Month: June 2017

Blyth and Burrows Opens Today

| Posted in Openings

Blyth & Burrows (website, facebook, instagram, twitter), a multifaceted cocktail bar located at 26 Exchange Street, is scheduled to open today at 4pm. The bar is owned by Josh Miranda.

Blyth & Burrows held a media preview earlier this week. You can more about the bar, its menu and the layout of its space in articles by The Blueberry Files, Peter Peter Portland Eater, and Urban Eye.

Here’s an excerpt from TBF’s article,

When you first enter off Exchange St., you’re in the showiest part of the space, complete with a library ladder to access top shelf bottles. The bar staff is made up of Sur Lie and EVO alums, so expect a similar style bar menu, with specialty cocktails involving lesser known ingredients like Carpano Antica and housemade ingredients like a spruce tip cordial.

The name is a reference to Captain Samuel Blyth from the HMS Boxer and Lieutenant William Burrows of the USS Enterprise who were buried in the Eastern Cemetery and died during an naval battle between their ships in Casco Bay in 1813.

Coffee Me Up

| Posted in People, Profiles

The Portland Phoenix has published an article about Coffee Me Up and its owners Alba Zakja and Mateo Hodo.

What sets this gem apart are three things: First, the owners, Alba Zakja and Mateo Hodo are two of the most beautiful humans I have encountered. Their smiles are warm, welcoming and real. Second, their pastry offerings are homemade and Albanian; Albania is their birthplace, although they have both become American citizens. Two of their pastries are especially delicious: Byrek is a traditional phyllo savory pastry. It’s light, unlike anything you’ll find anywhere else in Portland, and you can rely on seeing it at Coffee ME Up seven days a week. The other is Alba’s mother Simina’s Baklava.

Maine Summer Food Festivals

| Posted in General News, Events

Today’s Press Herald has assembled a round-up of summer Maine food festivals,

Mainers love good food, and in the summer they love to celebrate it.

Lobster, blueberries, potatoes, even that love-it-or-hate-it soda known as Moxie – Maine has long shared its affection for such bounty through summer food festivals. This year, three new festivals will be joining the mix, all in southern Maine.

and includes an article about omnivores who order vegan and vegetarian dishes when eating out.

For years, chefs and restaurant owners across Maine have told me how their vegan dishes are being snapped up by meat-eating customers. So I decided to investigate further. What I discovered is a sizable group of people who eat meat at home but order vegan meals when they dine out.

This Week’s Events: Lobster Conf, Night Kitchen, Austrian Wine, Montenidoli, Blyth & Burrows, Bier Cellar

| Posted in Events

Monday – the first day of the 5-day 11th International Conference & Workshop on Lobster Biology and Management taking place at the Holiday Inn by the Bay.

Tuesday – Opening night of the Night Kitchen Musical at Portland Stage, and TempoArt is holding a benefit at Bunker Brewing.

Wednesday – Winemakers and owners of 8 Austrian wineries will be at The Well for a grand tasting event of 50 Austrian wines, and the Monument Square Farmers’ Market is taking place.

Thursday – Winemaker Elisabetta Fagiuoli from Montenidoli will be at Maine & Loire for a tasting, and a Year of the Rooster dinner is taking place at Zen Chinese Bistro.

Friday – it’s the official opening day of Blyth and Burrows (facebook), a new cocktail bar on Exchange Street. The 2017 Allagash Victoria Ale release is taking place at the Victoria Mansion, and the Munjoy Hill Rosemont is holding a wine tasting.

Saturday – the Bier Cellar is holding a party to celebrate their 5th Anniversary with tastings by 10 brewers and importers, LeRoux Kitchen is holding a wine tasting, and the Deering Oaks Farmers’ Market is taking place.

Sunday – the 44th Annual Old Port Festival is taking place.

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.

Under Construction: Veranda Thai

| Posted in Under Construction

Veranda Thai owner Hai Pham has purchased the building at 672 Main Street in Westbrook where a new Veranda Thai restaurant is under construction.

Veranda Thai joins a growing list of restaurants and other food businesses in Westbrook: Big Fin Poke, Bamboo Bistro, Black Dinah Chocolates, Mast Landing Brewing, and Brea Lu Cafe. Both Fishermen’s Grill and Yes Brewing Company are also under construction.

Frog and Turtle made the first notable leap into the Westbrook market when they left behind a spot in Longfellow Square for Main Street in Westbrook in 2007.

Maine Beer Box

| Posted in Openings, Beer

The Maine Beer Box, a shipping container beer tap system, is headed to Iceland, reports the Press Herald.

The project is a partnership between the Maine Brewers Guild and Eimskip, the Icelandic shipping company that has its U.S. headquarters in Portland. The guild plans to ship the container every year to a different port on Eimskip’s shipping routes. The aim is to market Maine’s craft beer industry overseas and encourage brewers to consider foreign exports as a way to grow their companies, Sean Sullivan, executive director of the brewers guild, said during a send-off event for the beer box at the International Marine Terminal in Portland on Friday.

Reviews: Woodhull, Baharat, Tiqa

| Posted in Reviews

The Maine Sunday Telegram has reviewed Woodhull,

Instead, focus on the Mexican-inspired plates that husband-and-wife chef duo, Matt and Rachel Chaisson, prepare with considerable skill. Standouts are the roasted cauliflower taco on a fresh, housemade soft tortilla; the hearty, multidimensional Baja rice bowl; and the ambitiously named “fritter mountain,” a quick-fried patty of smoky roasted corn covered in red cabbage, corn salsa and cotija cheese. It’s good enough to merit a little voyage of your own to Yarmouth for a taste.

Press Herald has reviewed Baharat,

The Rad Mirage ($10) has already gained some renown in the short time Baharat has been open. It seems that, once you taste it, it becomes difficult not to recommend it to every person you see. Having had it myself now, I get it. Vodka, Lebanese yogurt, honey and mint, blended to perfection, it’s a unique cocktail that complements the food and the location perfectly. It’s nearly absolutely impossible not to have two, so I did.

Peter Peter Portland Eater has reviewed Tiqa,

Tiqa was even better than I remembered. They were more than satisfactory in the past, but my meal this time might have been the best yet. The seafood, pork, and potato combo in cream was extraordinary with the app and dessert as excellent bookends. It left me feeling like I had eaten something very special. The restaurant is putting some high quality flavors out from their kitchen and a meal there is most definitely one you’ll enjoy.