Design renderings of the new Taylor Gourmet in Bethesda
If anything defines Taylor Gourmet — other than its Philly hoagies — it is the sandwich shop’s utter trendy urbanity and its desire to help gentrify once questionable neighborhoods. So it comes as some surprise that, for their third location, owners Casey Patten and David Mazza have decided to move into Bethesda.
That’s right, Bethesda, home of well-heeled, high-heeled, and hottest guys in America.
Patten is quick to agree that Bethesda would seem an odd fit for Taylor. But he and Mazza were lunching there last fall and were “amazed by all the foot traffic on Bethesda Row, and it was Tuesday afternoon.”
If anything captures a restaurateur’s attention, it’s foot traffic.
The partners had signed a letter of intent last year to move into the still-under-construction Hampden Lane building located on the northwest corner of Woodmont Avenue and Elm Street, but the deal fell through. The proposal, however, came back around in February when a potential tenant pulled out of a retail space in the new structure.
On Tuesday, Patten and Mazza signed a lease for a 1,500-square-foot spot at 7280 Woodmont Ave. It will maintain the same industrial-chic look of the other two Taylor Gourmets but with one major difference: The Bethesda spot will do away with storefront windows altogether. The prime corner location, designed by Grupo7, will feature three retractable garage doors. The shop will also have patio seating as well as a counter where diners can eat their sandwiches while peering out onto the streetscape.
The new shop, Patten hopes, will be open in mid-July, although he has heard the horror stories about Montgomery County bureaucracy. Whenever the latest Taylor opens, it will include a revamped menu, with 25 percent new sandwiches. Patten is currently experimenting on friends with his new creations.
More artist renderings of the Bethesda space:
