The Portland Phoenix has moved on to the final stage their 2011 Best of Portland readership poll:
Portland Food Map is a nominee this year for Best Food Blog along with From Away, Mister Meatball, Portland Food Coma and The Spiced Plate.
The semi-final list of nominees for this year’s James Beard Awards were released today. Several Maine chefs and restaurants are on the list:
Sam Hayward and Melissa Kelly are both past winners in the Best Chef category. Fore Street has been in contention in the Outstanding Restaurant category before. All four semi-finalists for Best Chef: Northeast have been semi-final nominees or nominees in past years in either Best Chef: Northeast or Best New Restaurant.
The final list of nominees will be announced on March 21st and the awards ceremony is scheduled for May 9th.
Congratulations and good luck to them all.
The Food & Dining section in today’s Press Herald includes an interview with raw vegan chef Elizabeth Fraser,
The ease with which she made the almond milk coupled with its flavor was like a health food revelation to me. But to Fraser, it was just another day in the life of the Girl Gone Raw.
That’s the name of her raw vegan chef business, which offers classes, private parties and food coaching from her Munjoy Hill studio to groups and individuals.
an article about a staff weight loss program being run by the owner of David’s,
David Turin, the owner of David’s, noticed his staffers’ girth increasing from year to year, and decided to do something about it. He started a 90-day weight-loss competition at the restaurant and will be rewarding the “biggest losers” on his staff with lots of cash.
and advice on pairing wine with tofu.
She literally laughed. “I have no idea. You can’t drink wine with tofu.” With that, she was off to pay, and I started to say, Yes-Wait-Yes, but she laughed again and was gone.
This was what’s known as a teachable moment, and although I missed the opportunity then, I’ll try to re-seize it now. First of all, you can and should drink wine with tofu! There’s wine for everything.
The Portland Daily Sun published a report on the joycott that took place this weekend at the Public Market House.
The Joycott was a marquee day for the Public Market House as a whole, with business owners reporting around $3,529 in profits — double what they make on an average day.
“I pretty much had my best day so far with more than double my average daily sales,” said Steve Miner, owner a Peanut Butter Jelly Time, a food vendor on the market’s second floor.
The Forecaster has published a report on this year’s Winter Farmers Market.
A steady flow of people found their way into the Irish Heritage Center on Saturday morning to peruse winter offerings from Maine farmers and listen to a little local music.
About 15 vendors filled tables with potatoes and carrots, canned goods, honey and meat. Lots of meat. Plus eggs, butter, yogurt and cheese.
Today’s Portland Daily Sun includes an interview with the owners of Boda. They were asked “What one dish and one drink really define you?”
Bob’s signature dish is braised pork hock with star anise. It’s the only thing on the menu that is his alone. He carmelizes sugar in a pot, adding star anise, cinnamon, black pepper, garlic, galanga, fermented yellow bean paste and both dark and sweet soy sauces to give structure to the broth for the pork to simmer for hours on a back burner while the evening’s ingredients are prepped. It’s a dish he learned from his father, a building supplies salesman who loved to experiment in the kitchen.
an interview with Steve Corry on the new French bistro, Petite Jacqueline, he’s in the process of opening in Longfellow Square,
Corry plans to open Petite Jacqueline in the first or second week in March, he said. The concept of the new restaurant, Corry said, is “authentic French comfort food” with a “vivacious bistro atmosphere,” where customers can sit down for lunch or dinner.
and a piece on the potential changes to the law regarding tips before the Maine legislature,
Last week, this paper covered the issue before the legislature regarding changes to the “tipping” rules for restaurant employees in this state. I now know that at least one wary local was paying attention.
Today’s Press Herald includes reports on a group that’s trying to “put Maine lobster where it isn’t“,
They hope to redirect the state’s signature seafood into the mouths of gastronomes in the form of gourmet pies, pizzas and bisques.
The lobstermen have just launched the Calendar Islands Maine Lobster Co., based on the Portland Fish Pier, teaming up with renowned chefs Jonathan King and Jim Stott, owners of Stonewall Kitchen in York.
Today’s paper also reports that a compromise has been reached on designating a state dessert,
The State and Local Government Committee voted 8-3 Monday to amend L.D. 71 to say that the whoopie pie would be the state’s official “treat.” Committee members said they wanted to avoid a battle with supporters of blueberry pie and other worthy desserts, but still wanted to give whoopie pies a designation.
Today’s Press Herald includes an article about what local school districts are doing to address the needs of their students who need a gluten-free diet,
Scarborough is among the Maine school districts that are adjusting their cafeteria options for a growing number of students who don’t eat gluten, a protein in wheat, rye, barley and triticale.
and a What Ales You column that explains the difference between lagers and ales.
The first dividing line is between lagers and ales. Lagers are made with yeast that ferments at the bottom of the fermenting vessel and are fermented and conditioned at cooler temperatures. Ales use top-fermenting yeast at warmer temperatures.
MPBN radio reported on a bill before the legislature that would impact whether the server or employer is entitled to the money from the service charge.
If you’ve ever thrown a wedding banquet, a 50th birthday bash, any kind of prearranged function, you’ll see that a bill comes with an automatic service charge of 15 or 20 percent. Who should get the money? The employer or the servers? That debate has been the source of at least two lawsuits in Maine, and is now a question being raised in the state Legislature.
For additional coverage of this story see the Huffington Post and the Portland Daily Sun.
The Portland foodie blogosphere is awash with Valentine’s Day recommendations today. Part of that is intentional as the O-rama blogging crew takes a slight detour from burgers to coordinate on the topic of V-Day first date recommendations. Vrai-lean-uh and Stephen Cooks also exercised a fine tuned sense of editorial timing and posted their own Valentine’s Day thoughts today so I’ve included them in the summary below.
Appetite Portland – a set of recommendations compiled by AP and her husband for a night out with 6 celebrity dates.
James Franco – to Novare Res Bier Cafe, then Sonny’s
With roles as diverse as Sean Penn’s lover in Milk, the partier in Pineapple Express, and the outdoor adventurer/survivalist in 127 Hours, sexy Franco can’t be pigeon-holed. And, as a PhD candidate, he attends poetry classes at Yale. What’s hotter than that? I’d get him a little tipsy with a few 10% beers at Novare, then spice up the evening with Sonny’s Latin-inspired entrees. We’d keep the night sizzling by sipping pepper-infused tequila at Sonny’s bar .… read the full article
Chris2fer – Chris and his partner went to The Salt Exchange for an early Valentine’s Day dinner.
I started with Crab Cakes (spicy!), moved on to Sweet Potato Soup (the highlight of the meal), had Poached Pear Salad for the first time (goat cheesy!) and finished with the Stuffed Chicken (a leg (boo)). George had Potato Croquettes (eh), Brocoli and Scallop soup (awesome!) and the “Local And Sustainable Daily Fish Preparation” (fine).…read the full article
Edible Obsessions –a retelling of how she first met “the missus” and a strong recommendation for Miyake as a Valentine’s Day destination.
My brain kept going back to Miyake. I could actually picture us having our first date there. I could see us sitting at the bar, because you MUST sit at the bar, sharing a bottle of sake and enjoying ourselves immensely. There is a nice intimacy to being at that bar, sitting next to–instead of across from–the person you’re on a date with. You have the honor of watching Chef Miyake behind the bar, hands and blade moving so effortlessly and delicately, as he prepares your meal. It’s conversation. It’s beautiful.…read the full article
From Away – Jillian shares how she and Malcolm first met, and recommends Caiola’s for a first date night.
The first night we went, there was a carousing group of fifty-something couples drinking copious amounts of red wine and getting boisterous. Immediately, we felt at ease. It’s like a gathering of family or a sprawling dinner party, where you can be private at a table for two, but not feel alone or stranded in a sea of stuffy white tablecloths and unpronounceable wine. I would arrive early for a first date and order a martini, and try and appear mysterious. This illusion would instantly be shattered the moment I stumbled over my high heels en route to the bathroom, but at first glad glance I might be alluring. In this familial atmosphere, one would feel at ease with the attractive person you met over a bottle of Tide at the neighborhood laundromat (is it pathetic or adorable that my imagination in this realm is as developed as a Hollywood romcom’s hackneyed meet-cute?)…read the full article
Stephen Cooks – tips for planning a romantic dinner for two at home complete with a set of 9 recipes to choose from.
I like to do a meal that’s thoughtfully planned, lovingly prepared and served on a picture-perfect table. For me this this is so much more personal and meaningful a celebration than a restaurant meal, especially since so many of us have good restaurant meals on a fairly frequent basis.…read the full article
The Blueberry Files – recommends Local 188 for a first date on Valentine’s Day for the casual atmosphere, good food and reasonable price point.
And that one little word, “first,” changed everything. I would NOT recommend taking your first date to an expensive, romantic restaurant! First dates should be more casual. Plus, on a first date, you’ll be nervous. And when I’m nervous, I tend to drink really fast. So, don’t risk becoming “that guy” by being all drunk and loud in a tiny restaurant!…read the full article
Vrai-lean-uh – recommends going to Pai Men Miyake and saving the “real Miyake” for a second date.
I think the new Miyake would be a good option, with the following caveat: think really carefully about whether you want to order a noodle soup on a first date. Slurping noodles together could be a bonding experience: hey, we both splattered broth on our shirts! It could also be incredibly uncomfortable. If you think the noodle slurping will be uncomfortable, or that you might not be able to pull it off with the required aplomb or good humor, by all means, suggest that the two of you share a bunch of the small plates, which I think are better than the ramen anyway.…read the full article
Where is Jenner’s Mind – recommends Benkay as the spot that she and Seth head to when they want a romantic dinner for two.
the thing that really makes this a romantic dinner for two is the price. all this for $70! and for those of you out there who do go out to dinner for valentine’s day, you can get it all for $60! go to benkay’s website and print out the coupon and get $10 off from february 8th to 14th. normally benkay is one of those great restaurants that always has a table open, but for valentine’s day you will likely need reservations. other spots we find to be romantical are salt exchange and bar of chocolate. …read the full article
My own Valentine’s Day first date advice would be to do a multi-destination meal. Eating your way across several restaurants let’s you assemble a really varied and outstanding dining experience, tapping into the very best that each spot has to offer. The walks between one restaurant and the next would give you and your date a chance to talk and get to know each other better. I’d start off with the Winter Point oysters at Old Port Sea Grill, head on over to Fore Street for the mussels, then up Munjoy Hill for a couple small plates at Bar Lola and finish up the night at Bresca for the 3-course dessert options they have planned for Valentine’s day.
Post a comment and tell us your Valentine’s Day first date recommendations.