The founder of the BGR burger and Medium Rare restaurant chains plans to open Community, a “down home” diner and gathering place in the ground floor of the new 7770 Norfolk luxury apartment building at the corner of Norfolk and Fairmont avenues.
Mark Bucher, a New York City native, said Community will resemble “an old New York-style coffee shop with counter service and waiters and waitresses behind the counter.”
He added: “It will be a place to bring everyone together, where everyone knows everyone.”
The restaurant will feature “big breakfasts all day” and “endless coffee,” as well as a full bar and late-night hours to cater to millennials who are moving into the numerous apartment buildings that are springing up around town. Bucher said Community may feature live music on some weekends.
Bucher, who has lived in Bethesda for 20 years, said that Community will be more “down home” than the Silver Diner, which is opening Silver, an upscale concept, later this year across from Barnes & Noble, and will be more upscale than the Tastee Diner, which is across the street from where Community will be located.
Community will seat about 70 people inside and will have a yet-to-be-determined number of seats outside, he said. It will also feature a walk-up window where patrons will be able to purchase coffee and donuts for $1.25 each, with 25 cents of each purchase being donated to Bethesda charities.
While the hours haven’t been set, the restaurant probably will be open from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. or midnight on weekdays—and later on weekends, Bucher said.
Construction of 7770 Norfolk, a 17-floor, 244-unit luxury apartment building under development by The JBG Cos., is slated to wrap up mid-year. Bucher said he expects to open Community before the end of the year.
