Pittsburgh-based Millie’s Ice Cream is preparing to open its first Maryland location in Gaithersburg’s Downtown Crown.

Millie’s will be opening at 202 Ellington Blvd., in the space most recently occupied by The Crepe Shoppe before its relocation to 230 Crown Park Ave.

Founded in Pittsburgh in 2014 by husband-and-wife team Chad and Lauren Townsend, Millie’s began as a small homemade ice cream operation run out of the couple’s kitchen. After years working as a chef in fine dining, Chad Townsend decided to make a career change and purchased a Paco-Jet, a high-end Swiss-made appliance used to create ultra-smooth ice creams and sorbets.

According to the company, the purchase came with one major condition from Lauren Townsend, the expensive machine had to pay for itself by the end of the summer. The couple soon began making and delivering handcrafted pints on weekends before eventually growing the business into what is now known as Millie’s Ice Cream Works.

Over the past decade, Millie’s has expanded throughout the Pittsburgh region with multiple scoop shop locations, a food truck, grocery store pint distribution, and franchise growth in Florida and Texas. The company says its mission is to “spread love” through scratch-made super premium ice cream crafted with ingredients sourced from local farmers and artisans.

An opening date for the Downtown Crown location has not yet been announced.

Romero’s Italian Restaurant has begun its soft opening at 2666 University Boulevard West in Wheaton, taking over the longtime home of Cristina Ristorante Italiano. We stopped by to get a first look and tried several menu items (video below).

The table started with complimentary bread and ordered the small red pizza as an appetizer, mussels linguini in white sauce, chicken Milanese with spaghetti, and veal parmigiana with spaghetti. The portion sizes were satisfying and leaned into the classic neighborhood Italian restaurant style that many longtime Wheaton diners will recognize from the location’s past history.

The menu focuses heavily on traditional Italian-American comfort dishes, with a large selection of pastas, seafood entrees, pizzas, chicken dishes, veal options, salads, soups, and desserts. Romero’s is aiming for a familiar, family-style dining experience with both dine-in and carryout options.

As we previously reported, the restaurant is currently operating under a soft opening schedule after opening its doors on Sunday, May 25. An official ribbon cutting ceremony is planned for Tuesday, June 3.

Romero’s replaces Cristina Ristorante Italiano, which permanently closed in August 2025 after serving the Wheaton community for more than two decades. Cristina originally opened in 2002 and became a longtime staple for many local residents. According to its Google listing as of May 26th, the restaurant is daily from 11am until 10pm.

 

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Maryland’s Best Ice Cream Trail has returned for its 14th year, running from now  through September 7 with creamery stops across the state and a new digital pass system allowing visitors to check in, earn points, and qualify for prizes.

Organized by the Maryland Department of Agriculture through its Maryland’s Best program, the trail highlights Maryland’s dairy industry and locally made ice cream. This year’s trail includes 13 on-farm creameries, including Deere Valley Farm in Dickerson.

New for 2026, the trail has expanded to include select non-farm ice cream shops that serve locally sourced ice cream supporting Maryland dairy farms. Montgomery County additions include Mimi’s Handmade Ice Cream and Sarah’s Handmade Ice Cream locations.

The program is also partnering again with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources to encourage visitors to explore nearby Maryland State Parks while participating in the trail.

Columbia has been ranked the 5th best place to raise a family in the United States for 2026, according to a new report from personal finance website WalletHub.

The rankings compared more than 180 cities across 45 different metrics tied to family life, including housing affordability, school quality, health and safety, recreation opportunities, and socioeconomic factors. Columbia earned an overall score of 66.74, placing behind only Fremont, California; Overland Park, Kansas; Irvine, California; and Plano, Texas.

According to the report, Columbia stood out particularly for affordability and income levels. WalletHub found that Columbia had the highest median family annual income adjusted for cost of living in the nation, coming in 3.1 times higher than Detroit, the city ranked lowest in that category.

The breakdown of Columbia’s rankings included:

• Family Fun Rank: 84
• Health & Safety Rank: 56
• Education & Child Care Rank: 29
• Affordability Rank: 1
• Socioeconomics Rank: 35

WalletHub also highlighted national trends shaping where families are choosing to move in 2025 and 2026, citing affordability, opportunity, and overall quality of life as major factors.

The report’s top 10 cities for families were:

1. Fremont, CA
2. Overland Park, KS
3. Irvine, CA
4. Plano, TX
5. Columbia, MD
6. Bismarck, ND
7. South Burlington, VT
8. Charleston, SC
9. Seattle, WA
10. Boise, ID

Meanwhile, Baltimore ranked near the bottom of the list at No. 178 overall. WalletHub noted that cities were evaluated using metrics ranging from unemployment rates and school-system quality to playground access and crime rates.

To view the full report and your city’s rank, please visit:
https://wallethub.com/edu/best-cities-for-families/4435