Villain & Saint In Bethesda Closes After 4 Years

BETHESDA, MD — Villain & Saint, a Bethesda rock n' roll music hall and gastropub, has closed its doors at 7141 Wisconsin Ave. after four years in business.

On its website, the business said: "Villain & Saint has closed its doors. We have enjoyed serving and entertaining Bethesda for the last four years."

The Potomac-based RW Restaurant Group, which owned Villain & Saint, could not be reached for comment on Thursday morning.

Robert Wiedmaier — executive chef of the RW Restaurant Group and owner of Villian & Saint — told Bethesda Beat on Wednesday that he closed the venue because it couldn't drum up enough business.

Wiedmaier also owns the music venue Keystone Korner in Baltimore and a Villain & Saint in Atlantic City, NJ. He told the news outlet that Bethesda's Villain & Saint wasn't profitable.

"We just weren't making any money there (at the Bethesda club). I've got two other music venues and we weren't able to get that place up and running properly," Wiedmaier said.

"It got to the point where I had to look at my (RW Restaurant Group) partners and say, 'This is ridiculous,'" he added.

Wiedmaier had thought about closing the establishment for two years, Bethesda Beat reports. Six months after Villain & Saint opened, it wasn't making enough money.

"I don't know if it's that side of Bethesda. I don't know what it was. We had good nights and we had horrible nights," he told the news outlet. "Several bands would sell that place out consistently. We brought some really talented bands in there, but I found that if it wasn't a local band … people wouldn't come, even though they were great."

Villain & Saint first opened its doors at 7141 Wisconsin Ave. in 2015. Since then, Villain & Saint bought a trailer and started selling food outside its restaurant. It served favorites from 11 a.m. until 8 p.m. seven days a week, so guests could get their fix on the go.