Silver Spring, Singular

The Zone NOT Left Alone

2012-05-22T16:47:00.000-05:00

You may have noticed that many a development projects in downtown Silver Spring take far longer to come to fruition than they have any right to - The Fillmore, transit center, library, and the Purple Line to name a few. In many cases, some or all of the delays associated with these projects are a result of the the unrelenting efforts of The Community to keep everything exactly the same, or in some cases, exactly as they supposedly were in some sort of idealized circa-1950's Silver Spring.

Last year we were introduced to "Leave the Zone Alone", a SOECA-based movement whose objective is preventing the construction of townhouses on the former site of the Chelsea School, located just a single block from the DTSS development. Back in January the group suffered a setback when the Planning Board approved a plan presented by the developer for the construction of 64 townhouses, despite LTZA's request that only single-family homes be permitted.

A movement on its last legs?

Now, after listening to arguments from both the developer and The Community, the Hearing Examiner (disclosure: I don't entirely know what their role is) has decided to make the recommendation to the County Council that the parcel be officially re-zoned from single-family to townhouse.

Masochists may enjoy reading the entirety of the 112-page findings from the hearing, particularly ones who find subjects such as comparative examples of Do Not Enter signs of particular interest. There's also quite a bit of space dedicated to things like the angle of sightlines around the Riggs-Thompson House, a 19th-century structure that probably only a few dozen people even know exists.

The Community did manage one tiny victory, as the recommended zoning is a slightly less dense version of the RT-15 townhouse zoning the developer originally wanted, though to me the difference seems immaterial:

The only level of bureaucracy now standing in the way of the this perfectly-reasonable townhouse development is final approval of the re-zoning by the County Council. Of course, that may ultimately end up being a significant hurdle, considering that some councilpersons' positions can frequently be swayed by the protestations of just a handful of voters...

Also:

- Not that you haven't probably heard quite enough about the transit center boondoggle by this point, but the Post ran yet another story on the subject this week. (This time with infographics!) Perhaps the only new information here is that although it was not made public until earlier this year, they were aware of the concrete issue way back in October of 2010.

- The National Museum of Health and Medicine re-opened on Monday after moving to Silver Spring from its old home at Walter Reed.

United Therapeutics to Own Even More of Downtown Silver Spring

2012-05-17T16:28:00.000-05:00

United Therapeutics, which has has greatly expanded their downtown Silver Spring presence as of late, is reportedly set to purchase from the county the parcel located at the corner of Colesville Rd. and Spring Street. The parking garage that current occupies this space abuts an existing UT building, and has been closed for some time due to safety issues. (Surprisingly, it has its own Yelp page. Who uses their limited time on Earth to rate a public parking garage?)

I'm a big fan of the existing United Therapeutics buildings, what with their skybridge and giant external TV's and all. I also like the touch of the ground lights representing individual elements from the periodic table. The planning and construction of the new building could take five years (or more, because construction delays tend to happen around here), so we won't be seeing it anytime soon. Hopefully they will choose to incorporate some street-level retail into their design.

As an aside, the story of the founder and CEO of United Therapeutics is absolutely fascinating. In addition to creating satellite radio, having a sex change, and founding a biotechnology company despite not having a life sciences background, she also commissioned an android version of her wife.

Silver Spring News 'N Notes

2012-05-15T15:16:00.001-05:00

- DC Urban Mud has posted some photos of the Silver Spring library construction site, which quite honestly doesn't look a whole lot different than it did a year ago. The good news is they are in the process of selecting a contractor. A fiver says it's not Foulger-Pratt.

- Big ups to the folks at the Pure Energy Team for putting on their Spring Carnival in Silver Spring a couple weekends back. Who else gets a pony for their suburban front yard and invites all the neighborhood children to take a ride? And that's in addition to a petting zoo, magic show, moon bounce, cupcakes, cotton candy and more, all free of charge.

- Here are some details from the Planning Department regarding Silver Spring's future bikeshare station. It will occupy the space that the Post Office vacated just this week.

Bikeshare

- The next actor to appear at a Q&A at the AFI Silver will be Matthew Modine, who you may remember from such films as Full Metal Jacket and Vision Quest. (He's also in the upcoming Batman movie.) I'm still bitter I was out of town for the Office Space anniversary screening/Q&A a few years back.

- The most recent Washingtonian has a rundown of the various MoCo food trucks, all of which have spent some lunch hours parked around downtown Silver Spring.

Blemished Gem: Jewel of India Disappoints on First Visit

2012-05-11T16:51:00.000-05:00

After reading a glowing review in the Washington Post, I was finally persuaded to make my first visit to Hillandale's Jewel of India last weekend. After a Saturday spent in eager anticipation of the scrumptious Indian delicacies I was to enjoy that evening, my experience at the restaurant proved to be a disappointment, and I didn't even make it to the meal. While a cricket metaphor might be more apt in this situation, I don't fully comprehend the rules of that particular game so I will rely on an overused baseball reference and say that Jewel of India struck out.

Strike 1: Nobody puts baby in a corner. When we arrived (toddler in tow) the restaurant was at best a quarter full, yet the host attempted to seat us in a tiny space located between the entrance and the host stand. While I had initially assumed this to be a waiting area, upon closer inspection I saw that it was indeed a seating area, though it contained just a pair of two tops that I would imagine would only be used when the dining area was completely full. I guess it also serves as their baby ghetto, never mind that there was no space at the small tables for a child in a high chair. There was already an older couple sitting there waiting for the rest of their party to arrive, so it was a bit awkward when we made the move to seat ourselves on the host's instruction. The tables were also positioned directly underneath a HVAC vent dropping a constant stream of chilled air, making the prospect of remaining there for any extended period of time an uncomfortable one.

Though he acquiesced when we decided to request that we be instead seated in the main dining area, when asked why we couldn't have been seated there to begin with the host responded "you have a child". (For what it's worth, Sligo Jr. is very well-behaved at restaurants and has yet to create a scene that disturbed other patrons. He also really loves Indian food, based on past experiences at Ghar-e-Kabab. There they never fail to provide him with a complimentary, baby-sized mango lassi.)

Strike 2: Stale papadum. This is a standard appetizer in many Indian restaurants, so you'd think they'd be serving it regularly enough to maintain a fresh inventory, however this was not the case on this particular evening. Disappointingly, the crackers served to use were quite stale. Ultimately this was the only food I ended up eating at the restaurant.

Strike 3: Complete neglect by wait staff. Thirty minutes after being seated, we had not yet been provided with menus. Despite repeated attempts to flag down one of the employees floating around the dining room, there was no acknowledgement of our presence. I couldn't even find a waiter working our section. Meanwhile, the aforementioned stale papadum was gone and our emergency Cheerios supply was nearly exhausted. While Sligo Jr. might be relatively well-behaved at restaurants, every small child has his or her limit when it comes to being confined to a high chair without something to do/eat. With bedtime fast approaching, we made the decision to abort the dinner and pick up Chipotle on the way home.

To his credit, when we got up to leave the manager (?) was extremely apoligetic and offered to put our meals at the top of the kitchen queue, but by that point it was too late. While my experience at Jewel of India is probably atypical, it's almost enough to turn me off for good. I still really want to try their food, so I'll likely give them another chance, though perhaps next time I'll go for the buffet.

US Postal Service not Abandoning Downtown Silver Spring Altogether

2012-05-09T09:07:00.001-05:00

With all of downtown Silver Spring's post offices closing, it looked as if a bustling urban residential and commercial area might be left without easy access to a constitutionally-mandated service that Americans have come to expect since the founding of our country. The USPS's initial recommendation to residents was to simply use the post office in Four Corners, an impractical option for many.

The solution they ultimately arrived at is marginally better, though still not particularly convenient. According to a sign posted at the current post office, the Silver Spring branch will be relocated to 8653 16th Street, most recently occupied by something called "Dollar Power". This space is at the far end of the 16th street strip mall, and while the location may be closer to downtown, it isn't easily accessible by foot - particularly for those who might be lugging packages to be shipped. The official close date for the existing location is May 12th, and the new post office will open two days later.

Small upside: It's an excuse to eat at the nearby Popeye's.

H/T to reader TM for the tip and photo.

For Those Who Still Doubt the Laxity of Enforcement at the Whole Foods Parking Lot

2012-05-05T08:18:00.000-05:00

Either the lot was mistaken for a trailer park or some family requires a mobile command center for supermarket trips.

Transit Center to Open in August, or Not

2012-05-04T15:40:00.000-05:00

Remember back when the public was only on the hook for $35 million for the construction of our magnificent transit center and the work was only supposed to last a couple years? That sure seems like a long time ago. After years of delays, the price tag of this charlie foxtrot has ballooned to over $100 million, and now they're tacking on another $11M to the total cost as a result of delays caused by the concrete-pouring boondoggle and "unexpected changes to construction and utility work". Provided the worst-case scenario of a complete tear-down doesn't occur, it could even be open as early as this August, but I'll believe that when I see it.

A vision of the very distant future

Why the hell does everything have to take forever around here? When they construct a big new apartment building, you could blink and miss the entire process, but when it comes to a public building like our new library, we have to wait an eon. (At least they are making some progress on that one.) It's amazing the amount of uproar we see over something like a little county support of a private venture like the Fillmore, but at least the Fillmore actually opened in a reasonable amount of time and is now providing residents with entertainment and the county with tax revenue. Granted, the transit center project is a little more ambitious, but still.

You'd think after this debacle Foulger-Pratt wouldn't be able to get another construction contract from the county, but no doubt a few well-placed political donations will clear everything up. (I don't actually know if they donate to any county councilmembers or state reps, but good ol' Al Wynn was on the payroll back in the day. They sure do love Mitt Romney and hate gay marriage - though those facts are neither here nor there.)

On the other extreme, I guess we could be like Virginia and abandon worthwhile transit projects before they begin because we don't feel like paying any taxes or supporting union workers.

Silver Spring News 'N Notes

2012-05-03T08:57:00.001-05:00

- Already a destination for collectors of vintage vinyl, Silver Spring will be hosting the DC Record Fair on June 17th at the Fillmore.

- Jewel of India, which opened last summer in the Hillandale strip mall, just received a glowing review from Post food critic Tom Sietsema. I need to make a concerted effort to finally get out there and try it this weekend, particularly after looking at these photos.

- The second Taste the World at Fenton Village takes place this Sunday afternoon from 1-5. 24 restaurants are participating, and each will offer appetizers and small tasting plates from $2-$5.

- Also this weekend: the second annual Downtown Silver Spring Art Festival. It's the 86th ranked art festival in the whole country, guys!!! (Who actually ranks every single art festival? Apparently this guy does.)

- Silver Spring's so-called "Homicide House" remains unsold over a year after first hitting the market. In the strong DC metro housing market, it's surprising any reasonably-priced house would remain on the market for an extended length of time, though clearly this one comes with an exceptionally unfortunate history. It does look like it may have undergone some renovations since it was originally listed.

- If you receive of these coupon mailers from Downtown Silver Spring, don't immediately toss it in the recycling bin - there's actually some decent deals inside. (25% of Fro Zen Yo, for one.) I did find it odd that a booklet promoting DTSS businesses also includes an ad enticing people to move to National Harbor.

- Thanks to its combination of walkability and (relative) affordability, Silver Spring made this year's cut of Washingtonian Magazine's "Best Places to Live". While article from this month's issue isn't available online, you can take a peek at the portion dealing with the Silver Spring segment below.

Silver Spring News 'N Notes

2012-04-24T20:14:00.000-05:00

- Masa, the Japanese Hibachi/Sushi restaurant located on the second floor of DTSS is now open for business. The restaurant has taken the unusual step of having a large banner produced to advertise their soft opening to DTSS-goers. Perhaps I'm mistaken, but isn't a "soft" opening by definition one you don't actively promote?

I'm putting off trying Masa for the time being, having been burned too many times by poor service and sub-par food when dining at newly-opened restaurants. I'll wait until they've been open a bit longer and have reached a critical mass of reviews on Yelp! and the like. To their credit, they have been receiving generally good reviews on Yelp! thus far. (I'm still on the fence about Society Lounge, which has been open a few weeks now, and whose Yelp! rating is hovering around my 3.5 star minimum.) And for those restaurants whose marking strategy includes leaving positive reviews of themselves in the comments section of this blog, please don't do that. It's really obvious when you do. I'm looking at you, Skew Works.

While its title may be somewhat misleading, a recent post on the Washington Post website provides some additional details on Masa.

- The pop-up toy store that took over Borders' old space when the bookseller went under has finally closed, and work appears to be underway in the interior, though there is no indication who might be moving in. There were some rumors about H&M last September, but I haven't heard any word on that since. I'd be surprised that they'd open a large store here with a brand new one just a few miles down Georgia Avenue in Wheaton Plaza, but who knows.

UPDATE: It is H&M. Clearly I am not being diligent enough when it comes to monitoring the Downtown Silver Spring Facebook page. H&M will occupy 18,000 square ft. of the Borders space, and is set to open in September. H&M must be following an aggressive expansion plan, as they are also opening up a store over in Chevy Chase.

- After strangely having dueling websites with one site stating the restaurant was moving Bethesda and the other claiming this was a dirty rumor, Marrakesh is indeed gone. According to the liquor license request posted in the window, eventually taking its place will be a restaurant named Lucy's Ethiopian. I'm really surprised that yet another Ethiopian place is on the way, considering there's a new one opening (already open?) down the road at the former Taste of Jerusalem location and another new restaurant at the corner of Fenton and Silver Spring Ave. I don't know how many Ethiopian restaurants one downtown area can possibly support, but I guess we'll find out. Ironically, Marrakesh originally took over a portion of another Ethiopian restaurant - Langano - which still operates next door, though with a reduced footprint.

- The massive CF that is the Transit Center's construction continues. Now the county and Foulger-Pratt are bringing in another engineer to assess the state of the negligently-poured concrete to determine if it is either too little or too much, and if there is any threat of hundreds of tons of concrete and buses falling on your head while you await the arrival of the Z2. It's even possible that the entire thing might even have to be torn down as an "apocalyptic solution".

- Joe Gyau, a 19-year old soccer player from Silver Spring, has signed a three-year contract with Hoffenheim in the German Bundesliga (their main soccer division), which is pretty impressive. More on Gyau here from the New York Times.

- Finally, this may be ancient in Internet time by now, but in case you haven't yet seen it, here's the police video of Batman being pulled over on Route 29 a few weeks back. Unsurprisingly, this story ended up going viral and being picked up nationally.

Silver Spring Shuttle

2012-04-18T07:55:00.001-05:00

Unfortunately I did not have the opportunity to witness the arrival of the Space Shuttle Discovery yesterday morning, though those in downtown Silver Spring at the time were afforded a fantastic view of the Shuttle and the 747 aircraft transporting it.

I do retain faint childhood memories of watching from the Silver Spring YMCA as the Enterprise prototype circled the Capital Beltway many moons ago. Of course, that was more like a victory lap whereas yesterday had the air of a wake. Anyway, the purpose of this post is not to lament the current state of the U.S. manned spaceflight program, but rather to share these images captured by reader Joe Fox from his vantage point on top of the Bonifant-Dixon garage in downtown Silver Spring.

Approach from over the World Building

Spectators on the roof of the Discovery Building

Workers at the new 1150 Ripley building appear unimpressed

Between the NOAA buildings

For Sale: "Church"

2012-04-17T16:13:00.001-05:00

One Silver Spring structure that has bugged me for some time is the office-building-turned-church located at 880 Bonifant Street. For years this was a nondescript mid-century commercial structure until a significant addition turned it into one of the biggest eyesores in all of downtown Silver Spring (and that's saying a lot).

I sincerely hope that the purchasers of this prime real estate, located just blocks from DTSS and surrounded by the future library, the planned development on the adjacent block and the so-called Fenton Street Village, demolish this Frankensteinian abomination and replace it with something that isn't painful to behold. Of course, without owning the adjacent gas station property, options could be somewhat limited.

Oddly, the real estate company handling the sale has opted to include a decades-old pre-renovation "before" photo in the listing. (Note the doing-giant-lines-of-cocaine-in-the-back 80's limo parked in the gas station lot to the right.)

I don't know what the future plans are for the Iglesia De Restauracion congregation, which presently utilizes this building as a house of worship, though a far more conventional church structure just happens to be available up Georgia Avenue:

Thanks to BR for alerting me to the listing.

Follow Friday: A Collection of Silver Spring Twitter Feeds

2012-03-30T09:01:00.000-05:00

Is #FollowFriday even still a thing on Twitter? Regardless, I figured it might be worthwhile to compile and post (on a Friday) a comprehensive list of Silver Spring-centric Twitter accounts plus a handful of others that may be relevant. The frequency and usefulness of tweets in these feeds may vary a bit and a few accounts appear to be dormant, but perhaps there may be some you find of value.

If you know of a feed I omitted that others might find of interest, post them in the comments section or shoot me an email.

Without further ado, here's the list:

Blogs, News, Etc.
Just up the Pike
Silver Spring Center
Silver Spring Patch
Silver Spring, Singular
ThayerAvenue.com

Government
Montgomery County Government
Montgomery County Police
Montgomery County Public Schools
Montgomery County Solid Waste Services*
S.S. Volunteer Fire Department
The Straight Line (MoCo Planning Blog)

*Actually quite useful. Will let you know when to put out your trash during weeks with a holiday.

Entertainment
AFI Silver Theatre
Round House Theatre
Fillmore Silver Spring
Silver Spring Stage

Restaurants
8407 Kitchen Lounge
Fire Station 1
Jackie's Restaurant
Kao Thai
Mama Lucia Silver Spring
McGinty's Public House
Negril
Pacci's Restaurants
Quarry House Tavern
Society Lounge
Stage Burger Lounge
Tropical Ice Cream Café
Woodside Deli

Transportation
WMATA
Purple Line Now

Events
Handmade Mart
Silver Spring Zombie Walk
Taste of Fenton Village

Neighborhoods
South Silver Spring

Shopping
Art Spring
Bell Flowers
Dale Music
Fenton Street Market
Fenwick Beer & Wine
The Record Exchange
Whole Foods (Montgomery Co.)

Hotels
Downtown Silver Spring Courtyard

Condos/Apartments
Blair Apartments
The Cameron

And finally, here's a special one for all the bag tax-hating commenters from an earlier post: the bag tax has its own Twitter account!

Silver Spring Oddity

2012-03-29T09:02:00.000-05:00

Random factoid of the day: In 1971, a young pre-Ziggy Stardust David Bowie spent his first ever night in the States in Silver Spring. Flickr user ozoni11 has shared the photographic evidence:

Now, if we could only get a photo of Jimmy Page outside the Wheaton Rec Center.

Thanks to KR, whose Facebook share of this photo I never saw until it somehow resurfaced when I switched to the new timeline format.

Silver Spring News 'N Notes

2012-03-27T11:06:00.000-05:00

- Now the Post is openly mocking the Transit Center debacle. At least there was a Zombie Walk plug.

- If you're curious why survey crews have been busy measuring things along Sligo Creek Parkway in recent months, they're doing advance work for a project that will replace all the sewer lines that run along the creek's path. This is part of a larger, regional effort to upgrade the sewage system. Hopefully that work won't be too disruptive (or stinky) when it begins.

- So Society Lounge is finally open. Anyone try it yet? The menu looks good, and it includes a "Silver Spring Burger"

- If Ike Leggett gets his way, parking fees in downtown Silver Spring could increase this year. While the proposed increase for meters is just 10 cents an hour, charging for Saturday parking is also on the table. Not sure if this change would apply to garages or just meters, but if it's the former, that could prove to be quite the cash cow for the County. However, I believe there may be some sort of agreement with the DTSS developer that prevents the county from charging for parking at the Wayne and Ellsworth lots on weekends. (It's possible the agreement has expired.)

Somewhat unrelated, but it's about time they instituted some sort of validation process for parking in the Whole Foods/Strosnider's lot. Of course, adding a gated exit would create a whole new set of traffic problems. Perhaps parking headaches are unavoidable when it comes to that lot. And for those who claim that churchgoers are not using the lot, why is the far side of the lot filled on Sunday mornings when the side closest to Whole foods has open spots? Is it just that shoppers want a little extra exercise?

- After the inevitable drama that comes when you deal with the County bureaucracy, the Fenton Street Market will be returning to Veterans Plaza on Saturdays beginning April 28th.

What a Way to End the Weekend

2012-03-25T20:13:00.003-05:00

While the rest of the weekend may have been dreary and gray, the sun finally came out of hiding this afternoon and I can't think of a better possible way to pass a lovely spring day than this guy did: hanging out in the Burnt Mills Shopping Center listening to ABBA on a vintage 80's ghetto blaster.

UPDATE: Apparently he owns this spot. Here he is last Friday, listening to MC Hammer:

(Thanks to KL for the second pic.)

The Dark Knight Returns (to White Oak)

2012-03-23T13:19:00.000-05:00

According to the official Montgomery County Police Department Twitter, Batman was pulled over today near the intersection of 29 & Prelude Dr. It would appear the current model of Batmobile is a Lamborghini Gallardo. Even funnier, last year this same Batmobile actually did break a wheel. No word if the Joker managed to get away in that incident.

This is the best auto-related Silver Spring story since those kids were pulled over a few years back for driving a riding mower on the Beltway.

And So Ends The Short Existence of Corporate Bar & Grill

2012-03-20T14:59:00.001-05:00

He was no dragon. Fire cannot kill a dragon.

From Facebook.

Silver Spring News 'N Notes

2012-03-19T13:10:00.002-05:00

- Word on the street is that the Society Lounge may be open for business today. However, a tipster who spoke to the proprietor last week was told that the restaurant wouldn't be opening until this Wednesday or Thursday, so I'm not sure what the situation is. There's no info on Society's Facebook page, though that hasn't been updated for months. This one has been in the works seemingly forever. Hopefully it will be worth the wait.

- Photographer Chip Py captured a video of the United Theraputics skybridge being installed over Cameron street last weekend:

See how simple it is? We can just go ahead and throw one up on the new library, right?

- "Contractor denies concrete error at Silver Spring Transit Center". Well, of course they do. Meanwhile, no progress is being made on the transit center.

- St. Michael the Archangel, the small school opposite Whole Foods on Wayne Avenue, plans to close at the end of this academic year. I'm curious as to what will happen with that parcel of land. Will the church hold onto it or sell it for what would no doubt be a substantial amount? Not sure what the zoning requires, but perhaps they could re-zone for residential or commercial. It would sure be convenient to the Purple Line.

- I don't know what happened to all the food trucks we started to see around town last year, but they appear to have abandoned us as of late. Even Rolls on Rolls decided their kati rolls were too good for a Silver Spring location us once they got all fancy and traded in their trailer for a self-propelled vehicle. Cupcake Boulevard, a new confectionery-hawking vehicle, has committed to being in Silver Spring twice a week, so those with a sweet tooth may want to check their twitter feed for times and locations.

- There's a cannoli factory in Silver Spring? Mmmmmm cannoli....

Story link: MyFoxDC.com

Restaurant Roundup

2012-03-12T21:54:00.003-05:00

As there's been a fair amount of discussion in the comments sections regarding the states of various restaurants, I thought it might be worthwhile to compile the most current statuses of these eateries. Feel free to provide corrections or updates in the comments if necessary.

Piratz/Corporate Bar & Grill: Re-opened this past weekend. It's still called Corporate, but now the faceless suit on the sign sports an eye patch. While their old pirate-garbed regulars may have returned, any potential customers peering through the window might be more than a bit confused by the place.

Masa Hibachi Steakhouse & Sushi: The Japanese restaurant that took over the old Ceviche space seems to be readying for an opening after finally settling on a somewhat less trademark-infringing name.

Gebeta: This Ethiopian restaurant will be opening in the old Taste of Jerusalem location on Georgia Avenue.

Sushi Jin: Remains closed after a fire in January. Not sure why it hasn't re-opened, but I heard a rumor that a health inspection was involved in some manner. Don't quote me on that. It's somewhat ironic that of all types of restaurants, it would be a sushi one that would have a fire.

Society: This has been a work in progress for over a year now. Other restaurants' entire lifespans have been shorter than this. They must have plenty of cash reserves or a nice line of credit to cover rent and renovations with no revenue all that time. By all accounts, the interior looks complete and is quite nice. Hopefully it will be open for business in the coming weeks.

The Former Highland Origin Coffee: Last year the coffee shop added a full menu and promptly closed. Now there's a liquor license application in the window for what looks like what will be yet another Ethiopian restaurant. What will this bring us up to, 143 Ethiopian places? Ethiopian restaurants are the new hair salons.

Marrakesh: I don't know what is going on with this place. I reported it was closing based on a Groupon offer refund email, but since then the owner has been quoted in a Gazette article claiming he is still in business. WTF?

Update: Thanks to commenter Jag for reminding me about the following two:

Scion: This Dupont Circle restaurant has announced they will be opening a second location at 1200 East West Highway.

La Madeleine: The chain of French cafes will be opening up a location at the intersection of Wayne and Georgia. No idea what the timeline is on this one.

Piratz Tavern to Resurface from Davy Jones' Locker?

2012-03-08T13:32:00.002-05:00

Well, shiver me timbers. The Piratz Tavern/Corporate Bar and Grill saga, likely having already clinched "most entertaining story of the year" status, may now be beginning yet another chapter. The erstwhile Tavern is presently closed in order to undergo unspecified renovation. Scuttlebutt is that a mutiny against the Spike TV-imposed re-imaging is underway and the restaurant may scuttle the "corporate" theme and revert to being ye olde pirate bar.

If this is indeed the case, this development will no doubt please Piratz regulars* to no end, though from what I can tell on the "Soul of Piratz Tavern" Facebook page, they won't be fully appeased until Bar Rescue host Jon Taffer is keelhauled. How much will remain from the Bar Rescue overhaul remains to be seen, but I have to expect the resulting look from this new renovation (de-renovation?) would be some sort of hybrid of the two designs. They can't jettison it all, right?

Personally it's a wash to this landlubber, since I had equal desire to go to either Piratz Tavern or Corporate Bar and Grill: zero.

*Another thing I gleaned from their Facebook page is that a good number of these Piratz supporters are from out of town. I'm not sure how "regular" they actually were.

Signage FAIL: Quiznow

2012-03-05T09:14:00.000-05:00

There is never any shortage of signs/banners/flags displayed outside the Quizno's on Fenton Street, but recently they've posted an intriguing handwritten sign out on the sidewalk advertising their new delivery service. I never really thought twice about the sign until I happened to glance at it in passing and noticed the inclusion of the curious word "Quiznow".

I have gone over this sign countless times in an attempt to interpret the meaning of Quiznow. Is it an amalgamation of "Quizno's" and "now", as in "Quizno's now has free delivery"? Did someone incredibly misspell Quizno as Quiznow? Or, is it two words (Quiz now), the sign's author having neglected to include last three letters of Quizno's? The more I think about it, the more my head hurts...

Unrelated, but in case you didn't already see it on Facebook, check out this Fillmore concert t-shirt fail, spotted in the wild:

Now We Are Six

2012-03-02T09:49:00.000-05:00

Today marks the sixth anniversary of the founding of this blog, which launched in 2006 with the ever-so-creative name of "Silver Spring Blog". While it may have gone quiet for weeks at a time in recent months, it's still here, 650 posts later. To celebrate the occasion, The Stage Burger Lounge will be handing out free hamburgers to its first fifty customers tonight.*

*The free hamburgers have absolutely nothing to do with the blog, whatsoever.

Burgers to Take the Stage as Early as Thursday

2012-02-29T08:00:00.000-05:00

As you may have already heard, the Stage Burger Lounge is set to open in the old Sabroso spot at 8624 Colesville Road and will be run by Spiro Gioldasis (owner of Mrs. K's and the two Pacci's restaurants) and Mrs. K's sous chef Luis Flores.

The menu (below) features a variety of sandwiches named using both literal (Mushaboom!) and punny versions of famous song titles. Foster the People has even achieved the honor of hamburger namesake with the introduction of the "Pumped Up Kids" burger. Certain commenters on this blog will be satisfied to know that the menu includes at least one vegan option.

Stage Burger could be open as soon as Thursday, sadly one week too late for the Guns N' Roses concert.

Franklin Avenue to Get a Lot More Fun This Fall

2012-02-19T22:19:00.001-05:00

While the scheduled repair of the University Boulevard Beltway bridge may not have a noticeable effect on those living close to downtown, some of us who live in the '01 should be a bit wary about the revised traffic patterns associated with this project.

The current plan is to close the outer loop beltway exit to University during the bridge repair and re-route traffic to the southbound Colesville Road exit and back across to University via Franklin Avenue. Additionally, the number of lanes on University crossing the bridge will be reduced from three to two during the duration of the work.

The work, which begins this fall, is scheduled to last two very long years.

As someone who already makes that left turn onto Franklin from Colesville each weekday evening, I am definitely not looking forward to the implementation of this detour. I also think that residents of the Indian Spring neighborhood might want to consider lobbying for some sort of new traffic restrictions, as their neighborhood streets are an obvious cut-through alternative between Colesville and University.

If anyone is interested in learning more about the work or the detour, there's an "informational workshop" scheduled for Tuesday from 5:30 to 7 in the Blair High School cafeteria.

UPDATE: Directing traffic to exit the Beltway at New Hampshire then cut across Piney Brand Rd to University is the best alternative I have heard so far. Doesn't this make far more sense than routing traffic through a residential neighborhood? For one thing, drivers would have to stay on the Beltway for two fewer exits.

I guess ultimately the 'official' detour is irrelevant, as people are going to take whatever route they deem fastest for them.

Did anyone get a chance to go to the presentation regarding the detour held at Blair HS on Tuesday night?

Now, Piratz Tavern's Journey to the Dark Side is Complete

2012-02-19T10:04:00.004-05:00

When I first heard that Piratz Tavern had been re-branded as "Corporate Bar and Grill", I thought there must be some mistake. In the era of the Occupy movement, could you pick a less off-putting theme for a business located in a fairly liberal locale like Silver Spring? How about the TaliBar?

Despite my skepticism, the new signage revealed last night confirmed this rumor:

I understand that perhaps a pirate-themed bar wasn't viable in the long run, and the place wouldn't have made it on Bar Rescue were some sort of change not needed, but I can't think of a way they could have possibly alienated their current customer base more than this. It's as if the bar was unsuspectingly featured on Punk'd instead of Bar Rescue. Perhaps there is a level of irony involved here that my non-mustachioed self can't possibly comprehend.

Unsurprisingly, some of their (former) customers aren't too pleased, based on yet-to-be-deleted comments on Piratz's Facebook page:

Anyway, they had their soft opening last night, during which the "reveal" portion of the Bar Rescue episode was filmed. Thayeravenue.com has some photos taken last night of the bar's exterior and of the rear patio.

And here's a shot of Corporate's menu, taken by Twitter user @Fedinsider:

While I don't fully comprehend the new strategy, I do hope it works out for them. I want to see local Silver Spring businesses succeed.

One bit of advice to the owners, however: it is not advisable to send angry emails to local blogs demanding that they take down posts that simply convey (accurate) information that was posted on the businesses' official Facebook page. You could always just ask nicely if you have a legitimate reason for your request.

UPDATE: I highly recommend reading the comments left on a Facebook group established this weekend by displaced Piratz Tavern customers. (Note that you'll need a Facebook account to access the page.)