Category: Reviews

Kate Krader from Bloomberg included the Chutoro Hand Roll from Mr. Tuna in her list of the Best Restaurant Dishes of 2018.

Forget lobster and oysters. The local bluefin tuna belly that Jordan Rubin gets in late summer and the fall is the seafood standout in Portland, Maine. In mid-2017, Rubin bought a hot dog cart and started making hand rolls and sushi burritos on the downtown streets. His operation quickly grew into a mini food truck empire that now includes a space in the Portland Public Market. The hand roll’s nori wrapper is notably crisp because Rubin keeps it warmed in an electric toaster before wrapping it around tangy rice and fatty, melt-in-your-mouth chopped fish mixed with sea salt, scallions, and potent fresh wasabi sauce.

Hop Culture has included Tomaso’s on their list of the Best Beer Bars of 2018.

I love that Tomaso’s stocks a handful of uber-fresh, local, craft cans and draft beers at all times (check their IG). However, this place is mostly a local spot for tall boys and wings. They also have a beer + shot menu, which always gets me. So yeah, you probably won’t find proper glassware, but you’ll always find a great time. 

The Maine Sunday Telegram has reviewed Pizzarino,

Pizzarino, the sister business of Portland’s Paciarino, aims to do just a few dishes and do them well. It succeeds with its wholemeal-crust pizzas, especially when they’re topped with prosciutto or a quadruple-whammy of imported Italian cheeses…But elsewhere, Pizzarino cuts too many corners with its heavy reliance on pre-bought, packaged ingredients imported largely from Italy. There are sticky, under-flavored gnocchi; rubbery mushrooms and metallic-tasting black olives; and most egregious, an entire range of refrigerated and frozen desserts that come ready-to-serve – no added work required. There’s room on the Portland dining scene for a great Milanese restaurant. Here’s hoping Pizzarino ditches the ready-made food and puts in the work to become just that.

the Portland Phoenix has reviewed Mami

Whether or not co-owners Austin Miller and Hana Tamaki realized they would fill a mostly unexplored niche in the Portland dining scene back when their first okonomiyaki came off the truck in 2015 is unclear. Stop into their brick-and-mortar to warm up for a bit on a snowy winter evening, though, and you’ll be hard-pressed to argue that they haven’t.

The Bollard has reviewed Cong Tu Bot, and

On cold, prematurely dark evenings, I suggest the Cà Ri Chay ($16). It’s a velvety coconut curry with subtle spice and long, wide rice noodles perfect for slurping, topped with a few marinated and caramelized mushrooms. Next, cut the richness with the Goi Cai Bap ($8), a salad of cabbage, carrot and onion, soaking in a sweet, vinegary dressing and topped with crunchy fried onions, finely diced bird’s eye chilies, and a tangle of cilantro. Careful with that salad, though. Those little red chilies pack a punch (a bird’s eye chili is ranked about twenty times hotter than a jalapeno on the Scoville heat scale).

Peter Peter Portland Eater has reviewed Isa.

Isa has a number of qualities that make it special. They’re incredibly consistent with the food and drink, the menu has plenty on it for all tastes, and the warm, casual atmosphere is brilliantly comfortable. You can be sure when you go, you’ll find a good meal, but most of the time it will be much better than that, often even great. Head to Isa if you haven’t been and definitely consider making it one of your regular stops, because it’s really that good.

The Blueberry Files has reviewed Root Wild,

My friend G. and I tried several 2 oz. samples of the different flavors, and I was really pleased by them all. The hopped tasted a bit more beer-like than UFF’s version does, and the fruit flavors are bright and pleasantly balanced. I was impressed by how thoroughly the added flavors came through.

Portland Magazine has reviewed Maine Oyster Co.,

Styled on a tray of ice, the oysters are easy to identify, served clockwise in the order they appear on the menu. Accompanying mignonettes are subtle enough not to mask the nuances of this delicacy. Reading flavor descriptions of oysters posted at the bar is helpful, especially if you’re only looking to try one or two. We can testify that The Wolfe’s Neck, for example, is “briny, with a smooth, milky finish,” though we didn’t notice the “sugar or watermelon” in the Chebeague Island. We did encounter a saltier kiss from the sea than the more subdued Birch Island, however, which boasts a firm texture. If we had to pick a favorite, it might be the toothsome Blackstone Point from Damariscotta or the Nonesuch Pearl from Scarborough, with its superb balance of brine and sweetness.

the Portland Phoenix has reviewed Root Wild and A & C Grocery, and

A&C’s egg sandwich, served with either ham or tomato on a soft English muffin, is world class, the eggs folded omelet-style over gooey cheese. A three-cheese grilled sandwich — pressed thin, funky and chewy with dark crust — pairs nicely with fizzy light kombucha. The cheeseburger is expertly done with sharp pickle and a tangy sauce. The Italian suffers from a bit too much soft roll.

Press Herald has reviewed Sapporo.

Back at the office, I used the chopsticks my server at Sapporo had kindly packed for me (along with a fork and a spoon) to pull up the buckwheat noodles and big chunks of white chicken meat. The noodles were squishier than I like, and I wished I’d ordered the firmer ramen instead, but the broth was exactly what I was after: flavorful but also clean tasting. The opposite of muffaletta really.

Also, The Maine Sunday Telegram has reviewed No Coward Soul In Bath.

The Press Herald has published a bar review of Elda.

One of the best food and beverage experiences I’ve ever had anywhere in the world, and I used to live in the gastronomic capital of France.

The Maine Sunday Telegram has reviewed Independent Ice Co.,

But its newest tenant, The Independent Ice Company, has transformed it into a sophisticated and – believe it or not – cozy whiskey bar with a surprisingly broad menu of casual dishes. Don’t skip the signature cocktails, all slightly tweaked versions of classics served with (naturally) their own specially formulated shape of ice. The rosemary sour is a zingy pleasure, and the Rufus Page Black Walnut Old Fashioned might well be my favorite autumn cocktail this year. While you’re sipping, order a pair of outsized, bacon-wrapped meatloaf sliders; a cone of Belgian-style, house-cut fries or even a kale-and-arugula salad. Yes, you read that right: a salad… on Wharf Street.

The Golden Dish has reviewed The Cheese Shop, and

The focus of the Cheese Shop is, of course, cheese curated from top European and local creameries as well as a fine selection of vinegars, olive oils, charcuterie, coffees, pastas and preserves.

Press Herald has reviewed AC Lounge.

The wine selection is impressive, offering 6-ounce or 9-ounce portions of one rose, five white, and six reds, all ranging from $8 to $10 for the smaller and $12 to $14 for larger pours. There’s also an $8 sparkling wine and a $7 sherry. In keeping with the hotel’s origins, nine of the options are from Spain. The 15 beer choices range from $5 to $8; I didn’t see any Spanish options, but there are lots of local ones. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that there are espresso martinis on tap. Burp.

Palace Diner has been named to Eater’s 2018 list of America’s Most Essential Restaurants.

In 2014, Chad Conley and Greg Mitchell took over a decades-old, 15-seat restaurant housed in a Pollard train car built in 1927 and turned it into the ideal realization of a daytime Americana diner. Eating here haunts me: I can’t find better light, lemony, buttery pancakes, or a more precisely engineered egg sandwich, and theirs is the only tuna melt I ever hunger after.

The Maine Sunday Telegram has reviewed Blue Spoon,

Occasionally though, everything comes together as it should, and it’s possible to see Lavey’s skills in full flight. Take the grilled Broad Arrow Farm pork loin served with bacony white beans, roasted Brussels sprouts and a creamy dill-and-mustard sauce ($28). It’s a precisely balanced plate, with lightness from sherry vinegar and a breadth of textures and flavors that draw you back until suddenly, it’s all gone.

The Bollard has reviewed Eaux, and

It’s not strictly traditional; the chicken is boneless, which I know is blasphemy to purists. But from the spicy, crunchy coating — fried just to the brink of burnt — to the moist and succulent meat inside, this is damn near perfect. The waffle is just as good. Crisp on the outside, impossibly light and fluffy on the inside, the only thing these beauties need is a smear of the sweet, earthy cane syrup that’s gently drizzled around the edge of the plate.

Portland Phoenix has reviewed Bonobo.

Let’s talk about that pizza. Fired in a wood oven at lower temperatures than the standard 700-800°F range, the dough gets a bit more time to set before exiting the heat, resulting in a thin, slightly chewy and pleasantly sweet crust with just a touch of smoke and sourness to it. Perhaps most akin to the end product served at Lazzari, the pizza at Bonobo — more restrained in toppings and thus lighter in feel — is unique to itself and without any true analogs in the area

Also, the Press Herald has published an article about Baxter Brewing new pub in Lewiston.

Congratulations to the Maine food producers named finalists in the 2019 Good Food Awards:

• Beer – Liquid Riot for their Blushing Star Barrel-Aged Lager
• Charcuterie – A Small Good for their Cider Brined Coppa
• Cider – Portersfield Cider for their Ridlon 16/2
• Coffee – Bard Coffee for their Organic Costa Rica La Mirella
• Spirits – Liquid Riot for both their Old Port Straight Bourbon Whiskey & Fernet Michaud

The winners will be announced January 11 at a gala in San Francisco.

The Maine Sunday Telegram has reviewed Bob’s Clam Hut,

When you’ve finished that, move on to any of belly clam dishes. Sure, you could stick to a remarkably tender clam strip roll ($15.95) and not be disappointed, but the goal here is complete satisfaction – you’re in a fried seafood shack, after all. So head right for the Clams 2 Ways ($24.95), a generous basket that lets you pit Lillian’s puffed, crispy version of fried whole-bellies against Bob’s, which is a shade or two more caramel in color, with a fuller salinity. The two preparations differ by just a couple of ingredients and an extra minute in oil, but the difference in taste is striking.

the Press Herald has reviewed Pizzarino, and

Located in Zapoteca’s old space, Pizzarino is owned by three Milanese friends, one of whom also started Paciarino, a pasta-centric restaurant down the street. Opened in August, this place focuses on pizza, rice-based dishes and gnocchi. The bar area is lovely, with comfortable wooden barstools with backs and purse hooks underneath the bar. There’s even a tiny outdoor seating area. One of the owners greeted me and my two friends when we arrived and clearly wanted to make sure we enjoyed ourselves.

Portland Phoenix has reviewed Big Fin Poké, Poké Pop and Crunchy Poké.

And what you get is pretty good, especially if you don’t choose yourself. While Crunch and Pop emphasize the house’s pre-designed combinations, Big Fin’s chalkboard is dominated by a “build your own” section, nudging you to select from dozens of “mix-ins” and toppings and proteins. Inevitably you choose too many, and the toppings pile up in the wide paper bowl. What are you gonna do, not get more stuff? If we had that kind of restraint we would not be in this mess.