Bethesda news, restaurants, nightlife, events and openings, real estate, crime reports and more - the way only a lifelong Bethesda resident like Robert Dyer can bring it to you. Everything you want and need to know about Bethesda, plus special investigative reports you won't find anywhere else. The must-read blog for breaking Bethesda news, when you want to be the first to know.
Wednesday, March 28, 2018
Pampillonia under construction at Bethesda Row
Pampillonia's new Bethesda Row location is now under construction on Bethesda Lane. The longtime tenant of Mazza Gallerie will relocate here later this spring. Here is a rendering of what the finished storefront will look like:
Rendering courtesy Pampillonia
Meanwhile, Runway missed its reopening date Monday, as renovations took a bit longer than originally expected.
34 comments:
Anonymous
said...
That's a plus. Great company and nice family. They had to get out of Mazza where they'd been for years. They were robbed rather brazenly as I recall. Hopefully they'll be safer in tony Bethesda Row. More police close by anyway just in case.
"Trucks were forcibly removed from prime lunch and dinner hour spots to a handful of private property locations far from where most customers were. Within months, 96% of food trucks either went out of business, or retreated into the District."
I have hope that Bethesda nightlife can improve. Who would have thought the early 2000s Bethesda or even 2010 would look so good in terms of nightlife compared to 2018?
I note that Dyer's photo for his campaign ad above shows the old Dunmor's beer and wine store, the closure of which had nothing to do with any County alcohol policies or supposed decline of the local nightlife.
I find it HILARIOUS how you disabled the comments for your campaign blurb comparing Bangkok to Bethesda. How communistic of you to control the media and think you're powerful.
What, precisely, has the County Coincil done to harm nightlife in Bethesda? Be specific.
What about successes in other parts of the County such as Crown and Silver Spring? Could it be that demographics are shifting; and Bethesda residents don’t support nightlife establishments in their midst as much as they used to?
10:34 AM It doesn't seem like the Council/Planning Board downtown plan is improving the situation at all. The new buildings are great, but many are not including any meaningful retail/restaurant space.
Does Dyer really think Bangkok is like Bethesda? Was MoCo politics the reason for the coup in 2014 like in Thailand? Meanwhile the condo deal in foreclosure is closer to the picture in the other thread that Dyer refuses to open for comments.
If Bethesda is like Bangkok, then which street is like Koh San Road, with strip club after strip club, and live shows with Thai women and ladyboys shooting ping pong balls from various orifices? Cordell Avenue perhaps?
Hey Retard!!! The reason there is no night life in Bethesda is not because of Hans its because of the complaining of the know it all loser Bethesda residents like yourself Dyer that complain about everything like a baby because its not your way!! If you think that is a good ad for you running Retard its not pick a new topic, as long as your demographic of aging Potomac and Bethesda residents fill those condos there will be no night life ever!! They want peace and quiet after 11
In January 2016, if I recall correctly, we had a blizzard. Anyone else remember? It had begun snowing at dusk, a couple days before the predicted blizzard, on a Wednesday evening. There was black ice forming on the ground by 10pm that evening.
Robert Dyer was reporting. And Hans Riemer and the rest of the Council were asleep. The county could not bring out those machines to sprinkle salt without the express permission of the Council. Phones rang away; no councilman answered.
That was the night "In Which": "In Which Several Folks Must Pull Over Roadside and Sleep in Their Cars"; "In Which There Were Major Pile-Ups Countywide"; and "In Which Morning Has Broken, but Not the Black Ice From the Roads."
Robert was wondering why STILL nothing had been done, over 12 hours later, the following morning. He found Hans Riemer online, tweeting about a wine-tasting he had been to that weekend. For some reason, he still was clueless about the magnitude of ice and damage from not giving the go-ahead for the city workers to deal with the problem the evening before.
If Robert Dyer had been a Councilman then, he would have been seeing to the streets being treated in a timely fashion; because like it or not, Robert Dyer is all over Bethesda on a daily basis. It is great that someone does hyperlocal news here.
As a pedestrian that slid across that black ice that night in an intersection, with coffee I had just bought to warm my hands with spraying everywhere as I fell, I remember that week quite lucidly.
I would rather have a Councilman whose pastime is already staying alert with the various changes as they happen here.
2:58 PM lol...you don't live in Bethesda if you think all of the new apartments and condos are filled with senior citizens. Please come into the downtown before making such inaccurate statements. (Maybe take a bus tour of Bethesda, like Mr. Reamer?)
Lots of intelligent commentary on that January 2016 article:
Anonymous said... http://wapo.st/1S6uZG3
VA said they were worried temps were too cold and pretreatment would make it worse?
MD SHA says they based it on forecasts of not much snow.
Anonymous said... Does DHS need council member authorization to take action? Otherwise what's the connection to "waking up" council members?
Robert Dyer said... Interestingly, the media is piling on the DC mayor, but haven't had a peep to say about Montgomery County elected officials. Wow - what's up with that?
Anonymous said... It wasn't just MoCo, you birdbrain. The entire region was caught by surprise. Even private properties hadn't plowed or salted until midnight or later.
Anonymous said... It's not much solace, but pretty much every local jurisdiction got it wrong-- DC, Moco, VA-- all ignored the possibility that there would be enough snow to cause problems on the road. Yeah, Moco should have done better, but they have a lot of company.
Anonymous said... Our range rovers handled the storm with grace and poise. We opted to leave the Tesla at home.
Anonymous said... Do you think that the folks who were stuck in their cars in DC or NoVa were any happier than those stuck on the roads of MoCo?
Anonymous said... It would really be nice to get unbiased reporting that doesn't viciously attack the county FOR EVERY SINGLE THING, while at the same time glorifying Northern VA FOR EVERY SINGLE THING
Anonymous said... Haha seriously? Do you actually expect Mr. Dyer to be reasonable and balanced?
Really though, has Dyer EVER (and I mean EVER) talked about the Montgomery County govt with anything but invective, and Northern Virginia govt with anything but complements???
Robert Dyer said... "Obama doesn't have direct oversight authority over snow operations in MoCo. The County Council DOES."
Anonymous said... Incorrect. The County executive's office and the Maryland Governor, through MCDOT and SHA respectively, have direct authority over road treatment and snow removal. It's one thing to have an agenda and have extremist views and biases, but when you start making stuff up it's really getting out of hand.
Anonymous said... 2 simple questions: Why weren't MoCo roads pre treated and why weren't trucks out in force last night as conditions deteriorated?
Anonymous said...
It was LESS THAN AN INCH OF SNOW. People just need to drive carefully. The pre-treatment option doesn't work in the type of weather yesterday. And you don't plow an inch of snow.
Anonymous said... Dyer, you might want to do some research, most highways in Montgomery County are STATE HIGHWAYS, which are the jurisdiction of SHA, which is part of MDOT, which is an executive agency, which is under the direct authority of THE EXECUTIVE, which is THE GOVERNOR.
"the Council doesn't have direct oversight authority over the executive branch"
LOL. You really don't understand how govt. works
Anonymous said... Dyer, I don't even know where to begin with all your dumbass, illogical replies. Do you honestly not understand why so many people tear you apart in every comments section of every one of these rants? Why not try a bit of introspection for a sec. Everyone agrees with the premise that the response to the snow was inadequate, yet you manage to turn everyone against you because your posts always go off on these dumbshit tangents that make no sense. You try to turn every hiccup into some reason to lynch the county council; you look petty, stupid, and childish and all you ever do is succeed in convincing people of the opposite viewpoint.
C.M. (6:14) is posting Dyer fan fiction. Now I’ve seen everything.
Let’s be clear: “Express permission of the council” is not needed to salt the damn roads. Likewise, the council has zip to do with “nightlife” establishments choosing to open (or not) in Bethesda or elsewhere. The operators of such establishments respond to market demand. This is not some conspiracy.
Interestingly, the media is piling on the DC mayor, but haven't had a peep to say about Montgomery County elected officials. Wow - what's up with that?
Have the Executive and Council apologized yet? Did the media that demanded an apology from the DC mayor ask MoCo leaders for an apology?
Betsy said... Isn't our county executive black? What the heck does race have to do with anything in this conversation of snow response???
7:55: I understand that your carpetbagger status means you may be unfamiliar with the federal government's eagerness to arrest black politicians in D.C. and Prince George's County, but not so much the white elected officials of Montgomery County.
7:34: LOL - "Fan fiction" is a good description of Hans Riemer's resume he's been touting since 2010, with no challenge by the local media.
You believe the bars closed because they wanted to, not because of the Council policies, tax & wage hikes, and "nighttime economy" initiative implosion that destroyed their business? God, what an idiot you are.
"You believe the bars closed because they wanted to, not because of the Council policies, tax & wage hikes, and "nighttime economy" initiative implosion that destroyed their business? God, what an idiot you are."
This is an excellent example of the logical fallacies of the Straw Man. as well as False Alternatives - Dyer's claims that bars closed either 1) "because of the Council policies, tax & wage hikes, and 'nighttime economy' initiative implosion"
The reality is this:
-Relic closed because of repeated violations of alcohol regulations, specifically, selling alcohol after hours.
-Steamers closed because of repeated violations of alcohol regulations, specifically, selling alcohol after hours.
-Parva closed because of a harassment campaign by one or more residents of the Fairmont Plaza across the street.
-Parker's closed because the landlord, Federal Realty, chose to move Williams-Sonoma from Chevy Chase to there (along with the adjacent site that used to be the Sala Thai restaurant).
-Hard Times closed because of the owner's debts related to medical issues.
-At the time Hans Riemer took office, the nightspot that started out as The Roof, was later Urban Heights, and is now Tommy Joe's, did not exist, as it was still an abandoned furniture repair shop at the time.
-Tommy Joe's closed their bar on Montgomery Lane ahead of their move to Norfolk Avenue.
-Union Jacks - became Tapp'd.
-BlackFinn - crappy landlord.
RiRa - closed both their Bethesda and Arlington restaurants in favor of a more centrally located restaurant in Georgetown.
"'Fan fiction' is a good description of Hans Riemer's resume he's been touting since 2010, with no challenge by the local media."
"Nonexistent" is a good description of Robert Dyer's resume he's been imagining since 2006; when challenged by local readers, he yells 'BUT BUT BUT HANS RIEMER!!!"
6:04 AM Dyer has a great resume for public service- local news publisher and community activist involved with all of the major issues facing the county.
My earlier comments: Sometimes you just gotta stay #silent cause no words can explain the crap that Dyer's spouting. There's crazy with papers and just every day walking around crazy.
5:04 AM
Blogger Anna said...
More comments have been deleted than remain. Whatcha scared of Robert? What don't you want people to see?
34 comments:
That's a plus. Great company and nice family. They had to get out of Mazza where they'd been for years. They were robbed rather brazenly as I recall. Hopefully they'll be safer in tony Bethesda Row. More police close by anyway just in case.
"Trucks were forcibly removed from prime lunch and dinner hour spots to a handful of private property locations far from where most customers were. Within months, 96% of food trucks either went out of business, or retreated into the District."
[citation needed]
I have hope that Bethesda nightlife can improve. Who would have thought the early 2000s Bethesda or even 2010 would look so good in terms of nightlife compared to 2018?
Robert Dyer's priorities:
-Free parking in 100-acre asphalt lots
-Be able to buy malt liquor and bumwines at CVS at 2 AM
I note that Dyer's photo for his campaign ad above shows the old Dunmor's beer and wine store, the closure of which had nothing to do with any County alcohol policies or supposed decline of the local nightlife.
If a bar closes and is replaced by another bar did Bethesda lose a nightlife spot? Are you counting Union Jacks as a loss?
Are you counting Tommy Joe's move as a loss?
Lol Dyer is clearly clueless as to openings. He only counts losses.
Are you counting the Roof and Urban Heights as two closures?
Are you counting Shopin's Furniture Repair as "the wealthy fleeing Montgomery County" or "2,000 retail jobs lost since 2000"?
8:43am you mean Scopin Brothers Upholstery?
I find it HILARIOUS how you disabled the comments for your campaign blurb comparing Bangkok to Bethesda. How communistic of you to control the media and think you're powerful.
What, precisely, has the County Coincil done to harm nightlife in Bethesda? Be specific.
What about successes in other parts of the County such as Crown and Silver Spring? Could it be that demographics are shifting; and Bethesda residents don’t support nightlife establishments in their midst as much as they used to?
10:34 AM It doesn't seem like the Council/Planning Board downtown plan is improving the situation at all. The new buildings are great, but many are not including any meaningful retail/restaurant space.
Does Dyer really think Bangkok is like Bethesda? Was MoCo politics the reason for the coup in 2014 like in Thailand? Meanwhile the condo deal in foreclosure is closer to the picture in the other thread that Dyer refuses to open for comments.
Bethesda's representative on the Council still live on Rockville Pike?
10:39
Every single building proposed since the new downtown plan has retail and restaurant space. Don't expect Dyer to talk about any of those though.
I'm still waiting to hear him blame Hans Riemer and the county council for the forthcoming closure of Toys R Us in Gaithersburg.
11:07 AM If you are talking about banks, then yes, many of the new buildings are offering new bank branches.
Except westward now apparently the residents killed it. That’s on them.
Dyer only comments under his own name between 1 and 2 AM anymore. Picture him doing that as a Councilmember.
If Bethesda is like Bangkok, then which street is like Koh San Road, with strip club after strip club, and live shows with Thai women and ladyboys shooting ping pong balls from various orifices? Cordell Avenue perhaps?
Hey Retard!!! The reason there is no night life in Bethesda is not because of Hans its because of the complaining of the know it all loser Bethesda residents like yourself Dyer that complain about everything like a baby because its not your way!! If you think that is a good ad for you running Retard its not pick a new topic, as long as your demographic of aging Potomac and Bethesda residents fill those condos there will be no night life ever!! They want peace and quiet after 11
11:57AM
In January 2016, if I recall correctly, we had a blizzard. Anyone else remember? It had begun snowing at dusk, a couple days before the predicted blizzard, on a Wednesday evening. There was black ice forming on the ground by 10pm that evening.
Robert Dyer was reporting.
And Hans Riemer and the rest of the Council were asleep.
The county could not bring out those machines to sprinkle salt without the express permission of the Council. Phones rang away; no councilman answered.
That was the night "In Which": "In Which Several Folks Must Pull Over Roadside and Sleep in Their Cars"; "In Which There Were Major Pile-Ups Countywide"; and "In Which Morning Has Broken, but Not the Black Ice From the Roads."
Robert was wondering why STILL nothing had been done, over 12 hours later, the following morning. He found Hans Riemer online, tweeting about a wine-tasting he had been to that weekend. For some reason, he still was clueless about the magnitude of ice and damage from not giving the go-ahead for the city workers to deal with the problem the evening before.
If Robert Dyer had been a Councilman then, he would have been seeing to the streets being treated in a timely fashion; because like it or not, Robert Dyer is all over Bethesda on a daily basis. It is great that someone does hyperlocal news here.
As a pedestrian that slid across that black ice that night in an intersection, with coffee I had just bought to warm my hands with spraying everywhere as I fell, I remember that week quite lucidly.
I would rather have a Councilman whose pastime is already staying alert with the various changes as they happen here.
2:58 PM lol...you don't live in Bethesda if you think all of the new apartments and condos are filled with senior citizens. Please come into the downtown before making such inaccurate statements. (Maybe take a bus tour of Bethesda, like Mr. Reamer?)
Lots of intelligent commentary on that January 2016 article:
Anonymous said...
http://wapo.st/1S6uZG3
VA said they were worried temps were too cold and pretreatment would make it worse?
MD SHA says they based it on forecasts of not much snow.
Anonymous said...
Does DHS need council member authorization to take action? Otherwise what's the connection to "waking up" council members?
Robert Dyer said...
Interestingly, the media is piling on the DC mayor, but haven't had a peep to say about Montgomery County elected officials. Wow - what's up with that?
Anonymous said...
It wasn't just MoCo, you birdbrain. The entire region was caught by surprise. Even private properties hadn't plowed or salted until midnight or later.
Anonymous said...
It's not much solace, but pretty much every local jurisdiction got it wrong-- DC, Moco, VA-- all ignored the possibility that there would be enough snow to cause problems on the road. Yeah, Moco should have done better, but they have a lot of company.
Anonymous said...
Our range rovers handled the storm with grace and poise. We opted to leave the Tesla at home.
Anonymous said...
Do you think that the folks who were stuck in their cars in DC or NoVa were any happier than those stuck on the roads of MoCo?
Anonymous said...
It would really be nice to get unbiased reporting that doesn't viciously attack the county FOR EVERY SINGLE THING, while at the same time glorifying Northern VA FOR EVERY SINGLE THING
Anonymous said...
Haha seriously? Do you actually expect Mr. Dyer to be reasonable and balanced?
Really though, has Dyer EVER (and I mean EVER) talked about the Montgomery County govt with anything but invective, and Northern Virginia govt with anything but complements???
Robert Dyer said...
"Obama doesn't have direct oversight authority over snow operations in MoCo. The County Council DOES."
Anonymous said...
Incorrect. The County executive's office and the Maryland Governor, through MCDOT and SHA respectively, have direct authority over road treatment and snow removal. It's one thing to have an agenda and have extremist views and biases, but when you start making stuff up it's really getting out of hand.
Anonymous said...
2 simple questions: Why weren't MoCo roads pre treated and why weren't trucks out in force last night as conditions deteriorated?
Anonymous said...
It was LESS THAN AN INCH OF SNOW. People just need to drive carefully. The pre-treatment option doesn't work in the type of weather yesterday. And you don't plow an inch of snow.
Anonymous said...
Dyer, you might want to do some research, most highways in Montgomery County are STATE HIGHWAYS, which are the jurisdiction of SHA, which is part of MDOT, which is an executive agency, which is under the direct authority of THE EXECUTIVE, which is THE GOVERNOR.
"the Council doesn't have direct oversight authority over the executive branch"
LOL. You really don't understand how govt. works
Anonymous said...
Dyer, I don't even know where to begin with all your dumbass, illogical replies. Do you honestly not understand why so many people tear you apart in every comments section of every one of these rants? Why not try a bit of introspection for a sec. Everyone agrees with the premise that the response to the snow was inadequate, yet you manage to turn everyone against you because your posts always go off on these dumbshit tangents that make no sense. You try to turn every hiccup into some reason to lynch the county council; you look petty, stupid, and childish and all you ever do is succeed in convincing people of the opposite viewpoint.
C.M. (6:14) is posting Dyer fan fiction. Now I’ve seen everything.
Let’s be clear: “Express permission of the council” is not needed to salt the damn roads. Likewise, the council has zip to do with “nightlife” establishments choosing to open (or not) in Bethesda or elsewhere. The operators of such establishments respond to market demand. This is not some conspiracy.
Dyer is so influential and popular in Bethesda that he has unofficial historians who curate his old articles and comments.
Robert Dyer said...
Interestingly, the media is piling on the DC mayor, but haven't had a peep to say about Montgomery County elected officials. Wow - what's up with that?
Have the Executive and Council apologized yet? Did the media that demanded an apology from the DC mayor ask MoCo leaders for an apology?
Betsy said...
Isn't our county executive black? What the heck does race have to do with anything in this conversation of snow response???
Let's be clear: Dyer is so popular that everyone commenting on his blog hates him, except for a few sockpuppets.
7:59 PM Give it up, man. You're a lone man posting the same negative stuff here for years.
7:55: I understand that your carpetbagger status means you may be unfamiliar with the federal government's eagerness to arrest black politicians in D.C. and Prince George's County, but not so much the white elected officials of Montgomery County.
7:34: LOL - "Fan fiction" is a good description of Hans Riemer's resume he's been touting since 2010, with no challenge by the local media.
You believe the bars closed because they wanted to, not because of the Council policies, tax & wage hikes, and "nighttime economy" initiative implosion that destroyed their business? God, what an idiot you are.
"You believe the bars closed because they wanted to, not because of the Council policies, tax & wage hikes, and "nighttime economy" initiative implosion that destroyed their business? God, what an idiot you are."
This is an excellent example of the logical fallacies of the Straw Man. as well as False Alternatives - Dyer's claims that bars closed either 1) "because of the Council policies, tax & wage hikes, and 'nighttime economy' initiative implosion"
The reality is this:
-Relic closed because of repeated violations of alcohol regulations, specifically, selling alcohol after hours.
-Steamers closed because of repeated violations of alcohol regulations, specifically, selling alcohol after hours.
-Parva closed because of a harassment campaign by one or more residents of the Fairmont Plaza across the street.
-Parker's closed because the landlord, Federal Realty, chose to move Williams-Sonoma from Chevy Chase to there (along with the adjacent site that used to be the Sala Thai restaurant).
-Hard Times closed because of the owner's debts related to medical issues.
-At the time Hans Riemer took office, the nightspot that started out as The Roof, was later Urban Heights, and is now Tommy Joe's, did not exist, as it was still an abandoned furniture repair shop at the time.
-Tommy Joe's closed their bar on Montgomery Lane ahead of their move to Norfolk Avenue.
-Union Jacks - became Tapp'd.
-BlackFinn - crappy landlord.
RiRa - closed both their Bethesda and Arlington restaurants in favor of a more centrally located restaurant in Georgetown.
Did I forget any?
Saith Dyer:
"'Fan fiction' is a good description of Hans Riemer's resume he's been touting since 2010, with no challenge by the local media."
"Nonexistent" is a good description of Robert Dyer's resume he's been imagining since 2006; when challenged by local readers, he yells 'BUT BUT BUT HANS RIEMER!!!"
6:04 AM Dyer has a great resume for public service- local news publisher and community activist involved with all of the major issues facing the county.
More deletions? Whatcha hiding?
My earlier comments:
Sometimes you just gotta stay #silent cause no words can explain the crap that Dyer's spouting. There's crazy with papers and just every day walking around crazy.
5:04 AM
Blogger Anna said...
More comments have been deleted than remain.
Whatcha scared of Robert? What don't you want people to see?
5:23 AM
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