Lots of activity on the restaurant front lately.
Things are really hopping at The Tavern at River Falls, the pub owned by the folks who run the adjacent Renato’s at River Falls and the River Falls Market in Potomac.
The tavern just opened a little over a week ago, and has apparently been packed ever since.
It features an American pub menu with an emphasis on seafood dishes, some with a twist; for example, Creole-spiced shrimp and chipotle-gouda grits or salmon poached in olive oil, served with Brussels sprouts and bacon slaw.
10128 River Rd., 301-299-0481, www.thetavernatriverfalls.com
The Society Lounge, the Silver Spring restaurant owned by former collegiate and professional basketball player Jason Misriki, is also now open.
Misriki was born in Guyana but grew up in Takoma Park and graduated from Montgomery Blair High School. He played guard with the George Mason University Patriots and one season (1999-2000) with the then-Charlotte-based Hornets (see my blog, Feb. 15, 2011).
The menu includes American standards, plus dishes with a Caribbean accent—i.e. guava-glazed ribs, jerk chicken.
8229 Georgia Ave., 301-565-8864, www.societyss.com
Joining the new Le Pain Quotidien in Bethesda’s Wildwood Shopping Center will be Chop’t, the salad and salad-sandwich chain with locations in Washington D.C. and New York City.
It’s not open yet, but it looks as if the available spots in that shopping center are going to food venues (aside from Le Pain Quotidien, there’s Fraiche Cupcakery, plus Wildwood Kitchen, Robert Wiedmaier’s upcoming restaurant).
And finally, this is making a very long story short, but Pomegranate American Bistro in the Cabin John Shopping Center in Potomac will serve its last dinner on Sunday, April 29.
The restaurant’s partners have been embroiled in a complicated lawsuit against a catering company, although it’s not clear whether this has anything to do with the closure. Interestingly, all of the documents surrounding the lawsuit are posted on the soon-defunct restaurant’s website.
Check them out: www.pombistro.com
