North Bethesda hotel opens rooftop terrace
The area atop the Canopy by Hilton in North Bethesda has an all-day menu, three communal tables and a variety of outdoor games.
The hotel opened a skating rink about four months ago on its rooftop, and will keep up with the changing seasons with the updated terrace area.
Now instead of hockey, patrons can play giant Jenga, Connect 4 and cornhole.
Customers can grab craft beers from local breweries, including Rockville’s 7 Locks Brewing and Waredaca Brewing in Damascus.
The Happy Hour menu from 4-7 p.m. offers items such as Korean pork sliders, rockfish street tacos and deep-fried artichoke hearts, all for between $6 and $8.50. Wine, beer and cocktails are available for $5 to $10.
County Liquor Department sets sales record
Products was flying off the shelves at Burtonsville Liquor & Wine during Friday’s Whiskey Rocks event, as the store racked up $116,000 in sales, a Montgomery County Department of Liquor Control one-day record.
Hundreds of customers came out to the event, which includes special allocations of a variety of items, whiskey seminars and several tasting opportunities. Dozens of residents even lined up the day before the event to preserve a spot near the Burtonsville Liquor & Wine, according to a DLC news release.
“Besides being a lot of fun, these events bring revenue into the County,” DLC Director Bob Dorfman said. “This is just one more way the DLC is running more like a business.”
All profits earned by the department go to the county’s general fund, which supports public services that would otherwise be paid for through tax dollars.
Friday’s event featured rare items such as Michter’s Barrel Strength and Mister Sam Tribute from Kentucky-based Buffalo Trace Distillery, along with Old Fitzgerald 13-Year Bottled-in-Bond and Elijah Craig 18-Year from Heaven Hill Distillery.
Whiskey Rocks will return in January of 2020.
Smokehill BBQ closes in Damascus
The barbecue restaurant’s owner announced it’s closing in a social media post last week.
“We work 7 days a week and spend more time at the restaurant than with our family,” SMokehill BBQ owner Jeff Hill said in a Facebook post. “The desire for more of a ‘work life balance’ weighed heavy, and we could no longer ignore it.”
The restaurant opened at 9870 Main St. in October 2015.
Hill called the closing a “deeply personal decision” and apologized to customers for the abrupt end to the business.
The MoCo Show blog first reported the closing.
Charlie Wright can be reached at charlie.wright@moco360.media