Renaud Consulting leases Rockville Town Center and helps restaurants and retailers find space up and down Rockville Pike. We serve Washington, DC, Northern Virginia and Maryland.
Rockville Pike Is a Restaurant Test Kitchen
Rockville Pike runs from North Bethesda into the City of Rockville, and it's where a lot of national and international concepts open their first Maryland store.
- Pike & Rose (technically North Bethesda). Bartaco opened its first Maryland location at 950 Rose Avenue. Char'd, a halal burger shop, and Falafel Inc. (11802 Rockville Pike) are here too. Mui, an 8,506 SF Japanese supper club from IVEA Restaurant Group with annual memberships, operates at 967 Rose Avenue.
- Congressional Village (1701 Rockville Pike). IVEA, the group behind Lao Sze Chuan and Gong Cha locally, bought the half-empty center at auction for $44 million and is turning it into a hub for Asian restaurants: Kanpai, Kajiken, Uzu Revolving Sushi, Okaeri Japanese Cafe and Chateau de Rockville are open. Nong Geng Ji, a Hunan chain from China, has announced its second U.S. location here.
- Twinbrook Quarter. Genki Wagyu Shabu House opened next to Wegmans, with all-you-can-eat Wagyu hot pot priced from $58 to $98.
- Rockville Town Square. Fork & Kitchen opened at 150 Gibbs Street, filling 6,500 SF of second-generation restaurant space.
Sources: Store Reporter (bartaco, Char'd, Falafel Inc., Congressional Village, Nong Geng Ji, Genki); Mui official site; The MoCo Show on Mui's size; IVEA on Uzu Revolving Sushi; The MoCo Show on Fork & Kitchen; Bethesda Magazine's openings list.
For county-wide numbers, Montgomery Planning's Countywide Retail Market Assessment (PDF) counts 37.7 million SF of retail in Montgomery County and cites a 6.0% CoStar vacancy rate, which counts only space on the market.
City of Rockville or Montgomery County? Check Before You Sign
This is the detail that catches tenants on the Pike. The City of Rockville is its own city and runs its own building, trade and occupancy permits. Montgomery County's Department of Permitting Services doesn't issue building permits inside Rockville. But Rockville Pike runs in and out of the city limits, and Pike & Rose and much of the southern Pike are in unincorporated Montgomery County, where the county handles permits and the Use and Occupancy certificate.
Either way, some things are always county: the restaurant's food service license comes from Montgomery County Health and Human Services, and liquor licenses go through Montgomery County Alcohol Beverage Services. We check which side of the line a space is on before you sign, because it changes who reviews your plans.
Sources: Montgomery County's Guide for Opening a Restaurant; City of Rockville permits.
Where People Actually Go on the Pike
- Pike & Rose's Greek trio. The three Montgomery County natives who founded Cava came home to Pike & Rose and opened one-off restaurants there: Melina at 905 Rose Avenue and the steakhouse Bouboulina on Meeting Street among them. Eater's Bethesda guide lists both, along with Capitol Hill import Caruso's Grocery on Trade Street.
- Rockville's Asian food corridor. Rockville Pike is one of the best places in the region for Chinese, Taiwanese, Korean, Japanese and Filipino food. Congressional Village's Asian restaurant cluster is the headline, and spots like Filo Cafe sit in the strip centers off the Pike.
- Rockville Town Square. The plaza at the center of downtown Rockville is the city's gathering spot, with outdoor dining around a central square next to the library and Metro.
Sources: Washingtonian on the Cava founders' Pike & Rose restaurants; Eater DC's Bethesda guide, which covers North Bethesda.
Our Rockville Work
We lease Rockville Town Center for its owner, in the middle of the city's walkable downtown next to Rockville Town Square. Just down the Pike, our Bethesda work includes Takumi Japanese Bistro & Bar on Bethesda Avenue.
Questions About Rockville Retail Space
Does Rockville or Montgomery County issue my permits? It depends on the parcel. Inside the City of Rockville, the city issues building and occupancy permits. Outside city limits, including Pike & Rose, Montgomery County does. The food service license and liquor license come from county agencies either way.
Is Pike & Rose in Rockville? Its mailing addresses say Rockville or North Bethesda, but Pike & Rose sits in unincorporated Montgomery County, outside Rockville's city limits. That matters for permits, not for customers.
Do you have space at Rockville Town Center? We lease Rockville Town Center for its owner. Call us for what's available.
Who do I call about Rockville retail space? Call Andrew Poncher, SVP and Director of Leasing, at (571) 765-4430, or John Marigliano, Senior Vice President, at (571) 765-4423.
Other areas we serve: Maryland, Washington, DC and Northern Virginia.