Moviegoers heading to Regal Majestic in downtown Silver Spring may soon be able to sip on a glass of wine, a beer or a margarita while watching a movie. According to Montgomery County Alcohol Beverage Services, Regal Cinemas filed an application for a Class B liquor license to sell alcohol at the theater.
The county’s Board of License Commissioners, which issues licenses for the sale of alcoholic beverages, will review Regal Cinemas Maryland’s application at a hearing Thursday. The hearing will be held at 9:30 a.m. Montgomery County Alcohol Beverage Services offices at 201 Edison Park Drive in Gaithersburg.
The MoCoShow first reported about the filing of the application.
Regal Majestic at 900 Ellsworth Drive has been an entertainment staple in Silver Spring and the county for decades. The theater opened in 2004, according to the application filed by Regal Cinemas. Now 20 years later, the theater is looking to hop on a local and nationwide trend of offering alcohol services at the movies.
Within Montgomery County, several movie theaters already sell alcohol including the nearby AFI Theatre and Cultural Center in downtown Silver Spring, AMC Theater in Montgomery Mall and Landmark’s Bethesda Row Cinema in Bethesda, the AMC DINE-IN Rio Cinemas in Rio Lakefront and Cinépolis in Gaithersburg, and the IPIC Theaters in North Bethesda’s Pike & Rose neighborhood.
Following the COVID-19 pandemic and the growing popularity of streaming services, many movie theaters nationwide struggled with low ticket sales and looked for creative ways to fill seats. According to CNBC, Cineworld, which operates Regal Cinemas, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September 2023, reporting $8.9 billion in net debt. To help boost profitability, theater companies turned to concession sales, introducing more elaborate food and drinks to moviegoers.
Regal Cinemas did not immediately respond to Bethesda Today’s request for comment via email on Friday regarding the potential sale of alcohol at its downtown Silver Spring theater.
According to Regal Cinemas website, alcoholic beverages are available only at select locations and about 70 out of 420 of its theaters nationwide provide the service, including four in Virginia.
If the application is approved, Regal Majestic will be the first Regal Cinemas in Maryland to serve alcohol.
County police District 3 Commander Jason Cokinos, who oversees police enforcement in the downtown Silver Spring area, does not foresee issues resulting from alcohol sales at Regal Cinemas if its application is approved. In a Friday email statement to Bethesda Today he noted the department “generally do not have any problems” with movie theaters in the county that sell alcohol.
