Category: Closings

Cara and Cecile Stadler have announced a set of changes at Eighty Ate Hospitality, the parent company of Bao Bao, Tao Yuan, Canopy Farms and ZaoZe Cafe.

The Stadlers will not be reopening Bao Bao Dumpling House in Portland but instead plan to move the restaurant to Brunswick where it will co-located with Tao Yuan. The new restaurant will temporarily named BaoBao @TAO and will serve a similar menu to the Portland location. The Tao Yuan tasting menu will still be available for customers who make reservations and request it in advance. BaoBao @TAO will offer takeout and will have seating available for walk-in customers as well as by reservation.

As part of these changes, the Stadlers are also “starting the process of winding down” Canopy Farms, their aquaponics greenhouse in Brunswick. The email announcement shared that they “would very much like to see the space used and would are willing to effectively rent out the space fully setup at cost for the right institutional partner or NPO.  Please contact cecile@canolyfarms.org if interested.”

The menu at ZaoZe will be unaffected but the cafe and market will be open earlier, 8 am – 4:30 pm. Emily Topaz will continue to be the chef at ZaoZe and Leon Vuong will be the chef of the combined BaoBao/Tao Yuan establishment.

Bao Bao in Portland has been closed since February.

The owners of Thai Esaan, Ben Boonseng and Siwaporn Roberts, have announced they’re closing their Portland Street restaurant. Sunday will be their last day in business.

We want to thank all of our wonderful guests that have chosen us to be a part of their family through the years. We are extremely humbled that so many embraced our restaurant and that we were able to succeed as long as we had. Our goal was to serve good food and it showed through our recognition in various news outlets.

Thai Esaan was originally located on Forest Ave and reopened at 65 Portland Street in March of 2023.

Foulmouthed Brewing has announced plans to close their South Portland brewery at the end of this month.

We are sorry to say that Foulmouthed Brewing will be closing at the end of April. These last 8+ years of brewing, cooking, and neighborhood life have been an amazing experience, but we’ve been offered an opportunity to sell the business and we feel the time is right for us to move on.

Foulmouth’s last day in business will be April 28th.

As for the buyer, Foulmouth shared that,

We can’t reveal all the details, but the buyer is a new, independent brewery with plenty of experience working within the industry here in Maine. They intend to continue operating as a restaurant and brewery and plan to open under their own name as soon as licensing allows.

Pizza Joint (website, facebook, instagram) has announced plans to close both their Portland and South Portland locations this month.

Hello pizza friends,
It is with great sadness that we have made the tough decision to close Pizza Joint.
Our last day of operation will be Sunday, April 14th. This date is subject to change depending on how much crew we have in the last few days.
Get it while you can, folks.
Thank you all for your loyalty and kindness over 47 great years. We couldn’t have done it without you. ♥
-The Pizza Joint

Helm has announced that they are closing. March 8th will be their last day in business.

Our journey may be complete, but the spirit and memories of the last three years are forever and ever. As you can imagine, I have a million words I could say, and maybe I will someday. But for right now, I just want to say THANK YOU!

Thank you to my staff for being here everyday ready to work hard to feed and nourish while dodging every wrench that has been thrown.

Thank you to our suppliers and farmers who provide the best quality food and drink in Maine.

And thank you to every single person that walked through our doors and took a chance on us.

Helm launched on February 2021, initially serving serving 3-course prix fixe takeout. They’ve earned a reputation for their excellent wine list, seafood-forward menu, contemporary dining room and service.

You can make reservations for their final few weeks on Resy. Helm is holding a beer dinner with Austin Street on February 29th.

Stars and Stripes Brewing Co. (website, facebook, instagram) has announced they’re closing their Portland location. February 24th will be there last day of business in Portland.

Stars and Stripes was founded in Freeport in 2018 and opened their Portland location in April 2022.

Two mainstays of their communities have announced they’re closing:

Maples owner Robin Ray has announced the closure (facebook, instagram) of her New Gloucester location. Ray launched the New Gloucester cafe in 2023 after many years of operating her beloved bagel shop and cafe on Route One in Yarmouth. “…but it’s time to move on from the daily grind of owning Maples. We are closed because it’s what I need to do for myself. Thank you to EVERYONE who has supported me on this journey…”

The owners of Meridian’s Kitchen and Bar (shown above) and the Meridian’s Shop shut down both Fairfield businesses on January 27th. “…But in order to move forward and properly maintain our commitment to our mission and our community, we are taking time to regroup and reflect…”

The owners of the Solo Cucina Market have announced that this Sunday will be the market’s last day in business. The owners had announced in in November that they were seeking a buyer for the market.

Despite our most sincere efforts and fervent hopes, we have been unable to arrange a sale of the market to a buyer who will continue the concept. We are deeply grateful for your ongoing patronage and good cheer since the news of our closure came out, and your optimism has buoyed us to this point—but sadly these last few rogue waves have left us without a path forward.

The market opened on March 25, 2020. Solo Cucina is part of a family of businesses that also include Solo Italiano in Portland and Solo Pane e Pasticceria in Bath.

Owners Bowman and Anna Brown announced this morning that they won’t be reopening Jackrabbit Cafe from their winter break.

After an underperforming year, and after taking some time to rest and reflect, we’ve decided to close Jackrabbit Cafe as we know it.

There are many factors; it isn’t just one thing. But, we’ve appreciated being a part of your lives in a small way. Thank you for your support and patronage over the years!

They’ve also indicated that customers should “[s]tay tuned for where and when our famous cardamom buns will pop up.”