Category: Closings

Owners Johanna and Steve Corman have announced that they’re closing down their business Vena’s Fizz House. April 30th will be their last day in business.

After 12 amazing, crazy, wonderful years creating, owning, operating and pouring our blood, sweat and tears into Vena’s Fizz House, Steve and I are ready to retire – Woot Woot!

What a ride it has been….We can never thank our loyal customers enough for their support through the years.

Vena’s first launched in Boothby Square on July 10, 2013. They closed that location, and had at one point pursued plans to re-open in a larger space at 867 Congress. Since 2023 they’ve focused on their house branded products.

The business itself is also for sale, “If anyone is interested in buying or taking over Vena’s Fizz House, please shoot us an email at johanna@venasfizzhouse.com.”

Maine Craft Distilling will not be reopening their public house and tasting room on Washington Ave. MCD had announced in January that they were temporarily closing their restaurant for the winter.

Co-owner and GM Luke Davidson shared that he’s enjoyed running the restaurant and hosting music events on Washington Ave but that focusing on MCD’s core business is the right decision for their continued success. Their ready-to-drink canned cocktails now account for 90% of their business. The canned cocktails are distributed from Maine to New Jersey and are the top seller at Fenway Park.

The 10,880 sq ft MCD space 123 Washington Ave will soon be available to lease and the furniture and equipment for the distillery and restaurant are now up for auction.

Maine Craft Distilling was founded in 2012 and launched at their original location at 101 Fox Street in 2013. They moved to 123 Washington Ave and opened the public house in 2017.

Chef/owner James Tranchemontagne has announced that he’s  closing The Frog and Turtle in Westbrook. The restaurant’s last day in business will be March 2nd.

I wanted to take a moment to let everyone know we have made the hard decision to close the restaurant. Our final day will be March 2nd.

The City is requiring us to put a sprinklers system next door. Without it our spaces are unrentable. The added financial hardship of no rent mixed with the other financial challenges in today’s market have led to our difficult decision.

Thank you to all who have enjoyed our pub over the years. It has been a great joy cooking for you all and sharing the love of music. Thank you to the great musicians who have shared their talents.

Thank you to the amazing staff, past and present. Our current group are some of the best people I have ever worked with.

Tranchemontagne opened Frog and Turtle in 2008. He had previously operated Cafe Uffa in Longfellow Square before taking the chance of moving to Westbrook with a new concept and in a new town. A 2008 review in the Maine Sunday Telegram gave The Frog and Turtle four stars, a rating the restaurant earned again in 2016 when it was reviewed for a second time.

Owners Mary Chapman and Will Sissle have announced they’re closing the Sissle and Daughters (website, facebook, instagram) wine bar, market and cafe in Woodfords Corner. The announcement shares “The circumstances of this closure have come on suddenly, and are deeply personal.”

It goes on to say,

We cannot express how much we have loved serving the Woodford’s Corner neighborhood for the short period that we were a part of it; your enthusiasm for the space, the food and the community was palpable every day.

REST ASSURED, Sissle & Daughters Cheesemongers at Washington Ave is stronger than ever! We are honored to continue to serve you there, and look forward to having Mary back on our cheese counter! (Welcome home, Mary ❤️)

The Woodfords location opened for business on November 1, 2024. It’s last day in business will be February 22nd.

Anthony’s Italian Kitchen has announced they’ll be closing after 33 years in business. Their last day in operation will be February 7th.

Anthony is giving himself an 84th Birthday Present. After 33 years he is retiring. Our last day of business will be Friday February 7th. We would like to give our undying gratitude to you our faithful customers. It has been an honor to serve you all these years. We also must thank our faithful employees for all your hard work. So come on down for one last Boston Italian or homemade meatballs. Come on down and wish Anthony a Happy Birthday and a Happy Retirement. Again, thank you for 33 incredible years. From the entire Barrasso Family, Salute!!!

Anthony’s was founded by Anthony Barrasso in 1992. At one time there was also an outpost of the restaurant at the Public Market on Preble Street.

The Miranda Restaurant Group has announced that they’ll be closing Henry’s Public House. The restaurant’s last day in business will be February 15th.

Josh Miranda shared,

We love this building and all it has represented in the Old Port over the decades. I’m very grateful to our hardworking, dedicated and creative team at Henry’s who brought life back into this property and created a great dining and entertainment experience for our guests. And while our other restaurant and bar businesses are enduring, Henry’s is an example that no one is immune to the challenges this industry faces everyday.

Henry’s opened for business on July 29, 2023. The Miranda Restaurant Group also operate Blyth & Burrows (2017), Via Vecchia (2020), Papi (2023) and Off Track Pizza (2024).

Miranda also offered this perspective on the closing,

Portland, Maine – like other cities around the US – see restaurant closings and openings come in waves. People look for a reason why a restaurant closes and scatter a lot of opinions and conjecture but in my experience, there is never one singular reason. I think that’s why those of us who have dedicated our careers and our passion in this industry – for better or worse – keep going. We want to thank everyone who has supported Henry’s – you’re the reason we love our jobs. We’ll be open a few more weeks and would love to raise a glass with our community.

There have been three more closing announcements:

Anneke Jans has closed their Kittery Foreside restaurant. They were not able to extend the lease of the property they’ve occupied for 20 years. This past Sunday was their last day in business. Their announcement reads in-part,

We thank you all, from the deepest depths, for everything you all have brought to us. For sharing birthdays, anniversaries, engagements, retirements, holidays, and moments that were important to you. We took pride in sharing those times with you, and in helping to make your life moments special. We’ve cherished making so many memories, sharing genuine laughs, having wonderful and meaningful conversations, and just the pure love we’ve felt from so many of you. You have warmed our hearts and kept them full for so many wonderful years. For this, we are eternally grateful. We wanted nothing more than to continue to be here for you all, and the sorrow we feel that we cannot, is consuming and unending.

Maine Craft Distilling has announced they’ll be closing their MCD Public House restaurant for the winter. The restaurant is co-located with the distillery on Washington Ave. They plan to revisit the decision in the spring and may re-open the Public House then.

After much deliberation, it is with heavy heart that we report that we have decided to close the Public House at Maine Craft Distilling for the winter. A perfect storm of rising costs and deep dark winter has forced our hand . It has been a true honor and joy to spend time raising a glass and listening to wonderful music with you all in our remarkable community.

Rosemont Market & Bakery has announced they’ll be closing their Munjoy Hill store located at 88 Congress Street. The East End market’s last day in business will be January 31st.

Serving the East End community since 2008, the store’s smaller footprint has presented operational challenges that have grown increasingly difficult to overcome. Despite this closure, Rosemont Market’s six other locations will continue to operate as usual, serving customers across Greater Portland. Additionally, all staff at the Munjoy Hill market will be guaranteed positions at other Rosemont locations.

Richard Lee and Claire Guyer have announced they’ve shut down their business Little Brother Chinese Food. They shared that they’ve decided to move on due to changing priorities in their own lives. The business itself has been a success but their focus is increasingly being drawn to other initiatives, “from an artistic standpoint, it’s exactly the right time to draw this piece to a close.”

Dear Friends, our time with Little Brother Chinese Food is complete and it’s time for the business to close. Thank you so much for joining us on this journey. Your support allowed us to make a living doing something we loved for 4 whole years. It was a joyful, challenging, fulfilling, endeavour and we’re so grateful to have been able to share it with you.

Guyer and Lee launched Little Brother in February 2021. Their future plans are not set yet. Lee has a developing career as an artist and looking forward to seeing his work displayed in a group show in Chelsea later this year.

Cafe Louis (website, facebook, instagram) has announced plans to close their South Portland restaurant. Their last day in business will be February 2nd. In a post on instagram the owners shared,

We are nearing the end of our lease on Ocean St and have decided to take the opportunity to move on and realign our focus to recalibrate our home and personal lives. While this is a bittersweet post, the decision was incredibly difficult. We’ve shared amazing meals, drinks, memories and friendships in this tiny little room and truly believe we achieved far more than we ever set out to, and some…We are truly grateful for everyone who played a role in making this place what it is and have been honored to exist in this amazing Portland food scene.

When reached for comment chef/owner Evan Richardson expanded on the statement to say he’s making the change to spend more time with his two children.

Cafe Louis opened in July 2021. Richardson had previously operated Eaux on Exchange Street which grew from a food cart he launched in 2017. A second Cafe Louis restaurant named Costa Media (website, instagram) launched in Camden in late 2023 and will remain in business.

Via Sophia by the Sea (website, facebook, instagram) has announced that December 22nd will be the last day in business for the restaurant and its downstairs bar the Rabbit Hole (instagram).

We are looking forward to seeing everyone for our final night of service on Sunday, December 22nd. Thank you to everyone in the community and our wonderful guests for supporting us from the beginning.

The Kennebunk-based restaurant opened in late June 2022. It was the second location of the Washington DC restaurant Via Sophia and was launched in collaboration with the Kennebunkport Resort Collection which also operates Rosella, Earth at Hidden Pond and 5 other restaurants.