'Marketplace' Reels in Stonefish Grill

The Montgomery Village Marketplace—mired for years by a sluggish economy—has landed its biggest catch yet, inking terms for Stonefish Grill to move into the shopping center off Stedwick Road.

The owner of the seafood-centric restaurant in Largo has signed on for 3,100 square feet nearest the post office, said Jay Donegan, CEO of Vienna, Va.-based J Donegan Co., which built and owns the Marketplace.

Montgomery Village's version will operate as "Errol’s Stonefish Grill," Donegan said—named after the owner, Errol Dsouza. Dsouza, a Montgomery Village resident, bought the Largo Stonefish in April 2010, revamped its advertising and marketing, brought in new staff, signed up new vendors and overhauled the menu to create a dining experience based around market-fresh, hand-cut fish.

"What the community has told us is that they want a quality, upscale dining experience," Donegan said. "We’re really pleased to not only deliver that, but to have the owner and operator be someone who lives in the community. There’s a personal involvement here that’s meaningful."

With permits, licenses and build-out of the interior, Donegan thinks the restaurant might open this year, "but it could easily slide into the next quarter."

Once it does open, Errol’s Stonefish Grill will join Montgomery Village’s short list of sit-down eateries, something Village residents have hungered for since the beloved Sir Walter Raleigh Inn shut down in 2005.

Already, Village residents are savoring the news, which put to rest years of worry over what kind of restaurant would end up at the Marketplace.

"It’s the best we could have hoped for," said Bob Hydorn, president of the Montgomery Village Foundation’s board of directors. "It will be a place where you can sit down and have a nice meal. This will be a draw for the entire region, right here in Montgomery Village."

The Marketplace—built on the site of the former Upper Montgomery YMCA—has been in the works since late 2007. A stand-alone CapitalOne bank opened at the beginning of this year, and construction of the 25,000-square-foot shopping center’s exterior wrapped up shortly after.

Three other tenants are set to move in: a take-out Chinese restaurant, a dry cleaner and a nail salon. The nail salon plans to open in three weeks. The dry cleaner could open roughly a month later, Donegan said, and the Chinese take-out by end of the year.

Donegan expects news of Stonefish’s arrival to help lure businesses into the Marketplace’s unclaimed space—which, depending on how it is partitioned, can hold three or four tenants.

"We think it’s a quality operation that we hope will be an anchor of sorts," Donegan said. "We do think it’ll bring in other quality retailers and restaurants."

The Marketplace’s first tenant—GMC Nails—is headed for an Oct. 7 grand opening, fulfilling a long-time dream of husband and wife Can Truong and Mai Nguyen, Montgomery Village residents of 20 years.

Nguyen has worked at nail salons for 15 years. The 1,200-square-foot space in the Marketplace is finally her chance to run one herself and in her way, she said: GMC plans to pamper its clientele with six nail technicians, top-of-the-line heated massage chairs, a large washing room and high-quality merchandise.

"Some nail salons, you just go in, go home," Truong said. "We want people [to] come here to relax."