Crave closed at Montgomery Mall, Cinnabon opens

Crave American Kitchen & Sushi Bar has closed at Westfield Montgomery Mall. The closure leaves a large dining space vacant, which could be turned into a winning opportunity by Westfield if they can attract another big name on the level of next-door neighbor The Cheesecake Factory. With the planned addition of Olive Garden at Westfield's Wheaton Plaza clearly having fallen through, I would strongly urge them to pursue an Olive Garden here.

Is the Crave spot a bad location? No, because Cheesecake Factory has been tremendously successful in the adjacent space. While Crave had a wide-ranging menu with mass appeal for the mall-going crowd, other issues appear to have done them in. The restaurant rarely appeared crowded when I passed it.

Packing crates inside Crave Sunday

Last call at the bar

Would you like to see an
Olive Garden in this space?

In other mall news, as I reported Friday, Cinnabon opened this weekend in the Dining Terrace. And the long painful exit of Gymboree has finally come to an end. They have closed, and their space is being cleared out.

CRAVE RESTAURANT OPENING SUNDAY IN BETHESDA - CRAVE BETHESDA MENU

This Sunday will mark the debut of the anticipated CRAVE restaurant at Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda. Combining fresh sushi with American favorites, CRAVE sounds somewhat reminiscent of the Great American Restaurant Group chain's Jackson's Mighty Fine Food in Reston.

The dinner menu includes classic American dishes like Baked Mac & Cheese, Angus or bison burgers and roasted chicken, as well as house specialities like Lamb Meatballs, Duck Confit Flatbread and a Rib Eye Steak with ancho chili molasses glaze.

Starters include CRAVE Lemon Garlic wings, and Pork Belly Sliders with kimchi and a Korean BBQ sauce. Then there is the freshly-made sushi, with specialty rolls such as Godzilla and Sumo. Sushi boats are also available. You can accompany those with 5 kinds of sake.

Beers that stand out on the list include Sapporo from Japan, Heavy Seas Gold Ale, and DuClaw Misfit Red Amber Ale, with the latter two being among the local brewery selections. There are always the reliable standbys of Miller Lite, Bud Light and Blue Moon, as well. Perhaps you'd prefer a Stolichnaya Blueberi Lemonade, with fresh mint and fresh blueberries? Or an Angry Dragon? Alas, the Michelob Golden Draft the Mall of America CRAVE had isn't on the list here. But since my initial write-up on CRAVE, I found out that MGD is apparently marketed primarily in the Midwest, which probably explains the absence.

CRAVE is located on the lower level of the Old Navy wing, near two of the other best dining additions, The Cheesecake Factory, and Bobby's Burger Palace.

BETHESDA CONSTRUCTION UPDATE: CRAVE AT WESTFIELD MONTGOMERY MALL (PHOTOS)

CRAVE American Kitchen and Sushi Bar,  a new restaurant coming soon to Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda, is now building out its space in the same wing as The Cheesecake Factory. Featuring upscale American cuisine and a fresh sushi bar, CRAVE is one of many new additions to the mall's dining options. Like MET Bethesda and The Cheesecake Factory, it will be targeted to those seeking more of a full dining experience than the typical fast casual or quick service food court option offers.

CHLOE'S NY STYLE DELI COMING TO BETHESDA, CAVA GRILL OPENS TODAY AT WESTFIELD MONTGOMERY MALL

Chloe's NY Style Deli is the latest dining attraction coming soon to Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda. It answers the question of what will take over that space near Chick-Fil-A in the original food court area of the mall. But that's just the beginning of the restaurant news at the just-expanded retail center.

The other half of
the Chloe's sign

CAVA Grill opens today at the mall, and as is their custom on Day One (which they refer to as Community Day, not a grand opening), your food will be FREE today. In exchange, CAVA is asking you to consider making an optional donation to their non-profit local partners MicroGreens and City Blossoms. Here's a preview of the new restaurant:

Charley's Philly Steaks is now open in the Dining Terrace, as is MET Bethesda on the second level, just outside of the new ArcLight Cinemas.

For those craving the
famous sandwich from
Philadelphia

MET Bethesda overlooks the
new Dining Terrace

Lobster ME looks like it will be opening any day now. Here's a sneak peek at the space, and the Lobster ME menu:

And the Coming Soon signage is up at CRAVE (opening in early December) and Naples Ristorante e Pizzeria.

CRAVE RESTAURANT OPENING AT WESTFIELD MONTGOMERY MALL IN BETHESDA

Westfield Montgomery Mall is adding another upscale restaurant to its rapidly-expanding dining options. This one comes with an ALL-CAPS attitude. CRAVE Restaurant combines popular American dishes with fresh sushi. In that respect, it reminds me a bit of Jackson's Mighty Fine Food, a popular member of the Great American Restaurant family across the Potomac.

CRAVE also sounds like it will be one of several great pre-theater dining options for patrons of the mall's future ArcLight Cinemas. Ingredients will be locally and regionally-sourced. Looking at the wine and beer list another one of their mall-based locations, I'm glad to see a Michelob that isn't Michelob Ultra, and a good selection of sake. And a sake sampler. Of course, you never know what you'll end up with through our county-controlled liquor regime here in Montgomery County.

The full sushi bar at CRAVE with feature backlit onyx, and a wine tower. CRAVE will be located near The Cheesecake Factory and Bobby's Burger Palace on the lower level.

Other new dining additions will include the MET Bethesda, with a wood-burning grill, and a 40-seat bar that offers on-tap martinis; Blaze Pizza; Cava Grill and Chipotle, all of which I've previously written about.

Here is a video preview of what to expect from the sushi bar at CRAVE: