Category: Reviews

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.

Meredith Goad has penned a southern-fried review of Salvage BBQ for Maine a la Carte.

The hush puppies had obviously just come out of the fryer, so while I waited for them to cool down enough to handle I stole a bite of the barbecue and lawd have mercy…..Portland finally has some decent, southern-style pulled pork! No more abominations forced upon us like pulled pork sandwiches covered with slices of tomato and onion! That’s just so, so wrong.

The Press Herald has published a bar review of Gather.

Happy hour is usually just Fridays and Saturdays from 4 to 6 p.m. and features beer and wine for $3, but customers are encouraged to check the restaurant’s Facebook page for updates about drink specials (lemon-thyme Prosecco for $8 was recently featured) and bar snack specials.

Chef Chad Conley’s starter menu gives an idea of what the bar snacks could be: Deviled eggs, meatballs, Bangs Island mussels, kale, ricotta and walnut fritters, just to name a few.

A pair of Boston Globe reporters have written about their experience on a Maine Foodie Tours walking trip in Portland.

We were on a culinary walking tour in Portland offered by Maine Foodie Tours. The 2½-hour jaunt through the historic Old Port and along the working waterfront introduced us to some of the city’s best purveyors and took us to its liveliest markets. Along the way we learned a little about the city’s unique and colorful history.

Living, Eating and Aging in Portland Maine has published a review of Blue Rooster.

I never meant to become a regular, it just happened.  It was unexpected and quick.  It literally took one bite from my first Red Eye Breakfast sandwich and I was hooked faster than a drug addict and his first crack experience.  Pork belly, hash browns, “red eye” mayonnaise, fried egg, all on a buttermilk biscuit.  The perfect breakfast sandwich even if they don’t open until 11AM…

Living, Eating and Aging also published reviews earlier this year of Po’Boys and Outliers.

The Portland Phoenix has published a review of Enio’s,

Enio’s may be run by veterans of the Maine restaurant scene, and be rooted in traditional strengths of Italian cuisine, but thanks to its imaginative menu and bright interesting space, it feels new and fresh.

and posted a double review of Local Press and Crooked Mile on Brighton Ave.

Two new lunch spots in the Rosemont neighborhood — a second location for local fave The Crooked Mile and the first for panini specialist the Local Press — offer a brighter fate to folks who lunch and labor off-peninsula.

Both the New York Times and Food Republic have published articles today highlighting some of their favorites from recent visits to Portland.

The New York Times article entitled “Portland, Me.: Locavore in Menu and Décor” features Hugo’s, In’finiti, Grace and Fore Street,

It’s hardly a secret that Portland, Me., is a food-lover’s paradise. Stroll down the sloping streets and cobbled lanes in the heart of this small maritime city, and you can’t miss the evidence: bakeries fragrant with just-baked sour cherry pies; indie coffee shops selling wood-roasted beans; bars where cocktails might be infused with local rhubarb or kale or blueberries; and, of course, restaurants of seemingly every ethnic and gastronomic stripe.

while the Food Republic article “7 Places To Eat And Drink Incredibly Well In Portland, Maine” draws attention to Little Bigs, Miyake, Opus 10, Blue Rooster, Eventide, Outliers and Vaughan Street Variety.

Portland, Maine is quickly climbing the ranks as a culinary destination, offering much more than sublime lobster rolls. With easy access to both fresh seafood from the ocean and seasonal produce from local farms, a recent influx of big-city chefs seeking calmer waters, and a local less-is-more attitude (which translates into top-notch, ingredient-driven food sans hype or attitude), Portland’s dining scene is vibrant, diverse and hotter than ever. Here, a few places worth checking out during your next trip to the beautiful coastal town.