Month: July 2014

Weft & Warp Crowdfunding

| Posted in General News

static.squarespace.comWeft & Warp (website, twitter, instagram) has kicked-off a campaign on the Foodie Crowd Funding site. Owner Erik Desjarlais is hoping to raise $17,000 to help expand his business.

I’m launching this campaign to push the business forward. I work efficiently enough with the tools I have, but it is not enough to keep up with the orders. I’m looking to move out of my tiny 8×10 workshop (I’m not kidding- I have stacks of leather and fabric climbing up the walls, and my kitchen is now my main workspace) in to a larger space in the area, and create a few jobs.

To learn more or to contribute to the campaign visit the Weft & Warp page.

This Week’s Events: Graze, Sea Glass Dinner, Piccolo at Flanagan’s Table

| Posted in Events

Tuesday — the Local Foods Networking Breakfast is taking place at Local Sprouts.

Wednesday — Black Tie is catering the next Graze Farm Dinner, and the Monument Square Farmers Market is taking place.

Thursday — there will be a wine and cheese tasting at the Public Market House, and Sea Glass is holding a beer dinner.

Saturday — the Deering Oaks Farmers Market is taking place.

Sunday — Ilma Lopez and Damian Sansonetti from Piccolo will be the featured chefs at this month’s Flanagan’s Table Dinner, and Yelp’s Sunday Funday event is taking place at the Urban Farm Fermentory.

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.

Blue Rooster Review: Erik Desjarlais Hot Dog

| Posted in Reviews

Chubby Werewolf has continued his excellent coverage of the Blue Rooster guest chef series with a review of this week’s dog created by Erik Desjarlais.

I’m loving so many things about the Choucroute Dog. It is such a clever adaptation of regional French cuisine to what is arguably the most American of foods. And while nothing feels forced or out-of-place, the inclusion of the duck confit and the sausage imbue the hot dog with a sense of rustic decadence.

Desjarlais is the former chef/owner of Bandol, Ladle and Evangeline, he currently runs of Weft & Warp Seamester.

Review of The Porthole

| Posted in Reviews

The Portland Phoenix has reviewed The Porthole.

The chef has done with the menu what the owner did with the place—elevating things without changing them fundamentally. So despite the server’s predilections, it’s worth veering from the burgers and fried fish into the more interesting dishes. The fish tacos, for example, break from common practice by opting for a crunchy blue-corn shell rather than soft tortillas. There are lots of tender, blackened pieces of some whitefish or another. On top sits a pile of crunchy slaw and juicy-sour pico de gallo. The pinkish aioli has a kick of sriracha (a company whose factory was nearly shut down by a zero tolerance policy on noxious odors in Irwindale, California). On their purple plate, the blue goopy tacos look both messy and appealing—sort of in the spirit of the Porthole itself. 

7 Portland Dining Needs

| Posted in General News

Social Social has posted a list of “7 dining options Portland seriously needs“.

Below, you’ll find the chasms in the Portland food scene that, if filled, would go a long way to solidifying Portland’s national reputation as the dark horse food mecca of America.

But just before we begin, if you’re wondering why this post is here in the social section, I can explain. I want to harness the very power of the Internet (AKA social media) to help make Portland a foodier paradise. Hopefully this little list will get the discussion going, leading to some real, tangible and delicious changes here in Portland, Maine.

The list is assembled for Social Social by guest blogger, Bret Willis, the author of Drunch.it.

Maine Farmland Trust Journal

| Posted in Openings

farmlandjournalThe Maine Farmland Trust has launched a new quarterly publication.

Through Maine Farms, we aim to convey some of what’s happening here, both on the farm and off. Maine is a national leader in the “local foods” movement that is revitalizing farms and communities. Today, farming in Maine is growing and is poised for further growth. It’s a time of experimentation, change, and promise.

Review of Dancing Elephant & News from Empire

| Posted in Reviews, People

The Golden Dish has reviewed Dancing Elephant in Westbrook.

But here’s the good news: The food is actually pretty good and probably the best example of Indian cooking in Greater Portland.

The review also reports a bit of unrelated news about Empire.

Empire Chinese, known for its dumplings and Cantonese stir fry,  has  announced the hiring  of a new stir-fry master, Wei Sook, who hails from the world-class kitchens of Hakkasan MGM Grand in Las Vegas…New stir-fry dishes will be introduced in the coming weeks at Empire Chinese.  This is truly exciting to have such a master Chinese chef cooking in Portland.

Maine Seaweed Festival

| Posted in Events

seaweedfest

The inaugural Maine Seaweed Festival (website, facebook, twitter, instagram) is scheduled to take place later this summer at SMCC on August 30, 2014.

Maine seaweeds are poised to play a major role in the growth and sustainability of our local economy and global health. The Maine Seaweed Festival will highlight the diverse uses and benefits of seaweed, while celebrating all of the dedicated harvesters, farmers, fishermen and processors that continue to invest their efforts in creating a viable and vibrant seaweed industry, here in Maine.

The Festival will include a seaweed focused dinner. “Dishes served will all revolve around sustainability and restorative practices of the sea and focus heavily on locally sourced varieties of Maine seaweeds”

Vignola/Cinque Terre

| Posted in Profiles

Eat Maine has published an article about Vignola/Cinque Terre.

This fall will mark Skawinski’s twentieth journey to Italy to visit Vignola’s purveyors. On each visit, he is accompanied by a small contingent of his cooks and servers. Skawinski started the trip to show his staff a good time, but also so they could be armed with knowledge of the region and could maintain relationships with the family-run operations they work with year round. Maintaining a strong connection to regional origins is a very important element of Italian cookery.