RealFood Project & Knife Sharpening

The Food & Dining section in today’s Press Herald includes an interview with chef Frank Giglio. Giglio is teaching a series of classes at the Public Market House on healthy eating and food preparation. The first class takes place tomorrow night and they run through to September.

The series of six cooking classes that kicks off tomorrow at the Public Market House in Portland will emphasize nutrient-dense whole foods and provide food preparation techniques that maximize nutrition and flavor. Called the Maine RealFood Project, the classes will run through the end of September.

“Food is medicine; we need to use it as medicine,” Giglio said. “The point of these classes is to get people inspired so they realize that cooking is fun.”

The Food and Dining section also includes an article about knife sharpening. David Oberton from Wicked Sharp features prominently in the article. Oberton is trying to get approved to set up his knife sharpening operation at the Portland Farmers Market.

“People would bring one or two knives in, and I think they were testing me,” Orbeton said. “And then the following week they’d come in with (L.L.) Bean bags of knives, whole chef rolls. It was overwhelming. We actually had to turn people away.”

 

What to Drink with Oysters

This week’s Portland Phoenix offers advice on what to drink with oysters.

Oysters are the ocean’s own raw bar. You slurp them, and their taste is wonderfully funky, as unique as any on the planet. As easy little food it doesn’t get a lot better. But what to drink? You don’t need to have wine as the perfect accompaniment. I like Allagash White Ale; its zesty flavor is a perfect foil with oysters. Gin is sublime with them, and vodka works remarkably well too. Perchance someone will come up with an oyster-flavored vodka. If you’re looking for wines, here are a few solid suggestions…

PPH: Otto, Fiddleheads, Relish, Wine & Dr. Campbell

Today’s Press Herald includes a report on the filming of a TV show at Otto’s,

The concept was interesting enough to catch the attention of the Cooking Channel — a relatively new affiliate of The Food Network — and on Tuesday a production crew was at Otto filming a segment on the mashed potato, bacon and scallion pizza. The Otto segment will be part of a one-hour special called “Pizza Outside the Box.”

an interview with John Ashton,

Ashton is executive chef for the weekly food magazine Relish, which runs in this newspaper and hundreds of others across the country, and has 15 million readers. In his travels around the country, he enjoys meeting those readers, visiting them in their homes and pulling them up on stage for cooking demonstrations.

and a report on the recent visit to Portland by Dr. Colin Campbell author of The China Study, a column on the pleasures of tasting wine, and an article from the Sun Journal on the Maine fiddlehead season.

USA Today Travel

The USA Today Travel site recently posted their recommendations for outdoor dining in Portland. El Rayo, DiMillo’s, Eve’s, David’s and Havana South made their list of “Restaurants With Patios” in Portland.

Many visitors to Portland, Maine, search for the perfect lobster or seafood meal, but this bustling waterfront city has more to offer than lobster rolls and steamed clams. On almost any corner, you can find something different, from small bakeries to international flavors. In the summer months, many Portland restaurants add outdoor seating, allowing guests to enjoy the sunshine and activity of the city while they eat their meals.

See the PFM Outdoor Dining List for some other options.

Otto TV

The Press Herald is reporting that a film crew from The Cooking Chanel will be in town tomorrow to record a segment of Pizza Out of the Box at Otto’s.

A film crew will be shooting a segment for a show called “Pizza Out of the Box” that will air in August. Shooting starts at 7:30 a.m. and is expected to last until 1 p.m. The segment will feature Otto’s signature mashed potato, bacon and scallion pizza, which has become a customer favorite.

Sun: Deux Cochon, Groceria Cafe, PFM Top 10, Where to Eat

Today’s Portland Daily Sun profiled Deux Cochon and its owner Adam Alfter,

“I love pickled pig’s feet, they are so good, but people are kind of scared of them,” said Adam Alfter, owner of the Public Market House’s newest BBQ joint, Deux Cochon.

“Probably about three people will eat it and I’ll eat the rest of them, but I’m cool with that, because those three people get to know what it’s like,” said Alfter.

reported on the upcoming return of the Groceria Cafe (aka Cafe at Pat’s),

“I had leased it for the last five years, and now I have it back with Greg Gilman, who is the original chef who built it with me. He’s coming back. Everybody’s excited,” [Jaime] Vacchiano said.

The cafe won rave reviews in local media, and one patron who dined at the cafe in its early years said Gilman’s return is great news.

and spread the word about Broke 207’s call for more affordable restaurants and the PFM Top 10 List.

Mushroom Legislation

Today’s Press Herald reports on mushroom safety legislation making its way through the Maine Legislature,

Nearly three years after a couple of Portland chefs got sick from eating poisonous mushrooms, Maine lawmakers may adopt the nation’s most extensive food safety regulations for wild fungi.

Legislators are considering a bill to require that at least one person who is trained and certified to identify edible wild mushrooms handle the delicacies before they are sold at markets or served in restaurants.

Here’s a link to the full text of the bill.

affordable food with sit-down atmosphere

Broke 207 has posted some observations on local restaurants and bemoaned the lack of “affordable food with sit-down atmosphere (mall restaurants need not apply)” in the city.

If you’re reading this site then you’re probably someone who knows the Portland restaurant landscape fairly well. Are there some restaurants out there that fit what Broke 207 is looking for? What do you think the biggest gap in the Portland restaurant line-up is?

CDBG Grants for Restaurants

Today’s Portland Daily Sun reports on the Community Development Block Grant funding received by Hot Suppa and Local Sprouts.

“In our application we said it would produce five full-time jobs between two businesses, but Local Sprouts alone over the course of the last year since we opened in June has produced about 11 full-time jobs,” Fertig said Monday. “We have over 20 people employed right now with Local Sprouts, some of those people have an opportunity to become worker owners.”