Hot Shoppes memorabilia at Marriott HQ in Bethesda - but no Hot Shoppes food! (Photos)

The current leadership of Marriott International may not recognize or appreciate the centrality of its former Hot Shoppes brand and iconic menu items to the company's identity, but it is keeping the faint spirit of them alive at its downtown Bethesda headquarters. A collection of Marriott memorabilia is on display in the publicly-accessible area on the ground floor, which also includes the MI Cafe, a coffee shop that is also open to the public. The display is light on famous Hot Shoppes menu items like the Mighty Mo burger, Orange Freeze beverage, and Teen Twist sandwich. But it features a number of Hot Shoppes (or, "Hot Shoppe," the early singular branding) items, including cups, plates, a list of locations, and even a Hot Shoppes annual report. 

There are also Marriott-branded items in the collection, such as "Do Not Disturb" door hangers from around the world, and a photograph of the original root beer stand that grew into a global hospitality giant. But the Hot Shoppes content remains underwhelming. MI Cafe is joined on the corporate campus by the Seventh State restaurant and Hip Flask rooftop bar in the hotel next door. Yet none of these three restaurants open to the public feature Hot Shoppes menu items, much less a fully-functional Hot Shoppes restaurant.

To update you on my Mighty Mo Quest: Since my last report in July 2023, the Mighty Mo burger is still not available at any of the three restaurants at the Bethesda headquarters. One inch of progress made is the addition of Mighty Mo sauce, which is served on the side with the Cheddar Burger at Seventh State. The Cheddar Burger is a fine hamburger, but it is nothing like a Mighty Mo in appearance, ingredients, or construction. 

Over at the Pooks Hill Marriott, another trademark burger, the eponymous Marriott Burger, is available, but no Mighty Mo. We continue to face the absurd situation of being able to order a Mighty Mo in Sri Lanka, but not in Marriott's corporate town of Bethesda. Perhaps Marriott is taking cues from McDonald's, which today only features special burgers overseas, but not in the country where the Golden Arches were born. Talk about America Last!