Savoring All the Good Eats Bethesda Has to Offer
Savor Bethesda returns to celebrate the neighborhood's rich and exciting dining scene with specials at over 30 choice eateries.
Bethesda is well known for its fashionable and picturesque downtown, specifically the high-end retail stores and restaurants in Bethesda Row and the cobblestone-lined, pedestrian-only Bethesda Lane.
Seven blocks to the north, however, stands Tout de Sweet, located in a small, nondescript strip of shops. The French bakery’s neighborhood, Woodmont Triangle, is an eclectic hodgepodge with its own rewarding dining and shopping options, and one that has also become known, since 2022, as the home of Marriott International.
“It’s owned and operated by a classically trained chef originally from France,” says Bethesda Urban Partnership’s Stephanie Coppula of the 13-year-old spot. “It’s this little gem of a French bakery in Bethesda that I’m not sure everybody knows about.”
And that’s exactly the kind of thing Savor Bethesda, the annual Restaurant Week promotion produced by the Bethesda Urban Partnership, aims to change.
Designed to help promote area eateries in mid-February, this year’s fifth annual Savor Bethesda runs for ten days starting Friday, Feb. 16, and ending Sunday, Feb. 25. It’s a great way to explore Bethesda’s rich and abundant food offerings.
“After the holidays, we think people are excited to start getting out to restaurants again,” says Coppula. “Savor Bethesda is a nice way to promote restaurants this time of year.”
As part of the promotion, more than 30 eateries will offer curated lunch, dinner, or “special treat” menus for both dine-in and take-out.
“What I really like about our Restaurant Week, is that it’s not just for this high-end, $35 dinner,” Coppula continues. “We have local bakeries and coffee shops and more casual places participating, with three price points of $10, $20, or $35. So you can do a fancy meal, or you can check out a local bakery you haven’t tried before.
“It’s representative of the types of restaurants we have in Bethesda. We have lots that are locally owned, we have some national brands here, and a whole variety of different types of foods at different price points.”
The new Bethesda offshoot of the popular Navy Yard seafood staple The Salt Line is one in a small crop of Savor Bethesda newcomers this year, a freshman class that also includes La Catrina Lounge and Pizzeria da Marco.
Coppula estimates that roughly 70 percent of the Savor Bethesda lineup participated last year, a list that includes Cubanos and Red Bandana Bakery in addition to Tout de Suite and its neighbor across the street, Dog Haus Biergarten, part of a national fast-casual chain for hot dogs and burgers.
Barrel and Crow is another returning Woodmont Triangle establishment that Coppula singles out for praise as an “independently owned and operated” restaurant with a “great wine list [and] great Southern continental cuisine.”
Also returning is Planta Bethesda, a newer local outpost of a fast-growing national chain. “Planta Bethesda is an exclusively vegan restaurant,” Coppula says. “When there’s something like that, something that might not be what you’re typically used to eating, this event gives you a good excuse to go and try it.”
Savor Bethesda runs Friday, Feb. 16, to Sunday, Feb. 25, with promotions at more than 30 participating eateries in downtown Bethesda. For a full and updated list of participants, visit Visit www.bethesda.org.
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