James Tranchemontagne, owner of The Frog and Turtle, is opening a new restaurant in Westbrook with his wife and brother. The new business is taking over the space formerly occupied by Freaky Bean on Main Street and will be called The French Press Eatery. They plan on having it open in a few weeks and will be serving “12 different breakfast sandwiches, our donuts, soups, salads, sandwiches and a lot of different coffees”.
Author: PFM
Halloween
Phoenix on Styxx
The Portland Phoenix has published a review of the bar menu at Styxx.
There is little chance of that at Styxx. The toaster-oven limitation is not overcome but rather accepted as benign. The result is a menu reminiscent of juvenile after-school-with-no-parents-home culinary satisfactions in the modes of crispy, mushy, gooey, greasy, and sweet. The presentations on long rectangular plates, often with a modish drizzle of sauce, are sort of elegant.
Binga’s & Perry’s
The Portland Daily Sun has published a review at Binga’s Stadium.
Some sauces I’d order again, some I wouldn’t. If you don’t want chicken, you can go for ribs. There’s a falafel sandwich and a couple of salads for the meat-averse. The fried pickles sounded interesting but were way too salty. The beer selection is a fraction of what you can get at Great Lost Bear or Novare Res. It seems that I’ve got a laundry list of reasons not to like the place but I loved it, screens and all. Go figure.
Also in the Tuesday Sun is a short profile on Perry’s Sidewalk Cafe and its owner, Perry Mogul.
For six and a half years, kosher hot dog vendor Perry Mogul wandered in the desert — the desert of Arizona — before returning this summer to Portland.
Lunch at Big Sky
Portland Food Heads has published a review of the lunch at Big Sky Bread Co.
If you’d like the long and short of it, it is. I’ve eaten just about every incarnation of food they serve; breakfast, sandwiches, salads, soups, bread etc., and I’m happy to say that, while none of it is over-the-top incredible, it’s all very well put together and demands more than a few visits to get the whole picture.
Mixing Food & Politics
Two local restaurant owners are running for public office in the upcoming election:
- Oliver Outerbridge, co-owner of Bonobo, is a candidate for the Portland Water District board of trustee.
- James Tranchemontagne, chef/owner of The Frog and Turtle, hopes to represent Ward 4 in Westbrook on the City Council.
Duckfat on Rachel Ray
According to a tweet from Amy K. Anderson, a segment on Duckfat will be featured on the November 6 episode of the Rachel Ray show.
Caiola's Brunch Review
Type A Diversions has published a review of brunch at Caiola’s.
I enjoy the little touches that make brunch at Caiola’s special – like the way they steam the milk for my coffee and infuse their blueberry muffins with lavender or other fresh herbs. And I appreciate the fact that we don’t feel rushed. Caiola’s is the kind of spot you can linger over the Sunday paper and have an extra cup of coffee without any guilt.
Harvest on the Harbor
If you weren’t able to make it to Harvest on the Harbor, check out this post from PortlandTown to see photos from the event. PortlandTown has also published a number of additional photos on Flickr.
This Week's Events
The weekly Piatto per Tutti cooking class and the Foodie Trivia Contest are taking place this evening. Bar Lola is holding a wine dinner on Tuesday featuring Cotes du Rhone. On Wednesday, The Salt Exchange is running their weekly wine and canapes event. Halloween parties are on the calendar at both Frog & Turtle and Grace. Portland’s weekly Farmers’ Markets are being held in Monument Square on Wednesday and at Deering Oaks Park on Saturday. Hood’s New England Dairy Cook-off is taking place on Sunday. For more information on these and other upcoming food happenings in the area, visit the event calendar.