Urban Eye has reviewed Lincolns.
Open on Market Street since the spring, the subteranean watering hole unites Portland’s service industry folks, international tech workers and post collegiates from Orono, who gather in close quarters to knock back five dollar drinks like it was 1989.
The Bollard has reviewed Ramen Suzukiya.
Shoyu broth is “Oriental” flavor’s elegant cousin — a complex, meaty broth with an earthy taste of mushrooms. The miso broth is more refined, with a satisfying saltiness. The Hakata-style ramen has an incomparably rich tonkotsu broth. Traditionally made by boiling pork and chicken until the bones and marrow begin to break down, this broth is milky and murky with sediment, yet has a gelatinous sheen. This is the ultimate comfort food, and surely the style I’ll choose when winter’s chill arrives.
The Maine Sunday Telegram has reviewed Bramhall.
Bramhall is not a lot of things. It’s not a high-end dinner destination. It’s not a pricey tapas bar. It’s not particularly quiet and it’s not light and airy. But it is friendly. It is approachable. It is pleasantly laid back and even romantic in a low-light, slightly secret, no-one-will-ever-find-us-here kind of way.
Neighbors in the West End have plenty of places to go for dinner and a drink, but Bramhall is a good spot to try for drinks – plus a little dinner.
Map & Menu has posted a review and set of photos of Custom Deluxe in Biddeford.
Meredith and I sampled a decent chunk of the menu that evening (including the aforementioned ribs and soup) and polished a delicious meal off with an outstanding raspberry angel food cake dessert. With the cooler days of fall upon us, I’m sure the chicken noodle soup and the simple pasta dish will inspire us to make many more trips down the road over the next few months.
Photo Credit: Map & Menu
The Press Herald has reviewed Punky’s.
My breakfast sandwich ($3.50) consisted of bacon, egg and cheese on a bagel. There was nothing remarkable about it, other than it was exactly what I wanted. I am used to a breakfast sandwich with one, maybe two strips of bacon. I didn’t count the number of strips, but it must have been four. Toasted on the grill — I know this, because I watched the cook — the bagel was chewy, the egg well cooked and not runny, and the cheese melted but not gooey. I ate it at my desk and appreciated that it wasn’t at all messy.
Peter Peter Portland Eater has reviewed Terlingua,
All in all, Terlingua puts out a solid meal. The smoked chicken was excellent and that spicy sauce was too. My corn could have used some more bacon flavor, but it was still good and that drink was shockingly pleasing. I’m glad that Portland has another BBQ joint, but I’m even more glad that it’s not a straight up BBQ place, but a hybrid with Latin American flavor. Their unique combination is something I think people will go to for good eats and good drinks for some time to come.
and The Golden Dish has written up the brunch at Tiqa.
Most everything is paired with eggs, but the underpinnings are definitely from the Middle East. Turkish cuisine played a big part in the dishes on the menu. Typical breakfast/brunch items are often fruit, yogurt with honey, baked eggs with sausage and Tiqa’s menu reflects that to some degree.
Two Maine brewers are taking home medals from this year’s Great American Beer Festival competition:
You can see the full list of award winners on the GABF website.
The Portland Phoenix has reviewed Isa.
The benefits of Isa’s simplicity were most clearly on display in the fantastic burrata crostini. It was made transcendent by the ample slices of perfectly ripe yellow tomatoes, which lay between a rustic bread smeared with pesto and the creamy cheese. A grilled peach appetizer benefited from the fruit’s not-quite-ripeness. A sweeter peach might have overwhelmed the bitter of arugula and the tang of goat cheese. In another likeable salad, the tartness and acid of grapefruit, along with thin slices of apple and a splash of cider, mellowed the aroma and bite shaved fennel.
The Press Herald has published a bar review of Evo,
Evo Kitchen & Bar should be on the top of anyone’s list for the next place to go for wine, cocktails, and small plates. Michael Gatlin has created a beautiful drink list that complements Chef Matt Ginn’s beautiful, seasonal Mediterranean fare. The all-glass space and design is breathtaking, and nowhere else on Fore Street will you feel like you’re at a swanky bar somewhere in Manhattan.
and has reviewed Ocho.
I ordered The Classic. This meant my burrito was a symphony of Spanish rice, cheese, black beans, pico de gallo, crema, plus the two added bonuses of chicken and guacamole. It was ready in about three blinks of an eye, and I was out the door walking back to the newsroom. Once the noshing began, it was a formidable task to eat this hefty burrito…Anyway, my OCHO burrito wasted no time in announcing its deliciousness as my taste buds were awakened by a nine-piece band of flavors. Everything seemed incredibly fresh and, yes, I finished the whole thing.
BuzzFeed has posted a list of the “39 Amazing Things That Will Make You Fall In Love With Portland, Maine“. The staff at BF must love to eat out because most of the list highlights restaurants and bars including: Tandem, Eventide, Central Provisions, J’s Oyster Bar, Bard, Lolita, Boda, Silly’s, Schulte & Herr, Blue Spoon, Hunt & Alpine and many more.
Eatcentric Me has posted a report on Inside, Outside, Above, Below.
I attended Lauren Fensterstock and Aaron Stephan with Chef Masa Miyake’s (chef and owner of Miyake, Pai Men Miyake, and Miyake Farm) staged dinner event INSIDE, OUTSIDE, ABOVE, BELOW recently, and it was a coalescence of all things I most readily identify with and love: great food paired with drinks, meeting interesting people and sharing the experience with them, and a creative, choreographed art installation centered around dining.