The City has released an RFP to run a food concession in the Deering Oaks “Castle-in-the-Park”. The city is looking for a entrepreneur who is interested in turning the 435 sq ft building into a cafe that serves “to the public a variety of food products and beverages at a reasonable cost”. Interested parties are required to participate in a mandatory meeting at 10am at City Hall.
what do you think would be a good idea for a cafe in Deering Oaks?
Several Portland area food enterprises have been recognized by Yankee magazine in their annual Best of New England list:
Urban Eye has posted a report on MK Kitchen in Gorham.
Finally a key corner space in this sleepy downtown became available and Kaldrovich and his wife Lisa, a Gorham native, pounced. “I have wanted to do this my whole life,” said Kaldrovich, an Argentinean with a pan-European background who grew up grilling meats and learning handmade gnocchi from his Italian grandmother. He made good on that dream last weekend when MK Kitchen opened on School and South streets.
Tuesday — chef Sam Richman will be collaborating with Tandem on a BYOB Hot Dog night at the Bakery, a photo shoot for the 2015 Bartender Yearbook is taking place at Hunt and Alpine, and the local foods networking breakfast is being hosted by Local Sprouts.
Thursday — A lecture on Responsible Seafood Farming is taking place at GMRI, and there will be a beer and cheese tasting at the Public Market House.
Friday — an Austrian wine event is taking place at Grace featuring 7 wineries and 40+ wines.
Saturday — the first Deering Oaks Farmers’ Market of the season is taking place, and Novare Res is holding the 4th Annual Farmhouse Funkadelic.
Sunday — Grace is hosting the 2015 Chopped Challenge, Larry Matthews is the featured chef at this month’s Flanagan’s Table dinner, and Maine & Loire is holding a wine tasting.
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 Press Herald report that Otto Pizza will be opening a new location in Yarmouth.
Yarmouth’s quaint Main Street is poised to become ground zero for a pizza war. Otto Pizza will be one of three businesses sharing space in Andy’s Handy Store in Yarmouth when the building’s renovation is completed later this year.
The arrival of Otto Pizza will leave the town of 8,400 residents with four pizzerias within one mile of one another.
MK Kitchen(website, facebook) have announced they’ll be opening this coming Sunday. MK is the creation of Mitchell Kaldrovich, former chef at the Inn by the Sea, and his wife Lisa who has worked the past 8 years at Fore Street. MK Kitchen will serve a menu of contemporary American cuisine which Kaldrovich described earlier this year as “simple handmade food, all from scratch from desserts to pastas”.
The Press Herald, The Forecaster, and Eater Maine all report that a new brepub is under development in South Portland at 15 Ocean Street.
Julia and Craig Dilger have purchased an abandoned repair shop at 15 Ocean Street in South Portland and plan to turn it into a new neighborhood brewpub.
The couple, who live in Portland, say their as-yet-unnamed pub will “offer an unpretentious yet modern and comfortable aesthetic in terms of food, drink and experience.” They plan to offer family brunch on the weekends, “Pints and Purls” knit nights, and bicycle racks for folks riding the nearby Eastern Trail who want to stop in for some refreshment.
Bizarre Foods host Andrew Zimmern has included Salvage BBQ in his list of the top barbecue spots in the country.
I ate here a few months ago and demolished a platter of pork ribs and a pile of some of the best sliced brisket in recent memory, and I still managed to roll over to the counter and eat a quarter chicken because I couldn’t leave without ingesting more smoke and sauce. Food geeks will be inspired and—dare I say it?—barbecue freaks will travel here and be made happy, despite their contrarian, contemptuous hang-ups about geographic authenticity.
The Press Herald has reviewed the bar at Vena’s.
Vena’s Fizz House is the cutest soda bar in existence, and it just got a lot cuter with its recent addition of alcoholic beverages. Owners Johanna and Steve are incredibly welcoming, creative and seem to genuinely love what they do. The cocktails and mocktails are nothing you’ve ever tasted before and are served in vintage glassware found by Johanna. Vena’s is a must-visit.
The Honey Paw(instagram, twitter, facebook) is scheduled to open today at noon. The “non-denominational noodle restaurant” has been launched the owners of Hugo’s and Eventide: Arlin Smith, Andrew Taylor and Mike Wiley.
The Honey Paw menu is organized into 5 unnamed, numerically designated sections: 001 – 005. Essentially breaking down into: bar snacks, appetizers, noodle-based dishes, entrees and dessert.
When you go be sure to try the Wok Fried Wide Rice Noodles with squid, mussels, Chinese sausage and scallions.
Update: The Blueberry Files has posted some photos from her first meal at The Honey Paw.