Category: Under Construction

Under Construction in SoPo: Bathras Market, Mr. Delicious, Taco Trio

| Posted in Under Construction, Uncategorized

Three new businesses are under construction in South Portland:

Bathras Market– the Bathras Market was a mainstay in Willard Square for 35 years (1954 – 1989). Now the former owner’s grandson and his wife are working on bringing the market back to life. They will be selling “local and natural foods, cheeses, meats, wine, beer, and specialty food” as well as “seafood, including lobsters, as well as sandwiches and distinctive prepared foods.” They’re targeting early May for the grand opening.

Mr. Delicious– Glenn Perry and Ian Hayward are teaming up to open a “a small but complete grocery store, with selective produce, meat and fish, wines and lots of prepared foods” in Willard Square. The plan on having “lots of grilled and braised meats, and, above all, genuinely memorable sandwiches.” Mr. D will be located in a building at 7 Pillsbury Street. They’re target open date is mid-July.

Taco Trio – a late night taco shop is planning to open in South Portland on Ocean Street. According to The Forecaster, the owners are Manuel Peña and Karen Massmussen.

“This will be like the traditional food you get on the streets of Mexico,” he said. “Soft corn tacos and traditional spices.” For now it will be a lunch take-out with brunch once a week, but they hope to offer dinner service in the future.

Under Construction: Foley’s Bakery & Apsara

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Foley’s Bakery is returning to 1 Monument Square to take over the space that was most recently occupied by Mousse. I’ve also heard that a second bakery may be opening in Monument Square this Summer but don’t have any firm details on that yet.

A Cambodian restaurant called Apsara is under construction at 349 Cumberland Ave. For a long time this was slated to be the home of Mitpheap World Cafe.

See the Under Construction List for information on other up and coming businesses in Portland.

Under Construction: Exchange Street Cafe

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Mainebiz has published a report on the Exchange Street Cafe, an Italian restaurant which  is under construction at 7 Exchange Street.

Richard Petrucci says he and his co-owners are investing a little more than $60,000 to refurbish the Exchange Street location, which is sandwiched between City Beverage and retail shop Toko Indo. They plan to open the restaurant sometime in April for lunch, dinner and late-night meals.

Under Construction: River House

| Posted in Under Construction, Uncategorized

Construction of the River House on York Street is well under way. The restaurant is being built at the former site of Popeye’s Ice House. The most detailed information available comes from a Mainebiz article published back in December,

At the same time, [Tod] Dana and [Alex] Fisher are teaming up with Cheryl Lewis and Noreen Kotts, El Rayo’s culinary team and the former owners of Aurora Provisions, for another venture. The four are converting what used to be Popeye’s Ice House into a new restaurant Dana describes as a “neighborhood bistro.” It’ll have 60 seats, and gets its name for its view of the Fore River. They hope to be open by late next summer.

Under Construction: Barbecue & Plush West End

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A pair of updates for the Under Construction List:

  • The new restaurant under construction at the Corner of High & Spring Streets in Katahdin’s old location is slated to be called Plush West End. The start of a website for the business can be found at www.plushwestend.com.
  • Planning for a new barbecue vendor on the 2nd floor of the Public Market House is now under way.

This and That

| Posted in Under Construction, Profiles, PFM

A collection of food news and links for your Saturday morning:

  • Miyake has leased the space adjacent to Paciarino on Fore Street. They’ll be moving their Spring Street sushi restaurant there later this year.
  • Brown paper is up in the windows of the old Katahdin on High Street and the Restaurant for Lease sign is down. There’s no word yet on what kind of restaurant it will be but I’ve added it to the Under Construction list.
  • The folks from Dobra Tea recently took a break from getting their tea house on Middle Street ready for the grand opening to be interviewed for a book about tearooms in America. Dobra’s grand opening is scheduled for March 31.
  • According to documents filed with the city, Bonobo pizza is changing hands. The new owners, Louise Murphy and Denise Compton,  plan to “operate the business in much the same manner as the original owner and chef.”
  • According to a job posting on Craigslist, Chef Eric Simeon is leaving Grace to “to pursue his own dream of opening a restaurant of his own.”
  • Chef Jeff Hodgdon from The Salt Exchange appeared on the local Fox morning show yesterday. Hodgdon had been the sous chef at TSE and took over the kitchen when Jacob Jasinski left for a job in California last Fall.
  • Saturday is the last day of the 3rd Annual Maine Restaurant Week.

Neon Diner/Gogi

| Posted in Under Construction, Uncategorized, History

Every so often when a new restaurant at is under construction at 653 Congress Street you can catch a glimpse of the old Neon Diner sign (see this recent photo by Corey Templeton). That’s the case now as Gogi, a new Asian fusion restaurant, get’s set to install their new street sign in the old Neon Diner frame. I’ve heard that Gogi hopes to open in March. The Neon Diner was in operation 1991-1995.