Sustainable Seafood, Chris Geer, SMCC, Apples

The Food & Dining section in today’s Press Herald includes a feature on the efforts by Hannfaord and Whole Foods to determine the sustainability of seafood they sell,

Hannaford is reviewing all of the fresh, frozen and canned seafood it buys to ensure it comes from well-managed fisheries that will not deplete fish stocks over time. Its Sustainable Seafood Sourcing Policy, developed with the help of scientists at the Gulf of Maine Research Institute in Portland, sets a March 2011 deadline for Hannaford’s suppliers to switch to only sustainable seafood sources.

and an interview and recipe from Cinque Terre sous chef Chris Geer.

After his earning his bachelor’s, Geer went to Asiago, Italy, for three months, where he worked with Riccardo Cunico at Ristorante da Riccardo al Maddarello. He says the experience was “intense.”

Today’s paper also includes a report on SMCC’s expanded program of gourmet meals prepared by students and an article on the John Bunker and the Maine Apple Day taking place this weekend in Unity.

Second Act for Tom Yordprom

Today’s Portland Daily Sun includes an interview with the owner of Yordprom Coffee.

The coffeeshop is Tom [Yordprom]’s second act. His first was Siam Restaurant, the highly regarded “nouveau” Thai restaurant on Fore Street which he operated for nearly nine years, until the relentless schedule wore him down. It’s been a year since he traded his chef’s knife and wok for an espresso machine and he’s finally succumbed to the insistent requests of customers and friends. His Thai food specialties are now on the menu: Asian Noodle Salad, Thai Spring Rolls, soups and curries.

John "Sonny" Severino, 80

John “Sonny” Severino, longtime co-owner of the Sportsman’s Grill, has passed away.

For nearly 50 years, he ran the former Sportsman’s Grill on Congress Street, a popular restaurant where people from all walks of life gathered to watch sports. It was the place to go after events at the Portland Expo Center, and before the annual Portland and Deering high school football game on Thanksgiving Day.

The Sportsman’s Grill operated 1952-1999 on Congress Street near the intersection with Gilman Street. John Severino operated the restaurant with his two brothers and for the last 13 years of its existence with his son Paul.