Category: Under Construction

When Pigs Fly (website, facebook, instagram) has leased space at 65 Hanover Street where they plan to open a new bakery retail shop. The shop will carry the full range of the 25+ breads they produce at their central bakery in York. The shop will also offer baked goods like cookies, muffins, and scones, and will stock oils, jams, butter, and other pantry items that pair well with their breads.

The bakery was founded by Ron Siegel in 1993. When Pigs Fly has retail shops in Kittery and Freeport, as well as Somerville, Jamaica Plain, Lexington and Brookline in Massachusetts.

When Pigs Fly hopes to open the retail shop sometime this fall. They’ll be located in the same building as Barrett Made, Acorn Engineering and KCMF.

Shahin Khojastehzad has leased a spot at 52 Alder Street as a production space for his new company Handshake Digestif Bitters (instagram).

In selecting the elements for his flagship product, Khojastehzad is drawing on his Persian family heritage and the  flavors he was exposed to when growing up in Portland.

A Persian digestive bitters marrying 28 botanicals & spices from around the world & Maine. As an Iranian immigrant who grew up in Portland, Maine this is a collage of my memories of both my homes. Persian saffron, tea, sumac & limo ommani (black fermented limes) is the Silk Road in a drop. Maine hops, spruce tips, dark robust maple syrup & Chaga mushrooms bring the woods to your glass. Aromas of fresh citrus, a dance of tea & wood on the tongue. Can be drunk straight after a meal to help aid digestion or used in your favorite cocktail for a dash of zest. It’s a handshake of cultures & memories, proving that we are better together.

Khojastehzad is a longtime member of the Portland bar community and a co-owner of Novare Res. His late mother was the owner of Shahnaz Persian Grille on Forest Ave (the sign is still visible on the building at 795 Forest Ave).

Khojastehzad has shared some of the influences guiding him on the launch of his own company and product development,

My passion for the food & beverage industry has brought me around the world & I’ve encountered a lot of regional herbal elixirs for after a big meal. In those travels flavors, memories & sensory experiences have left their imprints. Handshake is picking up where my late mother’s Shahnaz Persian Grille left off, adding some Iranian back spice to Portland’s culture. This project is important to me to further POC in Maine’s food & beverage industry. All the ingredients tell a story of growing up with friends from different cultures in Portland (Lemongrass from Cambodia , Hibiscus from Caribbean, Italian digestivos from my wife’s maternal side of the family, Roobias Tea from Africa, etc). I’ve used a lot of these ingredients in in my career. Like a Persian rug, it’s threading together cultures into a beautiful tapestry.

Khojastehzad hopes to launch his first product this fall. Follow Handshake on instagram to stay up to date on progress.

A new cafe and retail shop called Matcha Mood (instagram) is under construction at 654 Congress Street. The company is being founded by sisters Sarochinee, Veya and Phuntira Tiparos.

Get ready to embark on a delightful journey of authentic Japanese flavors. From our handcrafted matcha lattes to our delectable matcha ice cream, bakery treats, and beyond, we’re here to satisfy your matcha cravings like never before.

Matcha Mood will use ceremonial grade matcha for a variety of matcha-based drinks including matcha latte, matcha coconut and matcha lemonade as well as for house-made baked goods and snacks. The cafe Mood will also have for sale equipment and tea for making matcha at home.

The sisters are renovating a 640 sq ft space near Longfellow Square into 4-seat cafe and retail shop, and they hope to launch Match Mood sometime this September.

To get caught up on all the new restaurants, bars and other hospitality businesses in development visit our Under Construction List.

A new ice cream shop called Honeycone Ice Cream Social (instagram) is under construction in Yarmouth. The ice cream shop will be located in the front part of the building formally occupied by Maples on Route 1 where it will be co-located with Lake & Co.

Owners Joyce Chittick and Rick Faugno envision Honeycone as a gathering spot for the local community. The organic ice cream will be produced in collaboration with Flavor Maine. Both gluten-free and dairy-free options will be available.

Chittick was born in Waterville and grew up in Canaan, Maine. She and Faguno moved to Maine after several decades of working in the New York City theater industry. Faugno and Chittick hope to launch Honeycone sometime before the end of August.

Honeycone is unrelated to the ice cream shop with a similar name in Naples.

This week’s Portland Phoenix includes an update on Lido’s 2, the new Old Port restaurant being developed by the owners of Cong Tu Bot.

It will be a multilevel restaurant and will have a takeout counter during the day. They plan to serve grilled items and hotpot in the dining room, and “Chinatown-style baked goods, boba and rice plates” at the takeout counter, according to a press release.

Joining Cong Tu Bot co-owners Jessica Sheahan and Vien Dobui in the business will be Bounahcree Kim. Kim will be a co-founder/GM and will be the chef at the new restaurant.

See this earlier report for additional details on the location, layout and name inspiration for Lido’s 2, and visit the Nu Market site to contribute to their crowdfunding campaign.

Update: Since this article was published the prospective name of this business has been changed to Oun Lido’s.

Vena’s Fizz House (website, facebook, instagram) has decided not to proceed with opening their bar and retail shop. They had been working since late 2021 to renovate the church at 867 Congress Street in Parkside. Their announcement on instagram reads, in part:

We have always had the intention of eventually returning and reopening a physical venue and went about purchasing a property on Congress St. in Portland. However, we have come to realize that much has evolved since we last closed our doors on Fore Street in Portland. The hospitality industry itself has undergone significant changes, and we have also undergone our own transformation. Our priorities, both personally and professionally, have been reshaped by our current focus. The transition to an ecommerce business has provided us with the opportunity to achieve a healthier work-life balance. Just as the ingredients in a beverage are adjusted to cater to individual preferences, the adjustments we have made to our business model have helped clarify our priorities.

The owners of Cong Tu Bot have launched a $75k crowdfunding campaign to help to assist with the launch of their new restaurant Lido’s 2. In the few days since it kicked-off the campaign has raised $7,033 towards their goal. Contributes to the campaign will receive 120% of that amount as a credit to be used at Lido’s 2 or Cong Tu Bot. The credits don’t expire and will vest over a period of six months.

As we reported back in May, Lido’s 2 will be located on Market Street and will likely open later this year. The campaign site shares some additional plans for Lido’s,

While CTB is small and scrappy, this new location in the Old Port dreams to be: moody, fun, a family-style affair with the same focus on pushing our own limits of what Asian American food can be, tight cocktails, and how to support our communities.

Visit the CTB/Lido’s page on Nu Market—a restaurant specific crowdfunding site–to contribute to the campaign.

Update: Since this article was published the prospective name of this business has been changed to Oun Lido’s.

The Portland Phoenix has published an update on the plans to open a new restaurant in the space formerly occupied by the Old Port Tavern.

Wills Dowd, the owner of the Woodfords Corner restaurant Bird & Co., hopes to have the “totally new concept” in the Old Port space open by April 2024.

Dowd, 34, who grew up in the Rosemont neighborhood, said he’s just a few weeks away from finalizing the name and concept after taking over the lease at 11 Moulton Street, but is “99 percent” decided on what the new restaurant will have to offer.