Five Portland bartenders are competing in next week’s Northeast regional Speed Rack, a timed competition for female bartenders that raises money for breast cancer research:
The event is taking place at the Royale, tickets are available online.
It looks like Opening Season may be starting early this year:
Many other restaurants, brewers, bakers, coffee shops, etc are still under construction—here’s the full list.
Monday – Robin’s Table, a new vegan restaurant in Biddeford is opening at 7:30 am, and Maine Restaurant Week continues.
Tuesday – Mr. Tuna is re-opening their expanded sushi counter in the Public Market House.
Wednesday – South Portland restaurant Judy Gibson is opening for business, and Izakaya Minato and Eaux are putting on a one-night collaboration, Izakaya Minateaux.
Saturday – Milk & Honey/Swallowtail Farm is hosting a Murder Mystery Dinner, and the Winter Farmers’ Market is taking place.
Sunday – Helm is holding a pop-up at Tandem Bakery, and the MRW Spirit Quest 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.
Bob’s Clam Hut has announced plans to close their Portland location. Their last day in business will be this Sunday, March 1st.
Helm (website, instagram, facebook), the new oyster bar and bistro under construction on first floor of the new WEX building on Thames Street, has applied for a liquor license. Here’s a look at the draft menu and floor plan.
Helm will be holding a pop-up at the West End Tandem on Sunday March 8th. Details and tickets are available on the Helm website.
The floor plan includes an oyster bar and outdoor seating:
The list of semifinalists for the 2020 James Beard Foundation Awards was released today. There are 11 semifinal nominees from Maine:
The final list of nominees will be released on March 25th, and the awards ceremony will take place on May 4th in Chicago.
Related information:
Tuesday – there will be a Truffle dinner at Chaval.
Wednesday – the James Beard Foundation will be releasing the list of restaurant and chef semifinalists for this years awards; check back mid-day to see which Maine businesses and people make the list. There will be a Spanish wine dinner at Evo Kitchen + Bar, and Chocolats Passion owner Catherine Wiersema will be giving a talk at Mechanics Hall.
Thursday – Liquid Riot is holding the 2nd Annual Chicken Wing Challenge.
Friday – the annual MRW Incredible Breakfast Cook-off is taking place, and the New England Craft Brewers Summit is convening at the Holiday Inn By-the-Bay.
Saturday – Ramona’s, the new Philly-inspired sandwich shop under construction on Washington Ave, is holding a pop-up at the Portland Zoo, and the Winter Farmers’ Market is taking place.
Sunday – It’s the first day of Maine Restaurant Week, The Garrison is launching their brunch service, the MRW Crave Tasting and Competition 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.
The Maine Sunday Telegram has reviewed CBG.
Chef Theodore Moffitt’s menu delivers whiplash-inducing doses of eclecticism but is largely well-executed and seems suited to bar manager Mike Barbuto’s classics-focused beverage program. CBG’s fried snacks are among its best dishes. If you visit at night, don’t skip the crisp-fried croquettes filled with braised pork and potato. At brunch, it’s the savory ham-and-cheese fritters that you’ll want, with their superheated interior ready to send rivulets of melted sharp cheddar running down your chin as you eat.
Several businesses are celebrating major decade anniversaries this year:
60-year Anniversaries
Maria’s Ristorante which was founded by Anthony and Madeline Napolitano and moved last year to the former Espo’s building on Congress Street.
40-Year Anniversaries
Dock Fore was founded by sisters Susan and Nancy Hezlep in the space that had long been the home of Zeitman’s Grocery Store. Three Dollar Deweys opened at the intersection of Union and Fore before moving around the corner in 1995 to their location on Commercial Street. Deweys closed in 2018 and re-opened in 2019 under new ownership.
20-year Anniversaries
PFM data is a little sparse on what was taking place in 2000. It falls in the gap between my historical research and when the site started. Do any of you remember any establishments that opened in 2000?
10-year Anniversaries
Nosh, Sonny’s, Boda, Yordprom Coffee, Kamasouptra, Bayside Bowl, Pai Men Miyake, Wine Wise and Trader Joe’s opened.
Flood’s received a shout out this week in the New York Times Style Magazine.
Like Palace, Flood’s offers creative comfort food like juicy burgers and pancetta toast with apple butter, as well as a laid-back environment personified by several unofficial and irreverent mascots from the minds of the Atlanta-based design and consulting group Office of Brothers, Inc., such as a beanie-wearing, cigarette-smoking fish. “I’m not in the business of challenging people with my space or my food,” Mitchell told me. Rather, Flood’s is about feeling like you’re a regular.