The C Salt Gourmet Market (facebook) in Cape Elizabeth opened on Wednesday. The market is owned by Mike and Stephanie Concannon. The market sells “Coffee, muffins, cookies and bakery items, gourmet sandwiches and grab and go meals.”
Month: October 2014
2 More in the West End: Bramhall & Arabian Days
Two more businesses have opened along Congress Street in the West End:
- A new coffee shop called Arabian Days opened on Tuesday at 3 Deering Ave in a store front shared with Tawakal Halal market. Arabian Days serves Carpe Diem Coffee from North Berwick, Maine. The shop is open 7 days a week, 6 am – 8 pm (6-6 on Sundays).
- The new Bramhall (facebook, instagram) had a soft opening last night; they’re grand opening is scheduled for 5 pm today. The bar is located at 769 Congress Street in the old Bramhall Pub space in the basement of the Roma. Bramhall is owned by Michael Fraser, the chef is Chris Beaulieu (form sous chef at Duckfat) and the bar manager is Guy Streitburger. Maine Today has posted a set of photos of the space and the menu and additional details on the bar.
Bramhall and Arabian Days join joins Tandem Bakery, Skillet (still in development), Tawakal Halal and Salvage along with a few established businesses (Yordprom, Flores, and Bodega Latina, Hong Kong Market, etc) in the ongoing development of the business district that stretches from past Longfellow through Bramhall Square and down to Saint John.
Reviews: Back Bay Grill & Oscar’s
Maine magazine has published a review/profile of The Back Bay Grill.
All of this is what Matthews, Stratton, and the whole crew at Back Bay Grill have been trying to achieve since the beginning: a level of consistency and value that keeps their clientele coming back again and again.
As Stratton tells me, “The overall feel and heartbeat of this restaurant will not change. Every day we set the tables exactly the same. That’s what our guests like, and the way I see it, we are very lucky to have them.”
and the Press Herald has published a bar review of Oscar’s New American.
Oscar’s is a great option for people looking for upscale food and drink without the huge price tag. If Krunkkala keeps running specials like the $5 wine and appetizers, there’s really no excuse to feel like there aren’t affordable options for quality food.
Under Construction: The Honey Paw
The owners of Hugo’s and Eventide—Arlin Smith, and chefs Andrew Taylor and Michael Wiley—have released details on their new restaurant and kitchen expansion.
The Honey Paw is described as a “non-denominational noodle restaurant” that will be “drawing on techniques, shapes, and flavors from across the globe”. The Honey Paw, they explain, “won’t be a pasta joint or a noodle house per se, we don’t want to be beholden to tradition or cultural idiom”.
The new restaurant will be located at 78 Middle Street in the former Pepperclub/Good Egg space. Chef Thomas Pisha-Duffly, creator of the Family Feast event series and a former Hugo’s sous chef, will be joining the team to help launch the restaurant. They hope to open in early 2015.
The expansion into the remainder of the first floor of the Middle Street building will also supply Hugo’s/Eventide some much needed additional kitchen and storage space.
The summer of 2013 demonstrated, with lines out the door at Eventide Oyster Co. and a completely over-taxed walk-in cooler, that Hugo’s and Eventide’s current facilities could not keep pace with the demands of a busy summer. “We’d been looking for a satellite kitchen for months, and after last year’s off-peninsula project fell through, we heard about a space much closer to home,” explains Smith, “it was simply too good an opportunity to pass up.”
Under Construction: West End Rosemont
Rosemont has confirmed plans to open a new market in the West End. This new store, the 5th Rosemont Market, will be located in the apartment building currently under construction at the corner of Pine and Brackett Streets.
As at our existing stores, the newest market in the West End will offer Rosemont’s own handmade breads and pastry, prepared foods and house-butchered meats, as well as vegetables and fruits, full-service deli, local dairy and eggs, groceries, grains and more.
With this new store, Rosemont’s intentions are, as they have always been, to expand opportunities for area food producers, while providing a fundamental service to the people of the neighborhood. We look forward to strengthening existing partnerships, and developing new ones, with the vital businesses that have served the West End neighborhood for years.
The West End Rosemont is scheduled to open in the Spring of 2015.
The Muthah Truckah Now Open
A new food truck called The Muthah Truckah (facebook) launched yesterday. The Muthah Truckah serves a menu of Muffuletta-style sandwiches. Eater Maine has published an interview with owner Erica Dionne.
What’s a “Muffuletta” and how did you settle on that as your signature item?
I grew up in a small sandwich shop in the center of Ogunquit called Fancy That. It was a fun little funky shop that was frequented by all the locals and was slamming busy in the summer months with all the beach-frequenting tourists. It has since been changed to Cornerstone Pizzeria. We used to make our version of the Muffuletta. There would be two different types each day. People would line up to see what kind of Muffuletta was being served and the next thing you know, sold out!
Kickstarter: O’Maine Media Kitchen
O’Maine Studios (website, facebook, twitter, instagram) has launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund the kitchen and AV equipment needed to fully outfit the space. Owner Rory Strunk is hoping to raise $65,000 and plans to use the media kitchen on Danforth Street for:
- Commercial demonstration kitchen
- Culinary content production
- Chef hosted demonstrations
- Cooking courses
- Food photography classes
- Food styling classes
- mixology, beer and wine courses
First Review of Bonfire
The Blueberry Files has reviewed Bonfire.
Bottom line: If you’re interested in going to check out Bonfire, I’d recommend eating elsewhere, and going on the early side if you wish to avoid the crowds and resulting noise. (Unless you’re in Bonfire’s target demographic, and then have it. I’ll be home by then anyways.)
One Day to Drink
Read the Beer Babe’s advice on “where to go – and where to skip – if you have less than a day to check out Portland’s craft beer”.
Under Construction: 79 Portland Street
79 Portland Street is currently under construction the first floor and basement are being converted into a restaurant from its former role as the home of New World Kitchens.
The new restaurant is being launched by Suzie Saint Pierre. The exact name and concept are still under development but Saint Pierre shared that she’s planning to open a small casual bistro-style restaurant.
Saint Pierre has 15 years experience working in restaurants outside Maine.