The Press Herald has published a review of MJ’s Wine Bar.
MJ’s Wine Bar is a relaxed oasis in the heart of downtown, where the welcoming atmosphere belies the office building setting. It’s a comfortable spot to meet friends after work or spend a portion of the evening.
Map & Menu has published a review of Empire Chinese Kitchen.
First up were the delicious peking duck buns (my personal favorite) and the har gow (one of a few of the gluten-free options on the menu). It’s a standard rule of thumb for me that pretty much anything served in a steamed bun will be awesome, and the savory peking duck didn’t disappoint – I’d highly recommend trying it…
Photo Credit: Map & Menu
Friends Brian Ericson and Bo Bigelow have launched an audio food blog called Booze, Fish & Coffee. They plan to seek out and
tell tales of delicious things: the best and freshest seafood, the finest local brews (beer, coffee, and others), and the off-the-beaten-path bars, bakeries, restaurants and farmstands where the locals go.
For their first two sessions they’ve published reviews of Salvage BBQ and Blue Rooster Food Company. They’re both well worth the time (approx 20min per episode) to listen to.
Bar Lola, Fore Street and Hugo’s have all made it on to the 2013 OpenTable list of 100 top restaurants that are Fit for Foodies.
The top 100 were selected among 15,000 OpenTable customers in the US based on restaurant customer ratings during the past year.
“These restaurants put the wow factor in everything they serve,” says Caroline Potter, OpenTable Chief Dining Officer. “Through pure imagination and ingenuity, they’re taking culinary creativity to another level with delicious dishes that are as fun to eat as they are to share on social media.”
Chief Dining Officer…what a great job title.
Portland Portland Peter Eater has published a review of Elsmere BBQ,
Now it’s official – the Portland area has a new BBQ restaurant that is ready to serve your BBQ needs. Go now so they stay in business. I want to make sure this one is around for a while. They deserve to be and I can only imagine everything will continue to get even better as they hit their stride. After all, they just opened.
and The 207 Foodie has published a review of Empire Chinese Kitchen.
Empire is worth trying. If you A. Love Chinese food, B. Need dim sum in your life, C. want to try something new or are just curious, then Empire is for you. Having a dim sum restaurant in Portland, Maine just shows how great of a food city we live in, so take advantage of another new place to try!
Both The Blueberry Files and The Golden Dish have published reviews of Empire Chinese Cuisine based on their opening day first impressions.
Even so, there were a few small things that Empire could work on, but I trust that they will improve. Overall, my impression of the food was very positive and combined with the location, the atmosphere, and the great bar (and bartender, obvi), I’m sure Empire will make many people very happy.[TBF]
The menu is very concise but full of enough options. Parlaying its stance as a dining establishment serving Chinese soul food — comforting and delicious — what has emerged is a new neighborhood haunt that Portlanders have long wanted and can now embrace without hesitation. [TGD]
The Blueberry Files has published a review of East Ender,
As we walked past the table on our way out, I overheard one of the men say, “this place is underrated.” And I have to agree. You don’t hear much about it, but the East Ender is quietly serving damn fine food.
The 207 Foodie has published a review of Salvage BBQ,
Salvage is a worthy restaurant to try. If you like Barbecue and Southern flair, you have no excuse not to try this new hot spot! The food is great and the prices allow you to get more food in one sitting than you could possibly eat! What’s not to love?
Peter Peter Portland Eater has published a review of Yosaku,
While I am not someone who has had a lot of sushi, I can tell you that Yosaku is a solid choice. I don’t really have anything to compare it to, but if you aren’t fond of traditional sushi, I can definitely say that Yosaku might still have something for you.
and Binga’s Stadium is top of Pig Trip’s list of their favorite BBQ wings.
The Portland Phoenix has published a review of the Portland & Rochester Public House,
Lobster cakes were served with a searing hot smear of red chili harissa and pink pickled shallots. The sauce and the breading of the cake obscured the flavor and texture of the lobster a bit, but it was still a nice dish. The scotch eggs, quail eggs encased in ground lamb, are served with the meat very rare on the inside. The lamb is nicely seasoned and works well with some bitter curly endive.
and Serious Eats has published a review of the Small Axe burger.
A few weeks ago, the Small Axe Truck debuted its burger, the Smokestack Lightning ($8), and proclaimed it the best burger around. Ordinarily, I’d say that’s a bold statement to make, but in this case it might well be true.
The Golden Dish has compared and contrasted Elsmere’s and Salvage’s approach to barbeque.
Elsmere and Salvage will not havee to duke it out tfor the number one spot because they are two equally great additions to our dining Mecca. Whether you take the bridge to the outer limits of South Portland’s Elsmere BBQ or traverse the seedy byway of Lower Congress Street to reach Salvage BBQ each is a rewarding pilgrimage.
Foodie Journey has posted their idea for a Portland food crawl: Bayou, Thirsty Pig, Eventide and Nosh.