Category: Openings

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:

• Profiles of and recipes from some of Maine’s top chefs
• Cocktail improvisations on a theme from bartenders at Hunt & Alpine, Eventide and Central Provisions
• A profile of Rabelais Books in Biddeford
• An article about Bresca and the Honey Bee
• A narrative on smelting in Maine

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.

Maps Cafe (facebook) is scheduled to open today at 2 pm. They’re located at 64A Market Street, just down the road from the Salt Cellar.

Maps Cafe is aiming for a “European feel whilst focusing on local Maine produce in a relaxed environment”. They’ll be serving beer, wine, coffee, tea, sandwiches, snacks and sweets.

El Rayo had a friends and family preview dinner Friday night at their beautiful new restaurant in Scarborough. They plan on opening to the public on Sunday.

The Maine Farmland Trust has launched a new quarterly publication.

Through Maine Farms, we aim to convey some of what’s happening here, both on the farm and off. Maine is a national leader in the “local foods” movement that is revitalizing farms and communities. Today, farming in Maine is growing and is poised for further growth. It’s a time of experimentation, change, and promise.

Two more new food business have opened:

• Vegetarian/vegan food cart Anapurna’s Thali (facebook) last Friday.
• Thurston’s Wicked Good Burgers (website) has opened in the old KFC location on Forest Ave (here are a couple photos on twitter: 1 and 2)

Slab Sicilian Streetfood (facebook, twitter, website, instagram) is now open. Headliner Stephen Lanzalotta along with partners Jason Loring, Matt Moran, Tobey Moulton and Emily Kingsbury have renovated a portion of the former Portland Public Market (where Scales was located) and have added a large outdoor seating area.

Here are a bevy opening announcements:

• According to a Facebook post from Two Fat Cats, Foodworks has opened their new space on India Street.
• Anapurna’s Thali has released some menu details for their opening this Friday at Rising Tide
• Timber is opening their new backyard seating area (shown right) tonight
• Hilltop Suprette has begun stocking their shelves and plans on opening in about “two weeks”

Two new opening are taking place today and tomorrow:

• A new food truck called CN Shawarma (facebook, twitter, website) is launching today at noon on the Eastern Promenade. Owners Clayton Norris and Jenna Friedman are serving a menu of shawarma, falafel, kofta, lentil salad and tabbouleh.
• King’s Head Pub (facebook) is planning a to hold a soft opening tonight with some “light food” and drinks. The restaurant will be having their official opening with a full menu available on Saturday.