Sur Lie (facebook) is now open. They’re located at 11 Free Street.
Sur Lie serves a small plate menu divided into three main categories: Crisp, Pleasant and Bold along with some cheeses, charcuterie and other smaller starters. Chef Emil Rivera moved to Maine from DC where he worked for several years as part of the ThinkFoodGroup—a family of 15 restaurants founded by chef/restaurateur Jose Andres.
Update: For a look at the restaurant take a look at these photos by Ryan Brownewell.
Dean’s Sweets is opening their new larger Fore Street location today. They’ll be having a “tastings of their signature truffles and caramels, hot chocolate and chocolate bars”. Dean’s new store is located at 475 Fore Street, they plan to open at 10 am.
Golden Lotus had their grand opening yesterday. Chef/owner Joe Tang has 30 years of restaurant experience, mostly in NH. For several years he was part of the staff at Wok Inn and most recently he worked at Empire Chinese Kitchen. Golden Lotus is located at 511 Congress Street.
Huong’s Vietnamese Restaurant (facebook) opened over the weekend. Huong’s is located at 267 Saint John Street in the space that, for a short time, had been the home of Vietnam Restaurant.
There’s no indication whether this Huong’s is connected to the restaurant with a similar name that used to be located on Cumberland Ave.
The Bearded Lady’s Jewel Box (website, twitter, instagram) had a public soft opening last night which they announced earlier in the day to their Kickstarter supporters. The cocktail bar is owned by Nathaniel Meiklejohn (shown right) who has worked at a number of Portland area establishments and was part of the team that ran the successful Pocket Brunch series.
The menu is a compact (hand typed) list of 5 cocktails and one beer that was brewed for the bar in collaboration with In’finiti.
The Jewel Box is located at 644 Congress Street near Longfellow Square. The space and very comfortable curved bar was built out by North by East.
Bonfire Country Bar (website, facebook, twitter) opened last night. Bonfire will have a self service beer wall. Red solo cups to serve all drinks.
Bonfire is located at 37 Wharf in the former home of Seawall.
DL Geary Brewing’s new tasting room and retail store opened yesterday. During the fall and winter they plan on being open 11-4, Monday through Friday.
Geary’s is planning a launch party for the new room next Wednesday. The Maine Brew bus will be providing round-trip shuttle service, 4-7 pm from The Great Lost Bear.
Arcadia National Bar (website, facebook, twitter) held a preview last night to help “get some kinks worked out” and plans on opening today at 4pm. Arcadia is hybrid bar/arcade.
Owners Dave Aceto and Ben Culver ran a successful Kickstarter campaign for Arcadia earlier this year that raised nearly $26,000. Arcadia is located at 24 Preble Street in the location formerly occupied by Slainte.
Tandem Coffee’s new location is now in full operation serving a line of house made baked goods by Briana Holt complemented by Tandem’s fine coffee and service.
The new coffee shop/bakery is located at 742 Congress Street in the West End.
The Farm Stand (website, facebook) held a preview for friends and family last night. They’re scheduled to open on Friday.
The Farm Stand is a collaboration between Farmers Gate butcher shop in Wales and Jordan Farm in Cape Elizabeth. In addition to produce and pasture-raised meats from Maine the store has a small selection of beer and wine. Manager Joe Fournier tells me they’ll also be adding dry goods and as well as soups and sandwiches to go as the market becomes fully operational.
The Farm Stand is located at 161 Ocean Street in South Portland.
A new magazine, Zest, has been under development in Maine for the last few months, and the first issue is now out.
With this quarterly magazine, we invite you to fish and forage, eat and drink, cultivate and discover as we do. With recipes from your favorite chefs and barkeeps, insightful long-form nonfiction, intriguing profiles and destinations—and the occasional how-to—we mean to keep it fresh and fun; a place for everyone who loves Maine to come and be inspired through the seasons.
The first issue includes:
Zest is being published by Nancy Gordon, who was the founder Maine Home and Design, and edited by Michael S. Sanders, author of Fresh from Maine, From Here You Can’t See Paris, and numerous other books and articles.
I picked up my copy at Longfellow Books. You can find Zest across the state at select culinary stores, bookstores and restaurants.