First Portland Dishcrawl

Meredith Goad has written about her experience on the inaugural run of Dishcrawl Portland.

Out came the food, a trio of bites designed to give the Dishcrawlers an idea of what’s on the regular menu. There was (from lower left, clockwise) a wild mushroom, goat cheese and truffle oil tartine on crostini; a lamb crepe with curry, cilantro, red wine sauce and vegetables; and a “crepe cake” made with layers of crepes, crab meat, egg, tomato, smoked salmon and shrimp.

Dishcrawl Portland has published a set of 71 photos from Tuesday’s event. The next Dishcrawl is scheduled to take place June 11.

A Tank Away visits East Bayside

The Boston Globe Tank Away column recently paid a visit to East Bayside. Three Buoys, Silly’s, Tandem Coffee, Rising Tide, Bunker, Maine Beer Tours, Bayside Bowl and Urban Farm Fermentory are all mentioned in the article.

Pulling into Portland’s East Bayside neighborhood, you first notice the earthy aroma of roasted arabica beans mingling with hearty hops. Far from the salty air of the bustling Old Port, this former trucker alley is attracting a new kind of tourist — coffee pilgrims and those seeking craft beer and community…There are no signs to indicate that you’ve arrived in this newly minted enclave, but as Portland becomes known for handcrafted everything, far-flung areas like East Bayside won’t be kept under wraps for long.

Press Herald: Food Trucks

Today’s Press Herald Food & Dining section has a feature story on food trucks and some of the regulatory issues that still need to be addressed.

The presence of a few food trucks downtown will be a huge step forward for this food-loving city, which struggled over the regulations and made the whole process way more complicated than it needed to be. We should celebrate the fact that the city has finally embraced an idea that will make life here just a little bit better.

But don’t crack open the Champagne too fast.

The paper also includes a detailed directory of the food trucks now in operation and under development.

Blue Rooster

The Munjoy Hill News has published an article about Blue Rooster Food Company (website, twitter, facebook).

Location is key to any successful business.  Located at 5 Dana Street, the Rooster is in the epicenter of the bar district in the Old Port and the options for those patrons are somewhat limited.  “We are tryng to fill the need for a good spot for lunch and late night without spending a bundle,” said Damian Sansonsetti, one of the four partners who started the business.

Eventide Profile

The Bangor Daily News has published a profile of Eventide.

Aside from oysters, however, Eventide pays tribute to some classics of Maine seafood joints statewide. There’s clam chowder and lobster stew, of course, and battered Gulf of Maine hake, as well as a New England Clam Bake, a hearty meal of steamers and lobster served with potato, salt pork and a hard-boiled egg, presented on a bed of seaweed.

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.”

Maine Made Sake & Food Pronunciation Guide

The Food & Dining section in today’s Press Herald includes a feature article on Blue Current, a sake brewery under development in Maine.

Ford and Sygowski plan to open a sake microbrewery this spring, right here in Maine.

The two friends already brew for their personal consumption in the garage at Ford’s home in Kittery Point. That’s where the commercial operation, called Blue Current Brewery, will begin once they have all their local, state and federal permits in hand. They hope to be open for business by April or May, and will eventually move the brewery out of Ford’s house.

The Press Herald sister site Maine Today has published a food word pronunciation guide in time for Maine Restaurant Week. I had the pleasure of being the official voice for the recordings.

Diners don’t generally mispronounce “chicken” or “BLT,” which means we’ve gotten along just fine at area pubs and sandwich shops. But our small city’s super-exploding food scene has some phonetic implications: We’re not quite sure how to pronounce this stuff.

The North Point

In the City has posted an article about The North Point which opened its doors to the public last week.

“It fills a niche we didn’t think was being fully filled,” Dan said during happy hour on Friday as customers began steadily streaming in. The brothers see it as an “adult” lounge without a single TV, where there’s music and conversation in a warm, cozy, homey space.

According to Noah, one customer described The North Point this way: “It’s like getting into a really nice glass of scotch – it’s envelopes you, it gives you a hug and it makes you feel warm.”