Montgomery County adds three new restaurants

Montgomery County’s restaurant news this week is pretty straightforward — three new places are lining up to open in May, and each one fills a different suburban dining lane. One is aiming for a white-tablecloth Italian-ish night out. One is chasing the neighborhood-tavern sweet spot. (montco.today) One is leaning seafood and comfort food in a reused local restaurant space. That matters because this is how a local dining scene actually thickens — not with one giant blockbuster opening, but with a bunch of credible mid-sized bets. ### Which restaurants are opening? The three names are Academy Grill in Fort Washington, Rick’s Tavern in Conshohocken, and Scratch Kitchen by Gallo’s in Horsham. (montco.today) All three are expected to open in May 2026, giving different corners of Montgomery County a fresh option at roughly the same time. ### What is Academy Grill trying to be? Academy Grill looks like the most overtly “occasion” play of the group. Chef Jeffrey Power, who had been at Ambler’s Dettera before that restaurant closed, is opening it on South Bethlehem Pike in the former Cantina Feliz space. The concept is Italian-inspired, with seafood, steaks, and house-made pasta, and the target opening is late May. (montco.today) Basically, it is trying to turn a known address into a more polished dinner destination. ### Why does Jeffrey Power matter here? Because this is not a first-time operator learning on the fly. Power comes in with local name recognition from Dettera, which gives Academy Grill a clearer identity before the doors even open. (montco.today) In suburban restaurant terms, that lowers some of the usual uncertainty — people already have a reference point for the cooking and the level of ambition. ### What’s the bet at Rick’s Tavern? Rick’s Tavern is opening on West Seventh Avenue in Conshohocken, with chef Derek Davis leading the kitchen. Davis is tied to Manayunk’s restaurant rise in the 1990s, and the menu is described as Italian-leaning, with pizzas, house-made pastas, cocktails, and wine. (montco.today) The owners of Guppy’s are behind it, and the planned debut is mid-to-late May. So this one reads like a nostalgia-meets-upgrade play — familiar food, but sharpened for today’s going-out crowd. ### Why is Conshohocken a good fit for that? Because Conshohocken already supports the kind of casual-but-not-cheap dining that lives on repeat visits. A tavern with pasta, pies, and drinks does not need to be a once-a-year destination. (montco.today) It just needs to become part of people’s regular rotation, and that is usually the sturdier business model in busy suburban downtowns. That last point is an inference from the concept and location, but it fits the kind of opening this appears to be. ### What’s happening in Horsham? Scratch Kitchen by Gallo’s is taking over the former Farm & Fisherman space on Horsham Road. The team behind Gallo’s Seafood in Northeast Philadelphia is bringing a from-scratch, seafood-forward menu, but with a neighborhood gathering-place feel rather than a formal seafood-house vibe. (montco.today) That reuse matters — taking over an existing restaurant footprint is often faster and less risky than building from zero. ### So what ties these three together? They are all second-act openings in one way or another. Existing chefs, existing operators, existing restaurant spaces, existing suburban demand. Nobody here is trying to reinvent dining in Montgomery County. (montco.today) They are trying to meet diners where they already are — Fort Washington, Conshohocken, Horsham — with concepts that feel legible on day one. ### What’s the bottom line? The real story is not just three restaurants opening. It is that Montgomery County’s dining scene keeps getting denser through experienced local players making targeted, neighborhood-scale moves. That is usually how a restaurant market gets stronger — quietly, one solid opening at a time. (montco.today)