Kako Claw arcade opens in Wheaton

This past weekend, Westfield's Wheaton Plaza mall embarked on its new effort to become a regional destination not only for shopping, dining, and blockbuster movies, but also for family fun. Kako Claw is now open. The claw machine arcade offers token packages starting at $10. Win blind box toys and collectibles Win keychains. Win plushies. Win plushie keychains! Already tired of what you won? Trade up at the Trade Station.

Kako Claw claims every machine gives you a fair chance to win. Look for Kako Claw on Level 2 of the mall, across from Classic Diamond & Jewelry. And the fun has just begun. A larger arcade and bowling alley entertainment center will be opening at the mall later this year, as I reported last month. Round1 Bowling & Arcade will be down on Level 1. 

Haraz Coffee House opens in Burtonsville

Haraz Coffee House has opened at 15775 Old Columbia Pike at Burtonsville Crossing. This is the chain's second location in Maryland. Haraz was founded in 2021 in Dearborn, Michigan, by Hamzah Nasser, who wanted to share Yemeni coffee and culture with the rest of America. Operating hours in Burtonsville are 9:00 AM to 7:00 PM. The opening of Haraz was first reported by The MoCo Show.

Paris Baguette opening in Silver Spring

Paris Baguette is coming soon to downtown Silver Spring. It will be located at 8605 Cameron Street, in the new Guardian apartment building. South Korea-based Paris Baguette has a massive menu of French and Korean baked goods, hot lunch and snack items like tiny pizzas and pigs-in-a-blanket, and coffee and tea beverages. There's even a whole line of donuts, including cronuts and mochi donuts. Paris Baguette's expansion to Silver Spring was first reported by the Washington Business Journal.

Community store to replace Rock Creek Tavern in Olney

A community store is taking over the building at 5500 Olney-Laytonsville Road in Olney. It was recently vacated by Rock Creek Tavern. The new store will also carry beer and wine. Conversion of the interior is expected to begin in early 2026.

Romero's Italian Restaurant opening in Wheaton

Romero's Italian Restaurant is opening soon at 2666 University Boulevard W. in Wheaton. That was previously home to Cristina Ristorante Italiano. Last evening, signage was already in place on the storefront. Romero's has a liquor license hearing scheduled for December 18, 2025, and on its application states it plans to open shortly after Christmas - but stay tuned for confirmation of that, which may change. Operating hours for Romero's will be 10:30 AM to 10:30 PM, seven days a week.

Insomnia Cookies opens in Silver Spring

Insomnia Cookies has opened at 8455 Fenton Street in downtown Silver Spring, in the ground floor of the Central apartments. The bakery has already picked up a couple of five-star reviews on Google. Insomnia Cookies promises to provide - or deliver directly to your door - fresh, warm cookies until 3:00 AM. Check out their limited-time-only flavor Spellbound Sugar, and their Friendsgiving cookie pack that just might make you the most popular host or guest at your Friendsgiving feast!

Dollar Tree now open in White Oak

Dollar Tree's new White Oak store is now open at 11130 New Hampshire Avenue. Operating hours of the new store are 8:00 AM to 10:00 PM Monday through Saturday, and 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM on Sundays. Dollar Tree's building was formerly home to Montgomery County's last Office Depot store until 2023. The 10,770-square-foot retail space was also once home to a W. Bell & Co. store. 

Hot Spot opening in downtown Silver Spring

A new hot spot is on the way in downtown Silver Spring. It's called...Hot Spot, and it will be located at 8073 Georgia Avenue. Dimmples Kettles recently closed there, and before that, it was home to Lotus Cafe. The West African restaurant will have outdoor seating, and will also offer catering services. Hot Spot's operating hours will be 11:00 AM to 3:00 AM, seven days a week.

Momiji Sushi to open in downtown Silver Spring

Momiji Sushi is coming soon to downtown Silver Spring. It will be located in the former Cubano's space at 1201 Fidler Lane. The full service restaurant will serve sushi rolls alongside other Asian dishes from multiple countries. Operating hours will be 11:00 AM to 2:00 AM seven days a week.

Honeygrow opening at Shoppes of Burnt Mills in Silver Spring

Honeygrow is coming soon to the Shoppes of Burnt Mills in Silver Spring. It will be located in the former California Tortilla space. Honeygrow is a Philadelphia-based fast casual chain serving stir-fry, salads, "honeybars," and cold-pressed juices. Construction is expected to begin by late fall.

Insomnia Cookies "coming soon" to Silver Spring

Insomnia Cookies is "coming soon" to downtown Silver Spring, according to signage posted at their future storefront. It is located at 8455 Fenton Street, in the ground floor of the Central apartments. When I first heard of Insomnia Cookies, I thought maybe they were caffeinated cookies, like the caffeine-spiked donuts Hostess tested a few years ago. Instead, the selling point is that they are open late at night to deliver warm cookies. 

Buffalo Wild Wings GO opens in Kensington

The dining scene in Kensington just got spicier. Buffalo Wild Wings GO is now open at 10619-B Connecticut Avenue at the new Crossroads of Kensington shopping center. Just what the doctor ordered for football season. They have a buy-one-get-one-of-equal-value-free offer for boneless wings on Thursdays, for a limited time, valid only when your order is placed through the BWW website or app.

You'll find a slimmed-down menu at Buffalo Wild Wings GO, comprised of some of BWW's customer favorites. An "innovative cooking process" is able to churn out the same crispy wings you find at a regular BWW at a speedier pace, the company says. The interior set-up is designed to get customers in and out of the smaller-scale GO store as quickly as possible, especially when ordering ahead. GO also has some exclusive flavors not found at the full-size BWW.

Thousands line up for Pollo Pinulito opening in Wheaton

The line went out the door and down the street for the grand opening of Pollo Pinulito in Wheaton yesterday. Customers turned out en masse for the debut of the Guatemalan fried chicken restaurant at 2322 University Boulevard West. This is the chain's first Maryland location, and their first in the Mid-Atlantic region. 

Pollo Pinulito USA imports authentic Guatemalan seasoning and spices for their top secret chicken recipe. Regular and spicy variations are available, as are nuggets and fries. The fries are thicker-cut like those at Roy Rogers.

Eden West "opening soon" in Silver Spring

Eden West is "opening soon" at 8402 Georgia Avenue in downtown Silver Spring, according to signage posted across the storefront. There's a restaurant and lounge at the Holiday Inn in Baltimore with that exact same name, but this is unrelated, and will serve "modern West African cuisine." The Charm City establishment serves American food. 8402 Georgia is most notoriously known as the former location of Piratz Tavern of Bar Rescue infamy. At the moment, though, it is more notorious for the Purple Line construction "war zone" immediately outside of the building.

Commas food hall opens in Silver Spring

Commas food hall has opened inside the Ellsworth Place mall in downtown Silver Spring. A grand opening celebration is being held today at the food hall, which is on Level 3 of the mall. There will be free food, games, prizes, and live entertainment. It will be interesting to see how the food hall is received, as many others in Montgomery County have closed, or are closing, including ones in Rockville and Friendship Heights.

Harbor Bank of Maryland opening Silver Spring branch today

The Harbor Bank of Maryland will mark its first expansion outside of the Baltimore area today, September 23, 2025, in downtown Silver Spring. It will open its first branch in Montgomery County at 1010 Wayne Avenue this morning at 11:30 AM. A grand opening celebration will be held between then and 1:30 PM, including a ribbon-cutting, light refreshments, and an exclusive exhibition of the Thangularity Mothership -a collaborative artwork by music icon George Clinton and artist Overton Loyd. 

Harbor Bank has operated branches in the Baltimore area since 1982. One of its foundational missions was to provide services to Black communities that its founders felt were being underserved by the existing banks in Charm City. Harbor Bank is a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)-designated Minority Depository Institution, and is a minority-owned community bank.

Oak Barrel & Vine sets opening date in Wheaton

Oak Barrel & Vine will open its newest location in Wheaton on Thursday, September 25, 2025. The Montgomery County Government-owned liquor store is inside of Westfield's Wheaton Plaza mall at 11160 Veirs Mill Road. Look for it on Level 2 of the mall in the Costco wing, across from Nando's Peri-Peri.

The Oak Barrel & Vine store concept features a large tasting room and event space, a handpicked selection of items with an emphasis on locally-produced products, an improved selection of small format items, a dedicated non-alcoholic products section, queue lines for faster checkout, wayfinding signage, and "enhanced customer accessibility." This new format is designed to rebrand the County's government liquor sales monopoly through the aesthetics of private retail businesses like Total Wine & More, which are banned from operating in Montgomery County.

Qdoba opening in Olney

Qdoba Mexican Eats is expanding to Olney. It will be located at 3486 Olney-Laytonsville Road, at the Olney Shopping Center. That was previously home to Eco Cleaners. Qdoba has three existing locations in Montgomery County, in Rockville, Gaithersburg, and Silver Spring.

Spirit Halloween now haunting in Wheaton (Photos)

Spirit Halloween is now open for the 2025 Halloween season in Wheaton. It is in the former Party City building at Westfield's Wheaton Plaza mall at 11006 Veirs Mill Road. Here's a sneak peek at what is inside for this year, including an apparent "Giant Rat" trend for 2025 that could get Donald Trump's attention. Also on sale is a Montgomery County Council-inspired Stuffed Dummy Prop. Gardez Bien! Operating hours for the store are 11:00 AM to 8:00 PM Monday through Friday, 10:00 AM to 9:00 PM on Saturdays, and 12:00 PM to 6:00 PM on Sundays.