Kentlands Business: New Restaurant Set To Open, Bally's Gym in Flux

As the seasons change from summer to fall, so too does the future of two Gaithersburg businesses.

A new Lebanese restaurant is slated to open in the Kentlands in November or December, and the future of Bally Total Fitness is in doubt, The Town Courier reported.

Kentlands Lebanese Bistro will move into the former location of Main Street Cafe at 317 Main Street. The Town Courier reported it will feature an authentic Lebanese menu including the following:

Stuffed grape leaves with basmati rice, onions, tomato, parsley and mint; cheese cigars made from filo dough and stuffed with feta cheese, mozzarella and parsley; tabouli salad; kafta kabob with chopped steak, onion and parsley; and baba ghanuj, a savory dip of baked eggplant, tahini, garlic, mint and lemon juice.

Specialty wines and beers from the Bekaa Valley region of Lebanon and a variety of homemade Lebanese desserts will also be available, according to the report.

Read the full report on Kentlands Lebanese Bistro on The Town Courier

New owner Robert Jirikdjian plans to turn the lower level of the restaurant into an arts studio for classes and "Art and Wine" events, according to the report. Kentlands artists will be encouraged to display their work in the gallery as well.

“My passion is for food and art, and I will do everything possible to help the place to succeed,” Jirikdjian told The Town Courier. “I chose Kentlands for my restaurant because it will fit my idea the most. I’m really impressed with the beauty the city has, and I want to be part of it.

While Jirikdjian's restaurant have a solid plan for its immediate future in the Kentlands neighborhood, Bally Total Fitness' future is unclear.

The gym, along with several other area Bally fitness centers, has been bought by LA Fitness, The Town Courier reported.

It has yet to be determined whether or not the Kentlands location will remain under the Bally name, change to LA Fitness, or close all together, according to the report.

Later this month, LA Fitness will open a new Gaithersburg location at 515 Quince Orchard Road in the space that previously occupied Circuit City.

Read the full report on the future of Bally Total Fitness in the Kentlands and the new LA Fitness on Quince Orchard Road on The Town Courier

LA Fitness has set up a preview center in a small retail unit across from the drive-thru Starbucks in Firstfield Shopping Center at 505 Quince Orchard Road, according to the report.