Woodmont Grill has closed at 7715 Woodmont Avenue in Bethesda. A message on their website states that "Woodmont Grill is now closed. Thank you for choosing us as a dining destination and allowing us to be a part of your lives with many fond memories of good food and cheer. We hope to have the pleasure of seeing you again at one of our other restaurants." While the message was on the website last evening, there were people dining inside the restaurant at the very same time. However, the entrance was closed, and no one was answering the phone. A source indicated that at least some employees were not informed of the closure until last night, and that it was the restaurant's last evening of operation.
As recently as the last decade, Woodmont Grill was said by some in the local hospitality business to enjoy the highest volume of sales of any restaurant in downtown Bethesda. When a fixture like Woodmont Grill calls it quits, and Bethesda resident and celebrity chef José Andrés gives up on downtown Bethesda, these are just more warning lights on the dashboard of the moribund Montgomery County economy. The lobbying organization for Maryland restaurants warned the County Council not to raise the minimum wage and other taxes and fees, but the Council paid no heed and raised them anyway. Now the chicken tenders have come home to roost, courtesy of the same Council that drove Bethesda stalwart Flanagan's out of business earlier this decade.
If you wonder why I say chicken tenders, it's because the closure of Woodmont Grill is really the end of not one, but two, eras. Woodmont Grill used to be Houston's, where the chicken tenders were a popular menu item. Houston's in Bethesda and Rockville were massively successful dining destinations in the 1990s. But the Rockville Pike location closed, and the Bethesda Houston's was inexplicably renamed Woodmont Grill. The new brand kept the Houston's chicken tenders as a secret menu selection for those in the know.
66 comments:
Hopefully the next business there doesn't block the sidewalk
I am gutted, horrified and my 80-some year-old mother will be crushed. It was easily her favorite restaurant anyplace in the DC area. We have gone there and to the R'ville Pike location since at least the '90s, (memory insists it was really late 1980s.) How in the name of all that's holy Hillstone, "restaurant group" that owned Houston's/Woodmont Grill, could walk away from a vast, loyal client base that kept the places packed --like, reservations were booked up days out, packed-- is beyond me. The ambiance, the service, the food were all top-drawer. Their ribs, their buttermilk ranch dressing, the borderline-orgasmic grilled artichokes (on the rare occasions they had them) were unparalleled. They weren't cheap, but unlike just about every other restaurant around here, I didn't feel I was being fleeced when the bill came.
My mother is currently in the hospital, pestering me to take her here when she gets out. Learning this news may well put her right back in Suburban, because when she hears what' s happened to her favorite place to eat she's going to have a stroke.
Heck of a job, Hillstone Restaurant Group
This is the worst closing news possible for Bethesda - WTF.
Only restaurant in Bethesda where you will not get a table without reservation. Ever. Therefore, not for lack of money. Tastee is next because the only guess here is a developer backed up an armored car full of money and that building is coming down. Worst need ever. Gimme my spinach dip. Thankfully, ATL has plenty of Houston's, where they started
It was outdated and needed a facelift and a new menu. Young people didn't think of it as a place to go. One comment is telling, the gentlemen's 80 year old mother wanted to go there; that might have been the restaurant's demographic. I am sure something else will move in there, but the restaurant business is tough and people's taste change.
If the news upsets you, avail yourself of the opportunity to contact their corporate offices, either via their webpage or by calling directly. Their corporate offices are in Phoenix, AZ, the number can be found by searching Google for hillstone restaurant group phone number camelback road headquarters
Let the men and women there know how much you appreciate their decision to close the best restaurant in the area.
@6:08, if the full-width sidewalk was insufficient for you to navigate past the restaurant's outdoor seating area --helpful Google Street View link, so you can see for yourself the passage is most commodious, https://maps.app.goo.gl/UUvV7g6TtWR6LdjY6-- you should probably make an appointment with either a bariatrician, to help get what must be a heroic weight problem under control, or else a neurologist, to see why you can't walk a straight line.
Dems are wrecking MoCo.
As we said, Bethesda would become DTSS and here you go! More to come!
You can blame the county council all you want, but the place was packed day in and day out for years, right up to the end. There is some other reason it closed, and other restaurants in the area would kill to have a client base like that, especially at those prices.
Have heard from some in the industry/ in the know that this "closing" is temporary. The suddenness is to create some buzz. In reality they are renovating and installing a revamped Hillstone Group concept. We shall see.
what a sad person
A bit expensive but without question the best restaurant in Bethesda. Only place in Bethesda I could find that every client or personal acquaintance gladly accepted an invite to. Would love to understand what happened.
This is devastating! Woodmont Grill (and Houstons before it) was not without its frustrations (making you wait for your entire party to get seated or wait 20 minutes despite reservation times), but the food and service from its servers and bartenders were worth it in the end! I noticed on Saturday they raised their take-out prices yet again (the spinach dip was $24 when at one point it was $20 or $22), but the place still drew crowds and trying to get a reservation was impossible if you didn't book in advance! Huge loss for Woodmont Triangle at a time, when new businesses like Max's Ice Cream, Wonderland Books, Babycat Brewery, the upcoming Call Your Mother, are all breathing fun new life into the neighborhood (I can't fathom to think this is economy related, but I have seen a lot of DC restaurants starting to close, too. sigh).
Marriot HQ is need of more Exec parking spaces!
Maybe Glenwoods (FKA Stanford Grill) will open an outpost here.
Easily our favorite restaurant. A place of celebration and terrific food and impeccable service. Ribs, Salads, Sushi, Burgers, artichoke dip, etc... they did everything at superlative levels. As others have said, prices seemed to always go up a $1.00 or two each year, but I always felt this restaurant delivered great value/service. Packed, hard to get into, loyal clientele and always exceeded expectations... has to be a story behind this Bethesda Anchor closing...
This has nothing to do with the Bethesda economy. This place is ALWAYS packed...I imagine the parent company is having serious issues/bankrupcy or something like that.
Tastee's owner was offered a boatload of money years ago, but turned down the offer. He's 80+, so he might be amenable now.
I hope you are correct.
Will Marriott demolish the building for a limousine parking lot?
I moved to the area from a place with a vibrant restaurant scene about 7 years ago and love good wine and dining out. Woodmont Grill always struck me as having a boring menu and being overpriced, so I never bothered to go there. Hope it gets replaced by something interesting.
Out walking 3 most ago and stopped in at 5 pm on a Wed to make a reservation. 9:30 was time offered. Always full.
The parent company has a sole/secretive owner named Biel. Don't think it's in trouble. Could be the profit margins are low in Bethesda and rent was going up more than they thought they could raise prices.
oooh! will keep my fingers crossed! although, I thought they rebranded Woodmont so it was different from others in Hillstone to avoid some of Montgomery County chain-restaurant laws (but my memory could be fuzzy) -- putting all my hope in your basket! :)
They own the Land- it is only 8,300 SF- no developer is paying them a bag for a landlocked site that small even if you get Tastee. They could have sold to the Marriott Developer years ago if they wanted $$$. Stay tuned...
I seem to recall that, about a decade ago, when the plans for the Marriott HQ and Hotel were being put together, the Marriott developers wanted to include the parcels on which Tastee Diner and Woodmont Grill stand into the Marriott development. Rumor was that the owners of Tastee Diner were willing to sell out but the owners of Woodmont Grill were not. That action suggested to me that Hillstone was committed to a restaurant in that location for the long haul. A very sudden closure like this suggests the possibility of some kind of legal situation, perhaps a corporate bankruptcy.
The Houston's restaurant in Memphis also closed abruptly about ten months ago, so perhaps that is some kind of precedent.
The PTB in Philadelphia discovered that outdoor seating for restaurants reduce street crime. More eyes on the street.
I was crushed when Houston's closed from Georgetown. The one in Rockville did not do a comparable Hawaiian steak. Then my sister introduced me to Woodmont Grill. We use to do double dates. Until my brother in law passed. So hate to see the home of memories leave.
This company constantly ghosted prospective applicants...them not letting their staff know sounds apropos.
Black's is FAR superior and right across the street.
I stopped going when they stopped serving the prime rib. That was amazing.
Well that would be heartless. Employees who weren’t on last night’s shift were not informed and showed up to work this morning.
Private Equity Plunderers?
Nice article, thanks for letting us know. It used to be a popular restaurant, but its business has been dwindling.
- Closing the parking garage across the street during business hours for only Marriott workers was a problem.
- Doubling parking fines if you stay longer than your meter and doubling the number of meter readers so that it’s inevitable you’ll get a ticket if you stay for dessert is a deterrent.
- Corrupt MOCO, run by commercial developers, has pushed through 20 new fast built, overpriced, mixed-use, high-rise buildings has turned Bethesda into Brooklyn, which means it’s no longer a desirable destination for dinner out in a small town feel. Coming in 2026, they’re tearing down Bethesda Avenue from the Honda dealer to Uncle Julio’s 🏢🏢🏢🏢🏢🏢🏢🏢🏢
Then the constantly increasing property taxes, colluding landlords keeping lease and rents high
Absolutely, no urban planning ever
And so on …is driving businesses out, with more to come
Only went there once years ago with a lawyer friend of the family when they still had their dedicated surface parking lot.
First of all, I am originally from the Baltimore Area, so I remember Houston’s for Steak and I recall the Georgetown Location, which was Great. Used to love coming down from Baltimore to eat there while in D.C.
Not to worry. Morton’s down the Street will gladly pick up what’s left of the High End of their client base……..
"Must have reservations" ... Good riddance!
Thanks for pointing out all the new businesses that have opened in the last year in/around that block. I believe all are locally owned, too? If so, even better :-)
They became, too clubby and arrogant
Federal Realty is only proposing to temporarily remove the Uncle Julio restaurant and build a ten story high apartment building that wraps around on Arlington and into the small private parking lot. No removal of retail from Honda to Apple is proposed. This caper is not even fully approved and likely years away.
10:18 - That's your take of course. But it was probably the single, most popular restaurant in the entire area. They were fully booked every day and night. The only option would be to sit at the bar. Boring menu is a view not widely shared. I went to all locations for years. This is a big loss.
I get a kick out of those bashing Marriott. Marriott is Bethesda's best friend, and we shouldn't forget it
What do you mean tearing down Bethesda Avenue? There are a lot of stores along that space?
Hill stone commented a bit on reasons here:
https://www.wusa9.com/article/life/food/woodmont-grill-closes-bethesda-houstsons/65-6559ed00-22a6-487f-be85-61b636bff348
With respect, the fact that the place was pack-jammed every night for more than 30 years would suggest some tastes endure, however passe the kidzzz may find it. Bethesda is super-saturated with hundreds --literally, hundreds-- of restaurants, the overwhelming majority of them destined to shutter in a few years and join the hundreds more that came and went before them. I haven't the county biz licenses to give exact numbers, but I'd estimate you can count on the fingers of both hands the number of dining establishments that have stayed open as long as Woodmont did, since at least the time of the first Bush presidency, 1988-'92.
Epic clapback.
Say that again so the author of this blog can hear you.
Have gotten more info - they are notorious for this. They recently closed a mid town NYC location abruptly with no notice.
I am normally happy to pile on MoCo/MD legislators who deserve grief for struggling businesses - but not in this case. The place was always packed - literally couldn't even get a lunch reservation some days. Revenue was absolutely just fine - I guarantee you that.
The owner is apparently a loose cannon who is borderline a nut job. There is a story he once walked into their Kansas City location, looked around at the clientele, didn't like what he saw and closed it the next day.
Also, if the plan was/is to sell the building - wouldn't you make an announcement saying "We are planning to sell our building and close our doors at the end of the year. Thank you for the years of memories" and then just cash the F out for 2 months - especially over the holidays. Do you know how many people would go to get their last meals in? What about the folks with unused gift cards? They would have posted record revenue for 2 months and then could bow out.
Something don't smell right. My money is on the owner just doing what he does. Nothing else really makes sense.
Such lame excusues you should pack up and leave, we'd all be happy.
The food was legitimately good and I understand why they had a loyal following. But the last couple times I went the staff could not have been less friendly and the prices had reached clown status. I stopped going about a year ago just because if I am going to get flogged with outrageous pricing ($22 for marg) then at least give me a smile or something.
Dear @3:53,
I was born and raised in Chevy Chase, and lived in Brooklyn Heights for more than 30 years. Trust me when I write that Bethesda is not, nor will it ever be, Brooklyn, (the population of that NY borough is nearly 40 times greater, the population density more than 7.5x as much.) Bethesda at its loftiest pretentions will never earn an apt comparison to Brooklyn or to any of the boroughs, any more than a child’s Lego airplane model will grow to be a C-5 Galaxy. This Maryland community is a suburb; Brooklyn is a world unto itself.
Perhaps sir will be more comfortable at the drive-though window.
Quite a few headlines in the past week alone about "abrupt closures" - Woodmont Grill, Outback, Solaire Social.
Something is going on impacting business across the board.
A lot of speculation going around .Some saying Marriott wants the property. That ship sailed years ago. With staff reductions and work from home, Marriott has all the space and parking they need already. Too much space probably.
Others say the Woodmont Grill lease was too high or the owner retired. Neither can be true given they owned their own property and it's corporate owned. This wasn't a small Bethesda business.Tastee Diner is a different story.
Just read an article that they did the same thing at the Midtown Manhattan Houston's location which I ate at several times. They were there for over 20 years and thriving. They had loyal bartenders and servers who worked there for years who were jobless overnight. They told no one. Great restaurant company but sounds like a wacky owner.
Just doesn't smell right. Citing the 'diminishment' of parking. Except Garage 11 is open to the public at 11am M-F and all day weekends and Woodmont Grill opened its doors at 11:30am. And sure, they lost a few adjacent on-street spaces due to the [fill in the blank] bike lanes but I doubt a material share of their revenue is derived from take-out. I wonder if having a Fortune 500 company move-in next door with thousands of employees in the office most weekdays boosted their bottom line?
So, the company is blaming parking. There is a county owned garage across the street. Makes no sense.
They miss the old days, pre Marriott HQ, when Woodmont Grill used to have a dedicated surface parking lot and a full time parking attendant. A rarity in downtown Bethesda!
The speculation as to why advance notice wasn't given to staff is easily explained, as was explained to me by a restaurant owner; If you notify the staff in advance of a closing, you run the risk of premature quitting and theft. The bar for entry for many in the restaurant industry is low, as is the loyalty factor, and as such, much of the staff is always on the lookout for a better opportunity. This is why you usually see abrupt restaurant closings.
Well, that's a bitter pill. No tantalizing teasers to suggest the dining public should stay tuned for any sort of re-brand or new venture from the outfit. THey are outta here. "So long, suckers"
8:41 - They sold that lot number one. Number two, the county lot was involved in the Marriott deal. I'm not sure why especially since they have their own underground parking. At the end of the day, this is a private restaurant company and an extremely successful one at that. I was looking online and there's some suggestion that they made over $1 billion in revenue in 2024. This likely will remain a mystery. This certainly doesn't make a lot of sense given that Houston's/ woodmont grill was among the most successful restaurants in the immediate area. It's a loss no way around that.
9:42am It's true... restaurants, even those locally owned by known chefs, rarely telegraph a closure ahead of time.
1:41AM 'zactly! The Studio 54-ification of food service. I can just picture a Steve Rubella type turning people away on his whim.
Back when they were a root beer float stand maybe, but not anymore. Their windows kill birds migrating and as someone already mentioned, most employees work from home. The building is an eyesore obelisk whose large footprint was completely unnecessary.
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