If you’ve been missing Natural Foodie columnist Avery Yale Kamila while she’s been on maternity leave then listen to the latest Dr. Lisa Radio Hour. Avery talks about growing “up on an organic farm in Maine and became a vegetarian while working at a fast food restaurant as a teenager.”
Category: People
Bartender Interview with Jessica Cunningham Candage
Dispatch has published a Q & A with Jessica Cunningham Candage from Spread.
Do you have a favorite drink to make?
My favorite drink to make is pretty much anything I can muddle fruits in. I love muddling, I love the flavors that come out of fruit, and other things like jalapenos.
New England Distilling Interview
Eat Maine has published an interview with Ned Wight and Tim Fisher from New England Distilling.
“I love smelling it in the glass,” he says. “One of my favorite things about drinking spirits is the empty glass. I keep coming back to the glass and sniff it and see what’s happening in there. It changes a lot, it keeps on going—even after the liquid is out, it keeps on going.”
Bartender Interview: Alison Hartford
Dispatch has published an interview with Alison Hartford who tends bar at The Grill Room.
What’s your favorite drink to make? “It’s made with Hendricks gin, St. Germain, muddled lime and rosemary, and blood orange puree, topped with soda water. I like making mojitos, too. I tend to not get a lot of specialty cocktail orders, so I’m all about providing good service.”
Interview with Erik Desjarlais
Bourbon. Portland. Beer. Politics. has published an interview with former chef Erik Desjarlais about his business Weft & Warp Seamster. Desjarlais has also launched a line of lotion and beard soap.
How have they been received?
Great. Some of my customers are Top Chef guys. The James Beard list just came out and it was cool to see that most of my customers were on that list, a lot of high profile folks. I think they also like the fact that I used to be a chef so I know what is needed. I am not just cutting these things from patterns. If the chef has a particular need, I can do it.
Meet Kris Horton and Sarah Richards
Maine Today has published an interview with Sarah Richards, the owner of Homegrown Herb & Tea,
What lesson have you learned?
My biggest lesson that my teashop has taught me is that you can do anything you want to do in life. You know, I worked for someone else my whole life. I was a waitress then a bartender, and then I became a Spanish teacher. And all that time, as much of a free spirit as I am, I felt very obligated to a system. Having broken away from that system has been the most marvelous thing I’ve ever done. It’s just awesome.
and Dispatch has published an interview with Kris Horton owner of the cheese shop in the Public Market House.
Kris describes The Public Market House as “constantly in a state of flux.” A business will get their start in the Public Market, leaning on other vendors for support, sharing costs and gaining strength in numbers. Eventually, the business will outgrow the space and be strong enough to branch out on their own, allowing the opportunity for a new small business to take their place. It’s a ongoing cycle, and it seems to work very well.
New Blog: Feeding Me
A new blog called Feeding Me launched late last month. It’s a project by Henry Leiter to “explore the independent, entrepreneurial spirit of Maine by interviewing local food purveyors and artisans”.
So far Leiter has interviewed:
- Stephen Corry of Five Fifty-Five
- David Hyde from GoBerry
- Isabelle Julien owner of Mornings in Paris
Maine Magazine: The Food Issue
The annual Food Issue of Maine magazine arrived in subscriber’s mailboxes yesterday. Inside you’ll find:
- A profile of David Buchanan, author of Taste, Memory
- An interview with Alan Spear, co-owner of Coffee by Design
- A trip aboard the Stella Maris fishing for bluefin tuna
- An interview with Tara Barker from 40 Paper, Ilma Lopez from Grace and Krista Kern Desjarlais from Bresca
- A guide to Maine restaurants that I worked on in collaboration with Joe Ricchio and Amy Anderson
Service and Food Up, Tips Down
Portland Daily Sun columnist Natalie Ladd has written about a night when everything went well . . . except the tips.
So why were the tip so overwhelmingly bad?
It stands to reason there should be a direct correlation between customer satisfaction with the big three: Food, Atmosphere and Service (FAT) and a handsome gratuity. Typically that’s how it plays out, but that night, I just couldn’t figure what was going awry. There was the paper napkin upon which somebody wrote, “Fantastic Service! We had a great time,” and left a little over ten percent of their check.
Interview with Layne Witherell
The Maine Sunday Telegram has published an interview with wine professional and Portland resident Layne Witherell.
Q: I thought one of the best paragraphs in your book was the last one, where you hand out advice to people who want to learn about wine. Can you share a few of those suggestions?
A: Just write down everything that you taste or take a picture of that label, so that way you have a memory of what you had. I ran a store for years and years, and (customers) walk in and go, “This was the best wine I ever had.”