Two of Woodmont Avenue's Biggest Dining Rooms Went Dark. Here's Who's Moving In.

"I was a diner at Woodmont Grill and I too was disappointed to see it close," Steve Salis told Washingtonian in August, after he bought the building at 7715 Woodmont Ave. "We understand it's big shoes to fill."

For Edgemoor, the nearest restaurant blocks are on Woodmont Avenue and Bethesda Row. Within five months, two of the largest dining rooms on that stretch went empty. Both are now going to operators with a reputation already behind them. They are working on very different timelines, and they arrived by very different routes. The operator taking the larger room bought it outright, on the same block where the previous operator named parking as a reason for leaving. That buyer is also on the longer clock, targeting mid-2027 while the smaller room aims for late fall.

7715 Woodmont: A $7 Million Purchase

Woodmont Grill closed abruptly on a Tuesday night in late October 2025. It sat beside Tastee Diner and the Marriott International headquarters, and it had been part of downtown Bethesda's dining scene for decades. It opened as Houston's in the early 1990s and took the Woodmont Grill name in 2008. Bethesda Magazine noted that in the magazine's Best of Bethesda 2025 Readers' Picks it was voted both best business lunch spot and best restaurant in Bethesda.

The restaurant group behind it, Hillstone Restaurant Group, gave two reasons for closing. Parking had dwindled over time, and it was hard to keep enough staff to meet the group's service standards. Sixty-five employees lost their jobs.

The space stayed empty for nearly ten months. Then Bethesda Magazine reported that Salis, through his company Catalogue, had bought the property for $7 million in a deal that closed Aug. 17, 2026. He plans to open a Ted's Bulletin there. The room is about 6,300 square feet, so the price works out to a little over $1,100 per square foot. "We've been looking at Bethesda for more than six years, and this property stood out as the right opportunity because of its location and history within the community," Salis said in the company's statement.

Hillstone left over parking. The new owner paid seven figures to own the address. Salis is betting that the location and its history matter more than the parking that wore on the last operator. Because he owns the building rather than leasing it, that bet doesn't depend on a lease renewal.

Salis founded &pizza and also owns Federalist Pig, Kramers and Honeymoon Chicken. He told Washingtonian he aims to open by mid-2027 and that the Bethesda location will look more like the Ted's in NoMa and Ashburn than the Capitol Hill original. If the date holds, the space will have been dark for about 20 months.

7278 Woodmont: Matchbox's Former Room Goes to Florida

Five months after Woodmont Grill closed, Matchbox served its last day at the corner of Woodmont Avenue and Elm Street on Sunday, March 22, 2026. The MoCo Show reported that it had opened on Oct. 12, 2019, in a 5,750-square-foot space that American Tap Room used to occupy. The room seats 180 inside and 32 on the patio, and a large wood-fired pizza oven sits at the center of the dining room. The Rockville location at Congressional Plaza and the Silver Spring location on Ellsworth Drive are still open.

Matchbox's replacement had already been announced four days before it closed. Prato is a Michelin Guide-listed Italian restaurant from Winter Park, Florida, and Bethesda is the first place it has expanded to in 14 years. According to Bethesda Magazine's March report, the menu includes wood-fired Margherita pizza with San Marzano tomatoes, house-made rigatoni with pork ragu, and small plates such as burrata with heirloom tomatoes and wood-grilled octopus. The parent company, Park Lights Hospitality, is planning a major renovation with the brick, wood and carefully chosen lighting of the Winter Park original.

"Our goal is to recreate that feeling in Bethesda and become a place where the community gathers and returns again and again," Park Lights CEO Scott Bowman said.

The project is moving through its approvals. Prato had a liquor license hearing with Montgomery County Alcohol Beverage Services in August. In late September, The MoCo Show reported that a $1.37 million permit for the interior fitout had been issued. The target is still late fall 2026, and no exact date has been announced. Park Lights also plans a Nashville location in early 2027, so Bethesda opens first. For now, Prato's Bethesda page only has a sign-up form for updates. It doesn't list hours, a menu or reservations yet.

The Two Rooms Side by Side

The room that closed second will probably reopen first. Prato's interior fitout permit was issued in September. The 7715 Woodmont building changed owners this summer, and the new owner is taking a longer runway to build what he says may be "the best Ted's that we have built."

The 2017 Deal That Links Both Corners

The two rooms are also linked through Ted's Bulletin's ownership history. The first Ted's Bulletin opened on Barracks Row in 2010 and became known for house-made pop tarts and other nostalgic comfort food. In 2017, Salis bought the chain from the Matchbox Restaurant Group and has expanded it quickly since then, Washingtonian reported.

So Matchbox's former restaurant group once owned Ted's Bulletin. Ted's will take over one Woodmont Avenue room, and a Florida newcomer will take over Matchbox's own former room. By the time Matchbox reached Bethesda Row in 2019, Thompson Hospitality had taken over managing the brand the year before. Ted's has grown under Salis since the sale. The Bethesda location will be the tenth in the region, counting an Alexandria Ted's opening this fall, and the second in Montgomery County. The Ted's website describes it as an all-day neighborhood restaurant serving breakfast, lunch and dinner, with burgers, steaks, chicken and waffles, desserts and cocktails. That puts it next door to Tastee Diner, which also serves all day.

Both new tenants already have a track record. Prato brings 14 years in Winter Park and a Michelin Guide listing. Ted's brings a regional following built over 16 years. Each landlord or buyer picked an operator that already has an audience.

What's Open on the Way There Now

The block won't be empty while both rooms are under construction. A few nearby openings and dates are worth having:

• Shake Shack, 7535 Old Georgetown Road. Bethesda Magazine reported that it opened Oct. 2 in the Element 28 building after the original Sept. 30 date slipped by two days.
• Sushi Masato, 4914 Hampden Lane. According to Bethesda Magazine, it soft-opened Aug. 12 ahead of a planned Aug. 19 grand opening, and it plans to add a Japanese dessert shop called The One Cake inside the restaurant.
• Bethesda Row Trick or Treat, Wednesday, Oct. 28, 4:30 to 7 p.m. It is held at 7262 Woodmont Ave., a short walk from the Prato construction site. Children need $5 advance tickets, and Bethesda Magazine's Halloween roundup lists treats, glow sticks, Toy Story characters, and a tote bag for the first 50 children.

The next date for Woodmont Avenue to watch is Prato's opening announcement, which is still expected before the end of the year. Ted's Bulletin is aiming for mid-2027 at the old Woodmont Grill address.

If you live near these corners and want to talk about how changes on Woodmont Avenue are affecting the streets around them, Catherine Triantis follows this corridor closely and is glad to compare notes. Let's Connect.