Kareem’s Lebanese Kitchen has set the opening date of its first Maryland restaurant in Gaithersburg for Monday, according to a press release from the restaurant.
The Naples, Florida-based restaurant, which offers authentic Lebanese cuisine in a relaxed environment, will open its second location at 212 Boardwalk Place in Rio Lakefront.
Kareem’s Lebanese Kitchen is led by chef Rachid Eido, whose menu uses family recipes passed down through generations.
“Opening Kareem’s Lebanese Kitchen in Gaithersburg is much more than opening a new restaurant for me, it’s an opportunity to bring three generations of my family’s Lebanese culinary traditions to Maryland,” Eido said Thursday in a statement to Bethesda Today.
One of those recipes is for hummus, which takes the restaurant team three days to prepare, Eido says. To honor the restaurant’s new location, Eido created a Maryland crab hummus for the menu.
The restaurant plans to celebrate its launch with a public ribbon-cutting ceremony at 11 a.m. on Sept. 1, according to the release. The event will include food tastings, a tour of the restaurant and an opportunity to meet the family behind Kareem’s Lebanese Kitchen.
“I grew up in Beirut surrounded by chefs and learned from my father that food is about much more than following a recipe; it’s about preserving where you come from, bringing people together and making everyone who sits at your table feel welcome,” Eido said. “That is the spirit we have built into Kareem’s.”
Dishes offered at the eatery include slow-cooked lamb Mouzat, chicken Farrouj, okra stew, Shish Taouk kabobs, falafel or shawarma wraps and pita with handmade mezze such as baba ghanoush, labneh, garlic and spicy hummus.
Monday’s opening marks Eido’s return to the region. According to the release, Eido built his culinary career at the Four Seasons and throughout the Washington, D.C., region and later helped open the Naples location in 2018.
Dining room at Kareem’s Lebanese Kitchen in Gaithersburg. Photo credit: Yussy El-Hibri
Bar at Kareem’s Lebanese Kitchen in Gaithersburg. Photo credit: Yussy El-Hibri
Booth seating. Photo credit: Yussy El-Hibri
Photo credit: Yussy El-Hibri
Sheetz opens second Gaithersburg location
Sheetz opened its second Montgomery County location in Gaithersburg at 793 S. Frederick Ave., according to a news release from the 24-hour convenience store chain.
This is the second Sheetz to open in Gaithersburg. In August 2023, the chain opened its first county location 2.7 miles away at 751 Progress Way.
In addition to typical convenience store items like cold drinks, chips, candy, and baked goods, Sheetz offers a Made-to-Order menu with customizable food. The menu includes subs and sandwiches, quesadillas, pizza, hot dogs, burgers, salads, milkshakes, smoothies and breakfast items.
On Thursday, the Gaithersburg shop celebrated the grand opening with free self-serve coffee and soda for patrons, giveaways including a $250 gift card and a ribbon-cutting ceremony, the release said. The shop also presented $2,500 checks to the Capital Area Food Bank and the Special Olympics of Maryland.
Sheetz is a family-owned and operated chain, established in 1952 with a location in Altoona, Pennsylvania, the release said. Since then, the company has grown to more than 850 locations throughout Michigan, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, Ohio and North Carolina.
Eater DC names two MoCo eateries in list of best affordable dining spots
Pupuseria La Familiar in downtown Wheaton and the Quarry House Tavern in downtown Silver Spring landed on Eater DC’s list of the best affordable dining options in the Washington, D.C., area, published earlier this month.
Pupuseria La Familiar is an authentic Salvadoran restaurant specializing in the country’s national dish, pupusas. The masa pancake is typically filled with meat, cheese, beans or other fillings and served with tangy, crunchy curtido and salsa.
An order of pupusas at the restaurant, located at 11324 Fern Street, starts at $2.99.
Downtown Silver Spring’s Quarry House Tavern, a mainstay and local favorite known for tater tots, wings, burgers and an array of beers on tap, was also highlighted by Eater DC for offering $3 Pabst Blue Ribbon beers from 4 to 6 p.m. daily.
The longstanding dive bar at 8401 Georgia Ave. also recently began offering 50-cent wings from 4 to 5 p.m. daily. And, though a basket of tots will run you $6.95 during normal hours, during the daily happy hour, all appetizers and tots are half off.
Quarry House Tavern, a dive bar at 8401 Georgia Ave. in downtown Silver Spring. Photo credit: Elia Griffin
