Category: General News

Natalie Ladd offers some guidance and when and how to send food back to the kitchen in today’s Portland Daily Sun. Step 1 is to

Evaluate the Error: Make sure the problem is on their end, not yours. Be sure to tell your server if you have a food allergy or aversion to an item listed in a dish. However, if your food is undercooked, overcooked, the wrong temperature, stale, has a foreign object in it, or is not what you ordered, send it back. If it doesn’t taste the way you thought it would, however, try to deal with your disappointment. It is my experience that most food is sent back by nitpickers who are disappointed with their own choice, or occasional scammers who hope to have their bill reduced by a preemptive complaint.

Congratulations are due to Grace and their architect Dean Bingham for winning the People’s Choice award from the American Institute of Architects’s Restaurant Design Awards competition.

As part of her birthday celebration, The Spiced Plate went to Maine Mead Works to sample their products.

Of the six meads that we tried, the ones that intrigued me the most were the lavender mead and the elderberry mead.  Lavender is known for its relaxing properties, and sounded like it would make the perfect night cap.  Elderberry is a pretty little purple fruit that helps to keep your immune system strong and functional, especially in the winter.

Down East has named Congress Street the Best Street to Eat on in Maine. The July issue of Down East also includes the results of their readership poll. Fore Street was voted Best Dinner, Duckfat Best Lunch, Becky’s Best Breakfast, and Shipyard Best Beer.

An article in today’s Portland Daily Sun reports on how Blackstones is responding to economic and social changes in Portland’s gay community.

“I want to support the magazine and think it’s a great thing, but up until recently, we haven’t had to advertise, especially to the gay community. I’m trying to wrap my head around the way things have changed over the past few years. It’s always been word-of-mouth for us, but now I think I have to look at promotional things we used to do, or come up with some new ones to increase business. I’ve been working here since 1988 and we bought it in 1992 … things are very different now.”

Several Portland and Maine food purveyors have been getting recognition and accolades recently:

• Sweet Marguerites – is mentioned in the July issue of InStyle magazine in an article on making guest rooms irresistible.
• MDI Ice Cream – Food and Wine magazine named MDI as one of the nation’s 25 best spots for ice cream. (via PPH)
• Spirits of Maine Distillery – according to an article in MaineBiz, SMD “took honors at the 2011 San Francisco World Spirits Competition” for both their pear and apple brandy eaux-de-vie.
• Black Dinah Chocolates is the subject of a profile in The Boston Globe.

Today’s Portland Daily Sun reports on Po’Boys new gig operating the food concession at the State Theatre.

Peter Zinn has earned a devoted following since opening Po’ Boys & Pickles New Orleans-style sandwich shop in January 2010 at 1124 Forest Ave. Now, the Cajun eatery has bitten off a different slice of the market: Po’ Boys is serving concessions at the State Theatre.

Maine mycologist Greg Marley has won the Jane Grigson Award from the International Association of Culinary Professionals for his book Chanterelle Dreams, Amanita Nightmares: The Love, Lore, and Mystique of Mushrooms.

Architect Dean Bingham is a finalist in the 2011 Restaurant Design Awards for his design of Grace. The winner will be announced June 24. You can see the full list of nominees online.

In addition to his work as an architect Bingham runs Dean’s Sweets on Middle Street.