The Portland Daily Sun has published a report on Otto and the impending opening of their new location at the foot of Munjoy Hill.
“It’s a really neat space, we’ve done neat things with the dining room,” said the co-owner.
Topping that list of neat things would be the restaurant’s booths — five grand pianos salvaged from around the state by Keon and turned into one-of-a-kind seating.
Gritty’s is spending approximately $100,ooo to redesign their packaging. Competition from the growing number of Maine brewers was part of their motivation,
With Gritty’s feeling the pressure of more competitors, it must also tend to the discerning tastes of its demographic. “We’re all in the business of providing something new for customers,” Pfeffer says, and brewers must keep up by creating new ales or packaging. “We’re in the entertainment business.”
Here are few food news updates:
Falmouth resident Lisa Lemieux is a finalist in the Saint Germain cocktail competition. Her mix of cognac, Saint Germain, lemon juice, champagne and allspice is called A Taste of Elegance. To see the full set of finalists and vote for your favorite visit the Saint Germain Facebook page.
Wednesday — Aurora Provisions and Old Port Wine Merchants are both hosting wine tastings, there will be a beer tasting at the West End Deli, Browne Trading and Havana South are working together on a wine event, Wine Wise is exploring Reislings and Black Tie Bistro is teaching a cooking class.
Thursday — there will be wine tastings at Browne Trading and Leavitt & Sons, and a beer and cheese tasting at the Public Market House. The Great Lost Bear will showcase 12 Christmas beers.
Friday — Rosemont Market is holding a wine tasting, and according to the Munjoy Hill News, Otto’s new location in the old North Star should be in full operation by Friday.
Saturday — the Deering Oaks Farmers Market is taking place.
Christmas Eve — El Rayo, Five Fifty-Five, The Corner Room, The Front Room, The Grill Room and Vignola are all planning on being open Christmas Eve. Cinque Terre is also open on Christmas Eve when they’ll be holding their annual Feast of the Seven Fishes dinner, 4-8, $65 per person.
Christmas Day — A select few restaurants are planning to be open on Christmas Day with special holiday-themed menus: Haraseeket Inn in Freeport, Twenty Milk Street at the Regency in Portland and the Sea Glass Restaurant at the Inn by the Sea in Cape Elizabeth.
New Year’s Eve — Bar Lola, BiBo’s, Bresca, Bull Feeney’s, Cinque Terre, David’s, Five Fifty-Five, Figa, Frog & Turtle, Grace, Havana South, Local 188, Old Port Sea Grill, Paciarino, Sonny’s, Sea Glass Restaurant, Season’s Grille, The Grill Room, The Salt Exchange, Vignola and Zackery’s will all be open New Year’s Eve.
For more information on these and other upcoming food happenings in the area, visit the event calendar.
If you are holding a food event this week that’s not listed above, publicize it by adding it as a comment to this post.
Wednesday — Aurora Provisions and Old Port Wine Merchants are both hosting wine tastings, there will be a beer tasting at the West End Deli, Browne Trading and Havana South are working together on a wine event, Wine Wise is exploring Reislings and Black Tie Bistro is teaching a cooking class.
Thursday — there will be wine tastings at Browne Trading and Leavitt & Sons, and a beer and cheese tasting at the Public Market House. The Great Lost Bear will showcase 12 Christmas beers.
Friday — Rosemont Market is holding a wine tasting, and according to the Munjoy Hill News, Otto’s new location in the old North Star should be in full operation by Friday.
Saturday — the Deering Oaks Farmers Market is taking place.
Christmas Eve — El Rayo, Five Fifty-Five, The Corner Room, The Front Room, The Grill Room and Vignola are all planning on being open Christmas Eve. Cinque Terre is also open on Christmas Eve when they’ll be holding their annual Feast of the Seven Fishes dinner, 4-8, $65 per person.
Christmas Day — A select few restaurants are planning to be open on Christmas Day with special holiday-themed menus: Haraseeket Inn in Freeport, Twenty Milk Street at the Regency in Portland and the Sea Glass Restaurant at the Inn by the Sea in Cape Elizabeth.
New Year’s Eve — Bar Lola, BiBo’s, Bresca, Bull Feeney’s, Cinque Terre, David’s, Five Fifty-Five, Figa, Frog & Turtle, Grace, Havana South, Local 188, Old Port Sea Grill, Paciarino, Sonny’s, Sea Glass Restaurant, Season’s Grille, The Grill Room, The Salt Exchange, Vignola and Zackery’s will all be open New Year’s Eve.
For more information on these and other upcoming food happenings in the area, visit the event calendar.
If you are holding a food event this week that’s not listed above, publicize it by adding it as a comment to this post.
The For Rent signs are down at 190 State Street. Steve and Michelle Corry have taken a lease on the space and intend on opening a casual dining destination serving lunch and dinner in Spring 2011. They are joining the growing list of Portland restaurateurs that operate more than one business.
The past year has seen a lot of changes in and around Longfellow Square with the opening of Yordprom Coffee, Boda, Pai Men Miyake and Local Sprouts, as well as the rebuilding of 645 Congress Street, construction at the old Binga’s Wingas building, establishment of the Quimby Colony in the old Roma Cafe and the face lift for King of the Roll. Tropa Wine closed in 2010 as did Barava and most notably Evangeline.
The Blueberry Files has published a brunch review of Havana South.
We had a lovely time at Havana, but unfortunately, the food wasn’t good enough to make us want to return for a meal any time soon. Again, I guess we’ll stick to drinks at the bar.
The Maine Sunday Telegram includes a Q+A with the Executive Director of the Maine Farmland Trust about their new book From the Land: Maine Farmers at Work,
Q: How did this book come about?
A: The idea grew out of the photos. We had a need for the organization to do some basic photography to document some of the work we were doing on different farms. We engaged Bridget for that project, and had no idea that it would develop into something more extensive. We were really impressed with the quality of the photos, and that led to a showing. We have a small gallery at our headquarters, and we have shown the photos there and at a few other places, the Frontier at Brunswick and the statehouse. And that led to the idea of a book. It really was an evolution rather than a plan.
a pair of articles about Barber Foods and the family that has run the business since its founding in 1955,
From here, the Portland-based company, launched 55 years ago from the back of a truck, cooks up 900,000 pounds of frozen prepared food every week, fighting for market share in the $31.7 billion frozen food industry and the roughly $20 billion food service industry. Barber competes with such mega corporations as Tyson Foods, Perdue and ConAgra Foods.
and a business profile of Linda Bean,
Bean spent her first year in the business learning everything Albano could teach her. Today, she said she depends heavily on CEO John Peterdorf’s knowledge of the lobster market. But she is very hands-on in other aspects of the business. She works the crowds at trade shows, dollops lobster into rolls at country fairs and studies the fine print in all her business contracts.
The Boston Globe Travel section has published an article about a new generation of Asian restaurants in Maine. The article focuses on Boda and Pai Men Miyake in Portland and Long Grain in Camden.
The partners are from northern Thailand and came to Portland by way of Seattle. They opened Boda in February with general manager Katie Boone, who with endless patience sets just the right mood for the front of the house. “We wanted to take the Asian restaurant out of its typical giant menu and giant portions and lots of takeout business Americanized box,’’ says Boone, “to serve Thai food, but to do it in a way that makes sense for Portland.’’