, lamb ribs rubbed with black pepper, fennel, coriander and chile flakes—crusty on the outside but fall-apart tender—are the star. Their honey vinegar glaze and pickled fennel accompaniment are perfect foils to add sweetness, acid and crunch to the tender lamb’s slight mustiness.

Presented skin-side-up, the pan-seared whole dorade (like branzino) is a stunner. When I lift the skin to start taking the fish apart, I discover it has been deboned already, its two perfectly cooked fillets reassembled to conceal the braised escarole with pine nuts and currants underneath. The sweetness of the fish and currants melds with the slight bitterness of the greens to strike a pleasing balance.

Anne Specker, who worked at Michelin-starred Kinship and Métier restaurants in D.C. for seven years, is Aventino’s uber-talented pastry chef. Her Amalfi lemon float is a glass of vanilla gelato, lemon granita, fresh kiwi and cubes of coconut gelee that gets topped with juniper coriander soda tableside. It’s utterly chic and refreshing. Her almond panna cotta with orange mousse, candied kumquats, cara cara orange segments and honeycomb toffee tuiles is a refined and light way to end a meal.

Aventino is a smash hit, an already hard-to-get-into addition to the Bethesda dining scene. I do have some minor quibbles. They could use more soundproofing; the din is deafening when the place is hopping, which is most of the time. The rimmed plates they offer as share plates are too small for much of anything other than being a nuisance. (Dinner plates for sharing, please!)

On my last visit to Aventino in February, a team of Secret Service people was doing advance work for a high-up government official’s visit. I won’t say who it was, but Friedman tells me he loved it and is looking forward to becoming an Aventino regular. I’d say he has excellent judgment.

4747 Bethesda Ave., Bethesda; 301-961-6450; aventinocucina.com

The Grove

If anyone missed the cherry blossoms this year, head to The Grove—the cheerful 4,000-square-foot interior of the upscale Mediterranean restaurant is festooned with them. I’m a fan of Madrid-born chef Jose Lopez-Picazo’s cooking, starting with heavenly pan de cristal ($14), airy, toasted bread rubbed with garlic, slathered with grated peeled tomatoes, drizzled with Spanish Arbequina olive oil and sprinkled with Maldon salt. It comes with the “Gilda” pintxo (little snack)—a skewer of anchovies, piquillo pepper, pickled guindilla pepper, an olive and a cornichon—and a spoonful of sobrasada, a spread of raw, cured ground pork laced with Spanish paprika.

Lopez-Picazo adjusts his menu frequently, but appetizer favorites I sampled include warm poached oysters topped with hollandaise sauce and Osetra caviar ($28) and tuna tartare with avocado and soy yuzu dressing ($28). Among my preferred entrees are crispy-skinned duck breast with blood orange demi-glace ($44) and grilled halibut with asparagus and pearl onion confit ($38). Finish with cheesecake topped with apricot marmalade or a chocolate orb filled with tiramisu, both $11. Sommelier Julia Ollar will guide you through The Grove’s well-curated 34-bottle wine list.

11325 Seven Locks Road, Potomac; 240-386-8369; thegrovemd.com

The Salt Line

Judging by the crowds at The Salt Line, the seafood-centric restaurant is a prime example of the right thing in the right place at the right time. It’s the third—and first Montgomery County—location of Long Shot Hospitality’s concept, which offers reasonably priced, unfussy food in a pleasant, nautically themed environment with—praise be—plenty of soundproofing.

The 7,500-square-foot space seats 60 outside and 170 inside, including 24 at a bar with a buzzy scene, even during late-night happy hour that starts at 9:30 p.m. daily and offers half-price oysters, $10 co*cktails and other specials.

My favorite things at The Salt Line include an ice-cold martini made with blue cheese-infused vodka ($18); rockfish tartare dressed with coconut milk, fish sauce, Thai chiles, lime juice, pickled chiles and crispy fried shallots ($15); and bucatini with littleneck clams, pancetta, sweet red Jimmy Nardello peppers and garlic swathed in onion puree ($26). Tip: If the Nashville hot fried soft-shell crabs wind up on the menu again this summer and fall, order them.

7284 Woodmont Ave., Bethesda; 240-534-2894; thesaltline.com

Charley Prime Foods

In Charley Prime Foods, restaurateur Jackie Greenbaum had a smash hit on her hands from the moment she and co-owners Gordon Banks and executive chef Adam Harvey opened the American gastropub. The 7,700-square-foot space seats 85 inside and 110 on its buzzing lakeside patio, half of which is covered by a 12-foot-high pergola outfitted with a louvered roof and retractable mesh screens. Heaters make the space usable year-round, but the place really runs on full cylinders in good weather.

The original menu was steak-centric and fancier than now. “It was hard to reconcile the summer patio, which is crazy, with the more formal dining room inside,” Greenbaum says. “So we’ve lightened the menu and added more raw bar items, dips and spreads, with more emphasis on seafood and sandwiches and less on steaks. We’ve got crabcakes, both sandwich and platter, three burgers and a shrimp roll now.” There is still a section devoted to steaks (steak frites, flat-iron, 12-ounce strip, 8-ounce filet mignon, ribeye), but Greenbaum notes that high-end beef prices fluctuate drastically weekly. “It’s very hard to manage and keep the quality and pricing stable,” she says. (Steaks range between $27.95 and $47.95.)

Charley Prime’s bar program makes it as much a drinking destination as a dining one. The 32-drink co*cktail list is divided into intriguing categories: Crushes & Frozens & Margarita Remixes; Our Old-Fashioneds; Charley Classics & Classic Charley; Charley’s DMV Mules; and Totally Tiki. There are 14 wines offered by the glass and bottle, 11 beers and an extensive offering of non-alcoholic co*cktails.

9811 Washingtonian Blvd. (Rio), L9, Gaithersburg; 240-477-7925; charleyprimefoods.com

Turncoat Speakeasy

Open the blacked-out glass door of Turncoat, the speakeasy that is one of the 10 concepts at The Heights food hall in Chevy Chase, and step into an homage to the days—or rather nights—of the Prohibition era. The 400-square-foot space features a decorative tin ceiling, a 14-seat bar with cushy stools, and a corner banquette in tufted black leather with low co*cktail tables. Mugshots of bygone gangsters (Capone, Dillinger) adorn the walls. Behind the bar, a replica of a red Rock Creek Railway trolley car houses the liquor. The walls are crimson red, the lighting is low.

Owner Common Plate Hospitality attributes the speakeasy’s name to a signal that train conductors used during Prohibition—turning their coats in a certain way—to indicate the availability of forbidden spirits. The company’s beverage director, Dan Marlowe, created 12 fun craft co*cktails ($16 to $19), including the Rum-Runner (Luxardo Maraschino, simple syrup, espresso, rum), Billie Holiday (orange bitters, prickly pear syrup, rye, orange twist), Boot-Legger (chocolate and orange bitters, turbinado syrup, guanciale-infused Old Overholt rye, SmokeTop cherry wood smoke) and the Clawfoot Tub, a gin-based drink served in a mini clawfoot tub and topped with pineapple tonic foam to resemble suds. Twelve wines are available by the glass ($10 to $25) or bottle ($40 to $99), and four beers are offered ($7 to $15). A bar menu includes terrific duck fat fries ($14), sliders (beef or fried chicken for $17, lamb for $24), a lobster roll ($27) and mushroom wonton tacos ($14). For more on The Heights food hall, turn to page 104.

5406 Wisconsin Ave., Suite A, Chevy Chase; 240-800-3822; theturncoatbar.com

Also recently opened:

ala Bethesda
In March, restaurateur Deniz Gulluoglu, who lives in Cabin John, opened the second location of her D.C.-based Levantine restaurant ala in Bethesda, taking over the former Positano space.
4948 Fairmont Ave., Bethesda; ala-dc.com

Coming Soon

Bouboulina
Noted Montgomery County restaurateurs Ted Xenohristos, Dimitri Moshovitis, Ike Grigoropoulos and Brett Schulman, who co-founded Cava plan to open a steak and seafood restaurant in Pike & Rose at the end of the year.
11580 Old Georgetown Road, North Bethesda

Elena James
Danilo Simich and chef Colin McClimans expect to open Elena James, an all-day cafe, this summer in the Chevy Chase Lake development. The duoopened Nina May in Washington in 2019 and Opal in Chevy Chase, D.C., in 2022.
8551 Connecticut Ave., Chevy Chase; elenajamescc.com

Solaire Social
Solaire Social, a 10-vendor food hall that was slated to open in Silver Spring in 2023, is expected to be up and running this spring.
8200 Dixon Ave., Silver Spring; solairesocial.com

David Hagedorn is the restaurant critic for Bethesda Magazine.

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