Bambu Cafe sign installed in Rockville

The lit sign has been installed above the storefront of Bambu Cafe at 12242 Rockville Pike. It is already lighting up, even though the cafe has not opened yet. Note the name change from the original Bambu Che branding. Bambu Cafe is in the Towne Plaza shopping center.

Katsu Go holding soft opening in Rockville

Katsu Go, located at 12238 Rockville Pike, will officially open on June 1, 2019. But if you can't wait for that, try stopping by now, when they will be holding soft opening hours until 7:00 PM most days. Katsu means "cutlet" in Japanese. Katsu Go's menu is focused on Japanese curry dishes to start. The owner plans to add a Japanese grocery section and bar to the restaurant in the future.

Friendship BBQ, Taro Cents Family, Kyoto Matcha & Gyuzo coming to Rockville Town Square

Update 11:43 AM: Two of the restaurant names have been corrected, based on a source familiar with the new businesses.

Federal Realty has added four new dining tenants to their struggling Rockville Town Square development. One of the larger vacancies created by the departure of Mellow Mushroom has resulted in the division of that space into smaller units.

Filling the new spaces in the former Mellow Mushroom space will be Gyuzo, a Japanese Wagyu beef barbecue restaurant; tea shop Kyoto Matcha, and a Taiwanese dessert shop called Taro Cents Family.

But wait, there's more...barbecue. Friendship BBQ will open on Maryland Avenue in the space next to Color Me Mine. Federal Realty is probably smart to again focus on the Asian market with these new signings. Rockville is now solidly in the top two Asian dining destinations in the D.C. region.

Rockville construction update: Phase II of Rockville Town Center (Photos)

Groundbreaking for the new Duball, LLC development atop land that formerly housed the last half of Rockville Town Center's largest parking lot took place April 29. You can see the tent that was used for the ceremony in many of the photos here. The 400-unit apartment building will have 150 units set aside as affordable housing for seniors. Delivery of the 18-story tower is expected in 2021. Duball was also the developer of the Cambria Suites hotel and Upton apartments across the street.

Playa Bowls to open at Cabin John Shopping Center

Playa Bowls, a Jersey Shore-based acai bowl chain, will open its first Montgomery County location at 7733 Tuckerman Lane in the Cabin John Shopping Center. The 535 SF space was formerly home to Robeks Juice. The company's only existing Maryland location is in College Park.

Use of all-plant-based cutlery, bowls, lids and straws is part of Playa Bowls' green branding. Superfoods used in their bowls include acai, pitaya, chia seeds, coconut, kale and bananas.

Photo courtesy Playa Bowls

Signage installed at Fogo de Chão in Rockville

The signs are up at the future Fogo de Chão Brazilian steakhouse at Pike & Rose. Work continues on the interior of the space at 11600 Old Georgetown Road, which was previously the Nike Factory Store and City Sports.

While the churrascaria fad hit the District and other major cities a number of years back, Fogo de Chão's arrival here caps off Pike & Rose's status as having arguably the best set of dining options at a single development in the county. Del Frisco's Grille, City Perch, Kusshi, Owen's Ordinary, Nada, JINYA Ramen Bar, Baked Bear, Summer House, Stella Barra, and a future Asian dining hall are just some of the top-rated options on-site.

AutoZone opens on Rockville Pike

AutoZone has opened its first Rockville store at 824 Rockville Pike. This is good news for automobile owners, and a sharp blow to the Montgomery County political cartel which banned Walmart from opening any more stores in MoCo. Two planned Walmarts on Rockville Pike and in Aspen Hill were deep-sixed by the County Council earlier this decade, forcing their constituents to continue overpaying for groceries.

Unlike the County Council's successful efforts to keep grocery prices high and moving higher (Walmart customers save an average of over $12 per week on groceries compared to customers of Giant, Safeway, etc.), the arrival of AutoZone will push a downward force on auto accessory prices in the city.  Not everyone is making six-figure, taxpayer-funded salaries like our elected officials, who shop at Whole Foods and hipster upscale markets.