Month: February 2012

Shipyard’s Sewer Bills

| Posted in General News

In a pair of articles the Press Herald has reported on the situation that lead to Shipyard being under-billed for its sewer charges. Here’s an excerpt from Friday’s article,

Maine’s largest brewery, the Shipyard Brewing Co., has been billed for only a fraction of its sewer usage since 1996, an apparent oversight that has cost the city of Portland hundreds of thousands of dollars a year in lost revenue.

and the follow-up piece that appeared on Saturday.

Shipyard, the largest brewery in Maine, has been paying the full sewer fees since March. The additional fees amount to roughly $300,000 a year, based on current production levels.

A retired Portland Water District employee said last month that Peterson told him in 1996 that all of the water was going into bottles and that no sewer account was needed.

Under Construction: Blue Lobster Urban Winery

| Posted in Under Construction

A new venture called Blue Lobster Urban Winery has applied for a liquor license to operate a wine bar at 61 India Street. Take a look at this interactive presentation that the owners have published that outlines the concept for their new business. According to documents filed with the City they hope to open in May. A draft menu (page 54) was submitted as part of their application.

Gorgeous Gelato in the Park & SoPo Winter Market

| Posted in Under Construction, Farming

This week’s issue of the Forecaster reports that Gorgeous Gelato will be join Bite into Maine and 2 other vendors in running food carts in Fort Williams Park.

Giovine said he opened his Portland business on Fore Street about a week before Christmas in 2010, giving him plenty of time to create a smooth operation before the spring and summer tourist seasons. He said he is importing a cart from Italy to sell gelato at Fort Williams, and prefers to be closer to Portland Head Light because it has more foot traffic than Cove Beach.

Also in this week’s issue is an article on the challenges faced by the South Portland Winter Farmers Market.

Six month after holding its inaugural bazaar, the city’s first weekly farmers market is still struggling for customers.

If traffic doesn’t improve, organizers say the market may not survive.

Dinner Review of Schulte & Herr

| Posted in Reviews

The Golden Dish has published a review of Schulte & Herr.

My friends each had the borscht and the potato pancakes. The latter are some of the lightest examples of this dish, intensely good, cloudlike rounds that are crisp all at once. The borscht revealed a complex broth enhanced by the assertive flavor of oxtail enriching the deep red soup. It was a sensational version in a sea of soppy renditions that one is apt to encounter elsewhere.

Blackbird Eats Two Fat Cats

| Posted in General News

Blackbird Baking has bought Two Fat Cats,

We are very happy and excited to announce that Blackbird Baking Company has bought and now owns Two Fat Cats Bakery at 47 India Street in Portland’s Old Port.   It’s been a long process, but everything has come together and ownership changed hands on January 31, 2012.  We’re very excited and pleased to have such a wonderful staff now working for us at Two Fat Cats.

Winter Produce

| Posted in Farming

This week’s Portland Phoenix includes an article on winter farmers markets and CSAs that are opening up new options for sourcing local foods during this time of the year.

Even with Maine’s short growing season, farmers all over the state are working to accommodate the needs of their customers who want to eat locally year-round. There are more winter farmers’ markets and winter Community Supported Agriculture opportunities, and farmers are taking extra steps to get their products to the customer no matter the season.