The Golden Dish has published a review of Street & Company.
My main course of oven baked whole branzino, which was filleted at the table, was served over a cilantro sauce that was at once provocative yet fresh. Branzino, a European sea bass, is a wonderful delicate fish and the restaurant cooked it perfectly.
An article in the Food & Dining section of today’s Press Herald looks past the pancake at cocktail and other drink ideas that incorporate maple syrup,
We usually run stories on how the season is going and share ideas for what you can do with all that springtime sweetness besides pour it over pancakes and ice cream. This year, inspired by a maple latte from Arabica, I decided to take a look at maple drinks, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic.
and the Natural Foodie column exams how Maine’s growing network of small farms creates a better food system for the state.
According to the latest statistics from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Maine is home to 8,100 farms, and more than 90 percent of them are classified as small operations. Maine is also ahead of the curve in the organic farming movement, with the number of certified farms doubling between 2006 and 2008, the latest years for which the USDA’s figures are available.
Jason Oliver Nixon, author of Delta’s Jet Set blog, was in Maine for a visit this weekend,
We kicked off the weekend at a spirited brunch with L.L.Bean’s superstar public relations guru Mary Rose MacKinnon and her husband, James, at Portland’s Local 188. (Try the Caribbean-style hash with a potent Bloody Mary). Then we hit P-town’s cobblestone byways: Don’t miss Rogues Gallery and Portland Dry Goods for exceptional menswear. I am crazy about the kitchenware and gourmet delicacies at LeRoux Kitchen and Browne Trading Company.
Vin et Grub has published a review of Hugo’s.
Our 4th course, was beautiful and intricate. Referred to as the Suckling Pig Three Ways, we were presented with a large plate, with a piece of compressed shoulder, homemade thai sausage, and pig foot atop a long wonton noodle. A curry froth, curried peanuts, and sweet potato medallions rendered this the most impressive dish of the evening. The noodle (i love them) was soft and satiating and delicate. The curry froth was light and pure, and it added an enriching effect on all of the proteins on the plate…
A pair of updates for the Under Construction List:
From Away has published a review of Joe’s New York Pizza.
Though the pizza being slung out the door at Joe’s certainly can’t compare to what you’d find at Flatbread or Otto’s, it’s simply not trying to compete on that level. This isn’t organic arugula and free-range chicken served on a gluten-free crust; it’s hard-working, cheap, fast, workaday pizza, for people who don’t want to spend a lot of money or time to go from “empty-stomach” to “stomach full of pizza.” In that regard, we find Joe’s New York Pizza to be a solid choice for a midday slice.
The James Beard Foundation announced the final list of nominees for this years awards at an event in the other Portland today. Krista Kern Desjarlais, chef/owner Bresca is a nominee in the Best Chef Northeast category (see page 8). She’s up against 5 other chefs from Massachusetts, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont.
The winners of the 2011 JBF awards will be announced on May9 in New York City.
Update: the Press Herald interviewed Desjarlais this afternoon for an article about the nomination,
“I don’t even know what to say yet, I guess,” Desjarlais commented by phone on her way to Boothbay. “I don’t know, it’s awesome. It’s a great group of people to be nominated with. There’s not a whole lot of women that got nominated throughout the country, so I feel like that’s great, too.”
For the new installment of Maine at Work, Press Herald reporter Ray Routhier writes about working at a sugarhouse in Newfield, Maine.
As Debra fired up a large oil-powered evaporator (the boiler, in common sugarhouse parlance), her husband began to explain all its parts and how it works in much more detail than I can relate. Basically, the giant stainless-steel contraption had sap flowing first into a preheating area, then into a “flue pan” area, then into the finishing area before it is ready for packaging.
Maine Maple Sunday is taking place this coming weekend. It’s a chance to visit a sugarhouse in your area and see how they turn maple sap into maple syrup.
South Portland baker and business owner John Palanza passed away last week. Palanza owned the Uncle Andy’s Bakery in South Portland for 45 years, from 1951 to 1996.
In the late 1940s, Mr. Palanza was hired by Fred Nanney, the original owner of Uncle Andy’s, to run the doughnut shop. In 1951, Mr. Palanza acquired Uncle Andy’s, growing it from a doughnut shop to a full-service bakery.
For more than 40 years, he produced breads, cakes, pies, doughnuts and assorted pastries for hundreds of loyal customers, many of whom would wait in line outside the bakery on busy weekend mornings and on holidays. The police department assigned a traffic cop to direct traffic past the shop during its busy times.
A new Thai restaurant called Top Thai is under construction on Saint John Street. Top Thai is taking over the Saeng Thai House location at 267 Saint John. As far as I know, the Saeng Thai on Congress remains open. You can see a draft menu (page 85) for the restaurant in the agenda for tonight’s City Council meeting.