In the same year that CAVA celebrated the opening of its 500th restaurant nationwide, the full-service restaurant that started it all is celebrating its 20th anniversary. Cava Mezze, which first opened at 9713 Traville Gateway Drive in Rockville in 2006, has reached the two-decade milestone, marking 20 years since three Montgomery County natives opened the restaurant that would eventually lead to one of the country’s fastest-growing restaurants.

Cava Mezze was founded by three first-generation Greek Americans with deep roots in Montgomery County. Ted Xenohristos graduated from Paint Branch High School, Ike Grigoropoulos graduated from Gaithersburg High School, and Chef Dimitri Moshovitis attended Quince Orchard High School. The trio opened the original Rockville restaurant in 2006, introducing a menu of small plates inspired by their Greek heritage and a dining experience centered around hospitality, sharing food, and bringing people together.

The restaurant expanded to Olney in late 2015, opening a second Montgomery County location that continues to operate today. While CAVA has grown into a national fast-casual brand, Cava Mezze has remained a full-service dining concept, offering a different experience from the quick-service restaurants that followed.

To mark its 20th anniversary, Cava Mezze in Olney is also offering a special anniversary menu featuring five dishes and two cocktails. Food selections include Mr. Fred’s Fish, featuring pan-roasted fish of the day with herb yogurt, cremini mushrooms, and crispy potatoes (market price); the return of lollipop chicken with Greek yogurt, honey, and walnuts ($17); shrimp saganaki with grated tomato, feta, mint, and grilled sourdough ($18); lamb kapama with braised lamb shoulder, orzo, tomato, and kefalograviera cheese ($23); and chickpea fritters served with hummus, green harissa, and tahini ($16). The anniversary cocktail selections include cucumber gin, made with gin, elderflower, lemon, cucumber, Luxardo, and simple syrup ($13), and spiced pear, featuring spiced pear vodka, lime, elderflower, and cinnamon syrup ($13).

As part of the 20th anniversary celebration, we recently visited Cava Mezze in Olney to catch up with Gus Moshovitis, the brother of co-founder Dimitri Moshovitis, who has been with the restaurant since it first opened in Rockville in 2006. Gus has played an important role in Cava Mezze’s success over the past two decades, particularly through his dedication to hospitality and making guests feel welcome. Although he can still occasionally be found at the original Rockville location, Gus now spends most of his time at Cava Mezze in Olney. In our video, he discusses what hospitality means to him, his approach to making customers feel at home, and his three favorite dishes on the menu after 20 years with the restaurant. The video is available below.

 

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The National Weather Service’s (NWS) Weather Prediction Center (WPC) is monitoring the potential for a storm system to bring snow to portions of Maryland and the Mid-Atlantic region, including much of Maryland and Virginia, late next week and into the weekend of November 13-15.

While confidence is increasing that a storm system will develop, forecasters emphasize that significant uncertainty remains regarding its track, snowfall amounts, and potential impacts. In a newly released forecast graphic titled “Northeast/Mid-Atlantic Snow Next Weekend?”, the Weather Prediction Center outlined what meteorologists currently know about the developing system and what remains uncertain.

According to the WPC, a wave of low pressure is likely to develop across the Ohio Valley late Wednesday before tracking eastward and strengthening as it moves off the Mid-Atlantic coast on Friday. The system is expected to produce expanding precipitation, with rain and snow possible depending on location and elevation.

Much colder than normal temperatures are also expected to accompany the system Friday and continue through the weekend, potentially creating conditions favorable for snowfall in parts of the region.

The WPC included a probability map showing the likelihood of receiving at least one inch of snow during the period from 7pm Thursday, November 12, through 7pm Saturday, November 14. The map indicates relatively low probabilities across much of Maryland, including Montgomery County and the immediate Washington, D.C. area, with higher probabilities farther north, particularly across portions of Pennsylvania, New York, and New England.

Forecasters stressed that several important details remain unresolved. The exact placement of the storm could significantly change which areas experience rain, snow, or a combination of both. It is also too early to determine how much snow could accumulate, particularly at lower elevations, or whether coastal areas could experience impacts from gusty winds and onshore flow.

“Confidence in storm development is higher than confidence in specific impacts,” the Weather Prediction Center stated, adding that forecast details will change over the next several days.

The update comes as several Maryland and Northern Virginia meteorologists have recently highlighted computer models suggesting the possibility of a November snowstorm. Some of those models have depicted significant snowfall across portions of Maryland, including Montgomery County, although meteorologists have cautioned that such scenarios remain unlikely and are subject to considerable changes.

For now, the National Weather Service is not predicting a major snowstorm for Montgomery County. The latest guidance primarily indicates that a developing storm system and a period of unusually cold weather are worth monitoring, with the potential for accumulating snow remaining uncertain.

Additional forecast updates are expected throughout the coming week as meteorologists gain a clearer understanding of the storm’s track, temperatures, and precipitation patterns.

WUSA9 has released its Winter Outlook for the 2026-2027 season, predicting significantly more snowfall across the Washington, D.C. region than other local forecasts released so far. The station is calling for 28 inches of snow in Rockville, 35 inches at Dulles International Airport, and 20 inches at Reagan National Airport.

The forecast, led by Chief Meteorologist Topper Shutt and WUSA9’s Weather Impact Team, is based largely on the expectation of a strong El Niño pattern this winter. According to WUSA9, the pattern could create an active storm track with numerous opportunities for snow, provided enough cold air is in place when storms arrive.

While strong El Niño winters can produce vastly different snowfall totals, Shutt believes this winter could favor snow lovers. WUSA9 pointed to the 1997-1998 winter, when D.C. received just 0.1 inches of snow, and the 2015-2016 winter, which featured the historic Blizzard of 2016, as examples of how dramatically snowfall can vary during strong El Niño years.

In addition to the 28 inches predicted for Rockville, WUSA9 is forecasting 20 inches at Reagan National Airport, 35 inches at Dulles International Airport, 29 inches in Fairfax, 36 inches in Leesburg, 31 inches in Winchester, 40 inches in Hagerstown, 21 inches in Bowie, and 20 inches in Waldorf. For comparison, Rockville averages approximately 21 inches of snow per winter, while Fairfax averages 21 inches, Leesburg 22 inches, and Hagerstown 33 inches.

Last winter, WUSA9 predicted 10 to 20 inches of snow for most of the immediate D.C. metro area, with 20 to 30 inches expected in upper Montgomery County and areas farther north. The forecast was relatively close to what ultimately occurred across Montgomery County, where Bethesda, Rockville, and Silver Spring received approximately 11 to 15 inches, while Gaithersburg, Germantown, and Damascus finished with roughly 12 to 18 inches.

WUSA9’s outlook is the snowiest of the major local forecasts released so far. The Capital Weather Gang is predicting approximately 8 to 16 inches across Montgomery County, while FOX 5 is forecasting 6 to 12 inches for the immediate D.C. metro area, with higher totals farther north and west. WJLA’s Storm Alert Weather team is predicting 10 to 20 inches for Washington, D.C. and much of the immediate metro area, including approximately half of Montgomery County. WUSA9’s projection of 28 inches for Rockville would be approximately seven inches above the city’s seasonal average.

As with all seasonal outlooks, the projected totals are predictions for the entire winter rather than guarantees, and actual snowfall will depend on storm tracks and temperatures as individual systems approach the region.