Downtown Silver Spring’s newest restaurants — Citizens & Culture and Third Hill Brewing — are set to officially open to the public on Friday, June 16.
Citizens & Culture, which will open at the former home of Pacci’s Pizzeria at 8113 Georgia Ave., has been undergoing an “insanely soft opening” since last month as the restaurant has been preparing to officially open. The restaurant is the second downtown Silver Spring establishment from Tsega Hailemariam, who opened Kaldi’s Social House in 2013; a second Kaldi’s location is located in the Clarendon neighborhood of Arlington, Va.
Citizens & Culture is currently on Eater’s “Hottest New Restaurants Around D.C.” list for June:
Downtown Silver Spring’s cool new restaurant and music spot comes from Tsega Haile, who also owns Silver Spring and Clarendon coffee shop Kaldi’s Social House. Opening offerings include juicy smash burgers, grilled oysters, spicy harissa-glazed wings, wild mushroom pappardelle, fritto misto, and refreshing cocktails like a Basil & ‘Barb spritz (Chandon, Jin Jiji gin, Lillet, basic rhubarb syrup, and lemon). The 15,000-square-foot venue is outfitted with large flat-screen TVs, working fireplaces, and a lofted stage up top equipped with a high-tech sound system for DJs and bands. A ground-floor patio leads to a soaring dining room with a full-length bar. Chief chef consultant Jessica Shields and executive chef Ryan Hackney show lots of love for Maryland farms across the menu.
Chef Ryan Hackney, a Beat Bobby Flay alum who has previously worked at Macon Bistro & Larder, Charlie Palmer Steak, and most recently Valor Brewpub, has departed from the restaurant, according to a representative. Hackney recently made headlines for revealing part of Citizens & Culture’s menu in the most unlikely of places: a birthday party for society scammer Anna “Delvey” Sorokin.
Situated a block north, Third Hill Brewing is also set to open Friday in the former home of Astro Lab Brewing at 8216 Georgia Ave. Astro Lab, which opened in 2018, closed at the end of May, citing “new economic realities” brought on by the pandemic.
It was 2015. Winter. A bunch of friends were sitting around a table, about to try Jason’s first ever batch of homebrewed beer. With the bottle opener poised, ready to pop the top, someone said, “Wait! You need to name it first.” The first thing that came to Jason’s mind was a memory from his past and that became the name of the beer… and from that, the idea of what Third Hill Brewing Co. would become.
Both restaurants will open at 4 p.m. on Friday.
Graphics courtesy of Citizens & Culture and Third Hill Brewing