Bobby's Burger Palace closed at Montgomery Mall

Apparently, someone did manage to Beat Bobby Flay. Bobby's Burger Palace has closed at Westfield Montgomery Mall. It's hard to believe, but the upscale burger joint did manage to last for six years and four months, not bad at all for a restaurant in the horrible business climate the Montgomery County Council has created for thin-profit-margin hospitality enterprises.

The windows and door were blacked out Sunday, and a farewell message thanking diners was posted. I do recall being pointedly snubbed for the media preview of this restaurant in 2013, an event attended by Bobby Flay himself. Not very smart to not promote your restaurant to thousands of readers of the leading source for Rockville restaurant news at launch time. Always a bad way to enter a market in the new media age.

7-Eleven now hiring at Montgomery Mall store opening this spring

The long-awaited 7-Eleven opening this spring at Westfield Montgomery Mall got a step closer yesterday. Signs announcing that hiring of staff has begun were posted at the store's location in the Dining Terrace.

It will be interesting to see how many employees will staff the store. Most 7-Elevens are understaffed, but I have seen others around the country that have separate staff to assist with fresh food items. I'll have a Big Bite hot dog with everything on it.

Tesla Supercharger station now online at Pike & Rose

A new Tesla Supercharger station has now been activated in the Trade Street garage at Pike & Rose. The Federal Realty property's garage was already doing its part for the environment with the largest solar canopy on a retail garage in the state of Maryland. Now multiple stalls are available on garage Level P6 for Tesla owners to recharge while shopping, dining, or taking in a movie at Pike & Rose.

This Supercharger site is also is one more dot on the nationwide network of Tesla charging stations, a network that surpasses any of the automotive company's electric rivals in the industry. Only one Tesla owner was taking advantage of the new Supercharger last evening, but expect that to increase as the word gets out. I look forward to plugging in my Cybertruck here someday.

Pizza Palace for sale in Rockville

Rockville's Pizza Palace is for sale. The pizzeria, located at 14050 Travilah Road, has been in business for just over 20 years. If you've ever wanted to own your own pizza parlor, the asking price for the Palace is $64900, according to the online sales listing.

Kobe Bryant tribute at Montgomery Mall

Kobe Bryant is being remembered at the Microsoft Store at Westfield Montgomery Mall. The former NBA star and Oscar winner was one of nine people killed in a helicopter crash in Calabasas. Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer was one of several tech industry leaders to comment on Bryant's death in the hours and days after the crash.

Sherwin-Williams to open new Rockville Pike location

Sherwin-Williams Paint will open a new location at 856 Rockville Pike. The building, which is owned by Douglas Development, was formerly a mattress store. Construction of the store interior has begun.

Peking Duck to open at Montgomery Mall

Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda has announced that Peking Duck will open at the mall in the fall of 2020. The mall owner says the restaurant will specialize in the cuisine of Northern China. Peking Duck will be located on Level 1. Stay tuned for more details on Peking Duck.

Photo via Westfield