Category: Under Construction

The Urban Eye has posted a report on Dutch’s (facebook, instagram, twitter) a casual eatery under construction on Preble Street.

Combined, the [owners Ian and Lucy Dutch] have robust kitchen chops. They met at Market by Jean Georges in Boston’s uber swank W Hotel, where she was pastry chef, he was executive sou chef. Their resumes include stints at Bonfire By Todd English, MayField Bakery in Palo Alto and a smattering of high-end stops in San Francisco from Bar Tartine to Aziza to Benu. Lucy baked at Shannie Cakes in Sausalito.

The owners of Hugo’s and Eventide—Arlin Smith, and chefs Andrew Taylor and Michael Wiley—have released details on their new restaurant and kitchen expansion.

The Honey Paw is described as a “non-denominational noodle restaurant” that will be “drawing on techniques, shapes, and flavors from across the globe”. The Honey Paw, they explain, “won’t be a pasta joint or a noodle house per se, we don’t want to be beholden to tradition or cultural idiom”.

The new restaurant will be located at 78 Middle Street in the former Pepperclub/Good Egg space. Chef Thomas Pisha-Duffly, creator of the Family Feast event series and a former Hugo’s sous chef, will be joining the team to help launch the restaurant. They hope to open in early 2015.

The expansion into the remainder of the first floor of the Middle Street building will also supply Hugo’s/Eventide some much needed additional kitchen and storage space.

The summer of 2013 demonstrated, with lines out the door at Eventide Oyster Co. and a completely over-taxed walk-in cooler, that Hugo’s and Eventide’s current facilities could not keep pace with the demands of a busy summer. “We’d been looking for a satellite kitchen for months, and after last year’s off-peninsula project fell through, we heard about a space much closer to home,” explains Smith, “it was simply too good an opportunity to pass up.”

Rosemont has confirmed plans to open a new market in the West End. This new store, the 5th Rosemont Market, will be located in the apartment building currently under construction at the corner of Pine and Brackett Streets.

As at our existing stores, the newest market in the West End will offer Rosemont’s own handmade breads and pastry, prepared foods and house-butchered meats, as well as vegetables and fruits, full-service deli, local dairy and eggs, groceries, grains and more.

With this new store, Rosemont’s intentions are, as they have always been, to expand opportunities for area food producers, while providing a fundamental service to the people of the neighborhood. We look forward to strengthening existing partnerships, and developing new ones, with the vital businesses that have served the West End neighborhood for years.

The West End Rosemont is scheduled to open in the Spring of 2015.

O’Maine Studios (website, facebook, twitter, instagram) has launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund the kitchen and AV equipment needed to fully outfit the space. Owner Rory Strunk is hoping to raise $65,000 and plans to use the media kitchen on Danforth Street for:

• Commercial demonstration kitchen
• Culinary content production
• Chef hosted demonstrations
• Cooking courses
• Food photography classes
• Food styling classes
• mixology, beer and wine courses

79 Portland Street is currently under construction the first floor and basement are being converted into a restaurant from its former role as the home of New World Kitchens.

The new restaurant is being launched by Suzie Saint Pierre. The exact name and concept are still under development but Saint Pierre shared that she’s planning to open a small casual bistro-style restaurant.

Saint Pierre has 15 years experience working in restaurants outside Maine.

 

Plans for the new building currently under construction at 409 Cumberland Avenue include a rooftop greenhouse for growing vegetables and a teaching kitchen where residents can learn about turning produce into healthy meals. The greenhouse and kitchen are part of a collaboration between Avesta and Cultivating Community.

Sur Lie (facebook) is in the process of holding a some friends and family services prior to opening to the public “early next week”. I was fortunate enough to get invited to the dinner last night.

The main part of chef Emil Rivera’s small plate menu (here’s a photo of the one from last night) is divided into three categories: Crisp, Pleasant and Bold along with some cheeses, charcuterie and other smaller starters. Rivera moved to Maine from DC where he worked for several years as part of the ThinkFoodGroup—a family of 15 restaurants founded by chef/restaurateur Jose Andres.

My menu recommendation: when you go be sure not to miss the Creamed Corn with Pork Belly.

Sur Lie is located at 11 Free Street.

Urban Eye has posted an update on Bao Bao Dumpling House.

The delay of Bao Bao Dumpling House on Spring Street has perplexed more than fans of Portland’s revolving food scene. Owner Cecile Stadler, touring her new building, formerly West End Deli, on Wednesday, was miffed that the process has taken so long.

There’s an article on the new Portland Co-op in the Food & Dining section in today’s Press Herald.

Here’s the latest: All of the refrigeration, heating and cooling systems are in place. Floors have been polished. Soon interior painting will begin. Within the next two weeks, shelving, fixtures and checkout counters will begin arriving and workers will start building out the interior of the store at 290 Congress St. in Portland.

But Gadsby declines to reveal a target opening date, sticking to the script that it will be sometime in “mid-fall.”

Urban Eye has posted an update on Bramhall, the casual food and drink destination now under construction in the old Bramhall Pub in the West End.

“New places are super food-focused and the food scene is awesome,” he said, but amid all the James Beard nods, something was amiss.

“It can be a challenge to grab a meal for two, even lunch, for less than $80 in Portland,” said Fraser. “I want people to be able to come in and have a few drinks and have a good time.”…Meals at the new Bramhall gastropub will be priced from $8 to $10. In the kitchen is Chris [Beaulieu], former sou chef at Duck Fat and chef at Sebago Brewery in Portland.

Owner Mike Fraser hopes to open Bramhall next month.