Monday, July 06, 2015

Fish Taco coming to Bethesda

Cabin John's Fish Taco is expanding to Bethesda. A new location is in the works at the Shops at Wildwood (a.k.a. the Wildwood Shopping Center) on Old Georgetown Road. It will be located in a 3283 SF space next to Chopt at the Federal Realty-owned shopping center.

This will be another venture by Francis Namin of Food Wine & Company in Bethesda. Fish Taco features - yes - fish tacos on the menu. But they also have rice bowls, salads, burritos, quesadillas and their famous Brioche Bread Pudding.

The restaurant is specifically inspired by tacquerias in México City and Baja California. 

They've hired the architecture firm of Steven J. Karr, AIA, Inc. and Winmar Construction for the buildout of the space. This sounds like a winning combination - the Karr firm was behind the successful Norfolk-Cordell II building in Bethesda that houses Urban Heights, Smashburger and Dunkin' Donuts; Winmar was the construction firm that did the build-out for one of the DC area's hottest restaurants, Le Diplomate.

22 comments:

Anonymous said...

Another plug for Karr, Dyer's 2nd campaign contributor along with Greenberg

Anonymous said...

"successful Norfolk-Cordell II building"

Is it really successful if the major tenant who leases over half the space went out of business in less than a year?

Robert Dyer said...

6:05: Yes, it's successful in being 100% leased on delivery, and remaining 100% leased even after one tenant closed. Ever noticed the new and old vacant spaces around downtown Bethesda? Being fully leased up, by comparison, indeed qualifies as successful.

Robert Dyer said...

5:42: Neither contributed to my council campaign. You are poorly informed.

Anonymous said...

That's true. A successful building doesn't have to give a crap about the outcome of the businesses inside or the community it serves. As long as your goal is being fully leased.

Anonymous said...

Looking forward to this. Their Cabin John location is hard to find parking around lunch time.

Anonymous said...

Does wildwood have enough parking?

Anonymous said...

"Ever noticed the new and old vacant spaces around downtown Bethesda?"

Ever noticed how Dyer never mentions that nearly all of these are Greenhill properties, and instead tries to lamely blame Riemer?

JAC said...

Also the group behind City Burger at Leland St. and Wisc. Doesn't get enough credit or traffic but very good burger place. Fish Taco, same thing. The center they are in is very tight and most uninviting. It's extremely good place though and will pack Wildwood. How awesome for me? Right around the corner. Nothing in Wildwood is that great. This will be an immediate success and good addition. If someone resurrected Montgomery Donuts there, we'd be in business.

Anonymous said...

Fish Taco is great, I am happy they are opening a second location. I think Dyer has odd interests with Karr and Greenhill, but that shouldn't be what this story is about. Welcome to the neighborhood Fish taco.

Anonymous said...
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Anonymous said...

Indeed! But to your own words, cashiers and jean folders hardly makes a Fortune 500 company. :)

Anonymous said...

I'll wait for fish nachos.

Anonymous said...

Headline says two new fish taco places opening in Bethesda, I only see info about one..

Anonymous said...

I like Fish Taco, but their CityBurger has never done it for me. The beef quality is just not good -- I always end up with gristle. Not so if I get burgers from BGR, Five Guys, or Bobby Flay's.

Anonymous said...

Previously from Dyer:

"Relentless positivity is not journalism."

I guess that doesn't apply to his restaurant "reviews".

Robert Dyer said...

7:08: This is not a restaurant review. Reading skills are important.

Robert Dyer said...

4:58: Better read my headline again.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the fix. I thought it was a bit confusing before also. Better now.

Robert said...

What a terrible design.

Clogged artery entrance for Smashburger. Small and under utilized entry space on the long direction.

Terrible entrance for Urban Heights. How much more unnappealing can they have made that entrance? Walk into an elevator corridor and emergency stairs.

Big transformer or whatever that is right in front of the setback Dunkin Donuts.

Didn't both to put the power lines underground when you are touting views as your aesthetic. Rooftop and windows looking at power lines. Nice.

Ugly outdoor stairwell.

Such potential, but Karr doesn't seem capable of stepping past that initial look and thinking about actual usability and design.

Anonymous said...

Karr's got potential but he's got some terrible aspects to his buildings.

Robert Dyer said...

6:06: This was the original headline. It was not updated.