Author: PFM

The Portland Phoenix has published a review of Hugo’s.

In recent years Hugo’s has introduced both a bar menu and an à la carte dinner menu, which have made the restaurant more accessible to locals. But this winter they are offering a midweek tasting menu that is not be missed: $42 for six courses. That is half the regular price; a third of what you would pay for a comparable meal in New York; and about equal to an appetizer, an entrée, and a split dessert at any upscale restaurant in Portland. For most incomes dinner out at a formal restaurant is a rare treat and a splurge. Right now Hugo’s midweek menu offers the most splurgy satisfaction for your money.

Vrai-lean-uh has posted an endorsement of Freeport Knife Company’s knife sharpening service,

I really highly, highly recommend Freeport Knife Co. They’re on Route 1 on the way to LL Bean, near Pet Pantry. I was expecting to go in and get some grief about the state of my cutlery, kind of like when the haircutter picks up and drops strands of my hair and says, “So, when was your last haircut?” But no! They were totally nice and they sharpened my knives in an hour for $2 a piece and the store is really fantastic.

Appetite Portland has published a review of Little Seoul,

Korean-Style Pumpkin Soup
At first slurp, I was shocked by its sweetness – remarking to Adam, “this belongs on the dessert menu.” But subsequent spoonfuls revealed a coarse and nutty creaminess reminiscent of roasted sunchoke. Thickened with rice flour, it’s more dense porridge than soup – both richer and more toothsome than in other culinary traditions.

Bayside Bowl received 3½ stars from this week’s Taste & Tell review in the Maine Sunday Telegram.

They are on their game in the kitchen at Bayside Bowl, with impressive pastry, juicy mushrooms and devastating desserts, while the few disappointments seem to reveal considered experiments rather than any carelessness.