Several Portland area food enterprises have been recognized by Yankee magazine in their annual Best of New England list:
Bizarre Foods host Andrew Zimmern has included Salvage BBQ in his list of the top barbecue spots in the country.
I ate here a few months ago and demolished a platter of pork ribs and a pile of some of the best sliced brisket in recent memory, and I still managed to roll over to the counter and eat a quarter chicken because I couldn’t leave without ingesting more smoke and sauce. Food geeks will be inspired and—dare I say it?—barbecue freaks will travel here and be made happy, despite their contrarian, contemptuous hang-ups about geographic authenticity.
The Press Herald has reviewed the bar at Vena’s.
Vena’s Fizz House is the cutest soda bar in existence, and it just got a lot cuter with its recent addition of alcoholic beverages. Owners Johanna and Steve are incredibly welcoming, creative and seem to genuinely love what they do. The cocktails and mocktails are nothing you’ve ever tasted before and are served in vintage glassware found by Johanna. Vena’s is a must-visit.
Drink Up and Get Happy has posted a happy hour review of El Rayo.
El Rayo Scarborough is definitely a stand-out on Route One and is a great spot to catch a delicious drink without having to venture in town. Give it a chance if you live or work nearby, it’s worth the visit. They also have daily specials Sunday – Wednesday if you can’t make their happy hours or need something more substantial to accompany your drinks.
The Maine Sunday Telegram has reviewed Eve’s at the Garden.
Located on the second floor of the Portland Harbor Hotel, Eve’s at the Garden is a quiet, club-like space with a predictable hotel restaurant menu – and a penchant for over-embellished food. Skip the more complicated starters (such as “pickled beet salad with verjus vinaigrette, goat cheese, speck ham and broiled grapes”) and try a simple plate of creamy burrata. Then enjoy the flavorful stuffed Cornish hen served with polenta. And definitely ask about dessert: There’s a revolving list of specials and the maple panna cotta introduced by the executive chef is a sweet, ethereal standout.
Happy hour specialists, Drink Up and Get Happy have posted a review of Vignola.
Overall we had a great time at Vignola Cinque Terre despite the short amount of time. We all managed to fit in a couple of glasses of wine, eat, and hang out. Matthew was fun and talked with us about wine and happy hours in general…Vignola is definitely a great place to meet for drinks with family or a date. Show up for the wine, stay for dinner. It’s a Portland experience that should not be missed.
The Press Herald has reviewed Big Sky.
The egg salad has just the right balance of tarragon, enough to scent it but not overwhelm. Big Sky doesn’t go overboard on the mayonnaise either, so what you get is the sense of say, a good deviled egg stuffed into a sandwich instead of yellow mayonnaisey glop. It comes on wheat bread unless you ask otherwise, with lettuce and tomato (not too bad for out of season) and sprouts. If you like egg salad – it’s one of those foods people run very hot or cold on – Big Sky’s is delicious.
Portland tops the Daily Meal list of Best American Cities for Food.
If Portland (the other Portland) doesn’t immediately make you think of food, you might need to rethink your assumptions. Recently included on Condé Nast Traveler’s list of Best American Cities for Foodies, Portland has come a long way from the lobster roll (though you can still find those, too). The city is currently offering up some of the country’s best and most innovative seafood.
The Maine Sunday Telegram has reviewed the Miss Portland Diner.
The Miss Portland Diner serves all you’d expect at a classic hash house, from scrambled eggs and pancakes to sandwiches and burgers. Ask for a booth in the restored 1949 lunch wagon, and try a traditional Reuben. Stacked with sliced corned beef, sauerkraut, melted Swiss and Thousand Island dressing, it’s a paean to all things deli. Burgers here are good, but sides are even better: ultra-bright and crispy coleslaw, thick-cut potato chips and sweet potato fries with a welcome snap. Definitely try dessert from one of the countertop cake stands. A single slice of homemade whoopie pie cake (a riff on Maine’s official state treat) is weighty and rich, with frosting enough for four.
The Golden Dish has reviewed DiMillo’s.
The entrée menu is hardly ground-breaking, and all one can hope for is for it to be wholesome and tasty. Of the two local haddock dishes, I chose the more complicated one instead of the simpler broiled haddock with bread crumbs. I figured, try the more complex version. So out came a giant piece of haddock stuffed with butternut squash and cornbread covered in a maple-cream sauce. It was so sweet it could have doubled as dessert. The baked potato was served without butter, and the little tub of sour cream with chopped scallions helped to moisten the dry flesh. With it were the predictable spears of broccoli, slightly overdone.