Category: Profiles

WBUR: Vinland’s Local Cuisine

| Posted in Profiles

WBUR has posted an article on Vinland.

David Levi is the brain behind Vinland. His food is 100 percent locally produced. Every leaf, every grain, every fish — is from Maine or pretty darn close. Going hyper local in Southern California is one thing. Doing it here, where the growing season is 156 days long, seems like a risky business plan.

“It forces us to be creative,” says Levi. “It’s like I’m writing a sonnet. I only have so many syllables in this line; I have to come up with something other than my first inclination.”

Photos of Empire

| Posted in Profiles

The Angela Adams blog Sea Fantasy has published a set of images of Empire Chinese Kitchen.

We all love the Empire Chinese Kitchen!

Portland was in dire need of a dim sum restaurant and Empire has aced it. Whether you sit at the bar or in a cozy booth, the experience is always a treat. I never go without getting the green beans. Nicole’s recent visit included some new items that are calling me back. Don’t wait. Go now! Then go back again! We will likely be there eating tasty pockets of goodness.

Vinland at the James Beard House

| Posted in People, Profiles

For the final installment in her four-part series Vinland, Mary Pols has written a report on the James Beard House dinner Vinland chef David Levi served this past week in NYC.

Levi said the foundation offered him dates in January through March, but worried whether he could pull it off when nearly everything in Maine, even the bays, tend to freeze. He relished the challenge. “If we’re going to showcase what Maine cuisine is all about, it is much more compelling to do it in the winter than the summer,” he said. “In the summer, we have many of the same things that you’d find in any part of the country.” In the winter, Maine’s famed resiliency materializes in its foods, and he was eager to put any concerns to rest.

Read the Full Series
Part 1: Bold Idea for Portland
Part 2: What’s for Dinner
Part 3: Bountiful Summer

Vinland in Boston Magazine

| Posted in Profiles

The new issue of Boston Magazine includes a profile of Vinland.

So how does Levi stick to his plan during the harshest season? By dovetailing a fairly standard fine-dining playbook (strip steak with poached parsnips, crispy chicken with lovage) with more-exotic ideas (fermented-buckwheat bread sticks may start a meal; radicchio might appear in a cocktail). Creative workarounds replace pantry staples: Yogurt whey and apple vinegar make fine substitutes for the acid in lemon juice; maple syrup and honey are used in lieu of sugar; and the clarified butter known as ghee takes the place of olive oil. There is, Levi acknowledges, no good substitute for black pepper—so if he thinks a dish needs it, he’ll scrap it altogether.

Catbird Creamey

| Posted in Profiles

Today’s Press Herald includes an article about the Catbird Creamery in Westbrook.

“Vanilla in the summertime pretty much walks out the door,” said Corey DiGirolamo, who runs the shop with her husband, Andrew Warren.

That’s fine, DiGirolamo said, but the couple put a lot of effort into stretching the idea of ice cream flavors in a lot of different directions, like Furious George, which features caramelized bananas and dark chocolate chips. And, oh, hot pepper.

Catbird is in the midst of a $60,000 Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign to raise money so they can move the business to new quarters.

Star Ratings, Restaurant Critic Interview, Natural Foods Movement

| Posted in General News, Profiles

The Food & Dining section in today’s Press Herald includes an article by Krista Kern Desjarlais about star ratings in restaurant reviews,

On the positive side, stars can fill seats, and they give a measure that lets chefs place their restaurant against others in their genre. A lukewarm review may not affect an already busy and popular restaurant. In this business, we all know the restaurants that meander up and down the scale of consistency and quality, yet remain popular regardless of a critic’s awarding (or withholding) of stars. This is an enigma of the restaurant world and shows why stars do not always tell the whole story.

an interview with Sunday Telegram restaurant critic James Schwartz,

Q: Many restaurant critics say that awarding stars is the hardest part. Is it?
A: Yes, it’s my least favorite decision. I am conscious of two things: First, I am standing in for the reader, because I have had the good fortune to go to the restaurant. So I feel a responsibility to the reader to accurately describe my experience. And I am conscious of the fact that the number of stars awarded can positively or adversely affect the business life of a restaurant. That is a second responsibility that I take very seriously.

and a conversation with author Joe Dobrow on “How the natural foods revolution has changed what we eat”.

His book offers a captivating behind-the-scenes look at exactly how we got from the dusty co-ops of yesteryear to the shiny mega-stores of today. It also explains how the growth of natural foods propelled a number of health food products into the mainstream, such as granola bars, almond milk and kale. Along the way, Dobrow explains how natural foods companies (built on values and ideals as much as capitalist principles) have begun to influence mainstream business culture by promoting concepts such as corporate accountability, transparency and the triple bottom line.

Boston Globe Profile of Slab

| Posted in Profiles

The Boston Globe has published an article about Slab.

On the Slab menu, Luna holds beer-braised meatballs, is used for caponata sandwiches, and is the utensil provided for scooping up orange- and saffron-scented Sicilian hummus. The kitchen also offers a rotation of “Sicilian street food” specials, including hearty slaw, fried cauliflower with pepperoncini and lemon aioli, Silician-style jerk chicken with grilled orange wedges, and rhubarb pork osso bucco.

Friday Pie Club

| Posted in Profiles

fpcThe Press Herald has published an article about the Friday Pie Club.

For instance, wild blueberry pies – as iconic as the lobster roll in Maine – fell flat this summer. Yet blueberry ginger pies were wildly popular. At the farmers markets, slices of squash pie turned out to be a hit with teenage boys, while the girls coveted slices of lemon chess pie, a sweet blend of lemon, sugar, eggs and milk. Apple crumb, pear cranberry and green tomato pies were all best-sellers.

For more information visit the Friday Pie Club website or facebook page.