A small stretch of strip mall on Rockville Pike has turned over completely in the last few months:
The former El Metapan Latin American restaurant at 838 B Rockville Pike is now East Pearl, serving Hong Kong cuisine. Look for familiar Americanized dishes such as moo goo gai pan as well as spicy duck feet. The space has gotten a needed facelift, with adobe-colored walls and attractive seating.
Right next door, at 838 C, the former Sol de Espana restaurant, owned by talented chef Daniel Arana and his wife, is now a Yocake shop. The locally-owned store, with a second location in the Montgomery Mall food court, features frozen yogurt-topped cupcakes, as well as macarons.
And finally, for pho fans who haven’t already noticed, Pho Nom Nom opened at 842 A Rockville Pike, in the former Ba Le Vietnamese Restaurant & Deli. The menu features a full pho selection, plus grilled lemongrass entrees served with rice or vermicelli noodles, and the place has been spiffed up since the departure of Ba Le and its bargain banh mi.
Another note: Further up the pike at 1054, Hwaro/Norito, the dual Korean barbecue and sushi restaurant, is out of business.
