Mainebiz has published an update on The Photo Kitchen which is under construction in Morrills Corner.
The space can accommodate photographers, influencers, cooking classes, workshop-based businesses, and events. It was designed with the Portland creative community in mind to be a resource for photographers and food professionals. The high-end boutique studio will also be available to rent as an event and workshop venue.
Joe Fournier is moving A&C Grocery to South Portland where it will re-open as the A&C Soda Shop (instagram) sometime this summer.
The menu will carryover some old favorites from Washington Ave such as the cheeseburger and Italian sandwich while adding soups, salads, and dishes like moules frites and crab cakes. True to its new name the A&C Soda Shop will also serve ice cream floats, milkshakes, and herbal tonics. Wine-based slushies as well as beer on draft and in cans are also on the menu.
The A&C Soda Shop will be located in the former Terra Cotta Pasta building at 501 Cottage Road. In 2019 Terra Cotta moved to a new spot nearby and Nosh co-founder Matt Moran leased the property with plans to open a neighborhood restaurant. The new A&C is a collaboration between Fournier, Moran and Michael Gatlin.
A&C Grocery originally opened on Washington Ave in 2017 as a neighborhood grocery store. The concept transitioned into a popular sandwich shop before closing in 2021 with plans to relocate.
Bryna Gootkind and chef Lee Farrington, the owners of LB Kitchen, have purchased the building on the corner of Congress and Smith Streets. Farrington and Gootkind plan on renovating the two storefronts on the corner and move LB Kitchen into that joined space later this year.
The new LB will feature a 21-seat dining room, sidewalk and patio seating, a dedicated space for takeout pick-up and a retail market with some of the staff’s favorite food and wellness brands.
Dunes (instagram), an artist-run gallery run by Boru O’Brien O’Connell, is slated to takeover the space formerly occupied by Lila East End Yoga.
The new LB Kitchen is expected to launch in September and the current iteration of LB will continue to operate from 249 Congress Street serving takeout until then. Once the move is completed, 249 Congress will be available for lease. The 949 sq ft space, includes a hood, grease trap, walk-in refrigerator, parking and a 200 sq ft patio.
A new Czech-style lager-exclusive brewery and ‘tankpub’ called Sacred Profane Brewing (website, instagram) is under construction at 50 Washington Street in Biddeford. Brewer Brienne Allan, formerly with Notch Brewing and a co-founder of Brave Noise, is launching the new brewery.
The restaurant will offer a menu of classic beer hall fare and a state-of-the-art beer service system engineered by Czech firms Lukr and GS Technik. The system will be the first of its kind in North America, enabling the team to provide a unique beer drinking experience.
“Our friends in the Czech Republic say that the brewer brews the beer, but the tapster makes the beer,” says Allan. “And we agree 100% that how you maintain and serve the finished beer is just as important as how you brew it.”
Working along with Allan will be a team that includes Michael Fava, the former head brewer at Oxbow Brewing, as the director of operations at Sacred Profane, as well as Carson James and Erin Sheehan, the co-founders of Lorne Wine in Biddeford, who will be heading up the food, hospitality and marketing programs. The team hope to open Sacred Profane by early July.
For more information on the beer program listen to the latest episode of the Good Beer Hunting podcast—the section on Sacred Profane runs from minute 34 to minute 38 in the recording.
Here’s a look at the draft food menu:
House Smoked Oyster – $18
saltines/mustard/onion
Pickled Curds – $8
Pilot bread crackers
Cretons – $12
Toast/mustard/sweet pickles
Chowder – $14
Smoked haddock/cream/potato/bacon
Ham Plate – $12
Country ham/pickle/garlic Mayo
Pult Tartare – $14
Dry aged beef/mustard seed/yolk/bacon/toast
North Haven Oysters – 6 for $16, 12 for $28
Mignonette classique’/lemon
Crab Louie – $18
Toast
Salad – $10
Little gem/ranch/pulverized dorito
Chicken Sorta Montreal Style – $18
Mashed potato/gravy/freezer peas
Schnitzel – $20
Pork steak/potato salad/maple mustard
Poutine – $16
Previously frozen French fries/curds/gravy
Curry Wurst – $18
House curry sausage/fries/mayo/ketchup
“Meat” Loaf Sandwich – $16
Bunch of veg in the shape of a loaf/Fish & Whistle milk bun/mayo/giardeniera/cucumber salad
Lobster Themidor – MP
Lobster/bernaise/fries
Maple Calvados Ice Cream – $8
A Parlor ice cream exclusive
The new bar and restaurant under construction in the former Little Giant space in the West End will be called The Danforth. The Danforth is scheduled to open by the end of April as a neighborhood restaurant and bar with a strong classic cocktail program.
Renovations are well underway, and the general manager Lucy Comaskey shared that they are “aiming to create a space where the room and service are welcoming and intentional, and the food and drink are there to match in quality and comfort.”
The Danforth is being launched by Gin & Luck, the parent company of Death & Co. which operates cocktail bars in Los Angeles, Denver and New York. They are now hiring for an executive chef, front of house manager, and head bartender, and will soon be looking to fill a number of other positions. For full details see The Danforth job board.
The Photo Kitchen (website, facebook, instagram) is a new membership-based food photography studio and event space under construction in Morrill’s Corner.
When completed The Photo Kitchen will be the home of Lauren Lear Photography (instagram) and The Messy Cookie (instagram). The photo studio and kitchen will also be available for food photographers and other members of the creative community to use on a membership basis or for daily rental.
Owners Lauren Lear and Krystina Benedetti hope to open The Photo Kitchen by April.
El Corazon has leased the former 158 Pickett Street Cafe building where they plan to open a South Portland outpost of their Longfellow Square restaurant. Renovations are underway. When it opens the South Portland location is expected to be open Tuesday through Saturday.
El Corazon initially launched as a food truck in 2013 before taking over the former Petite Jacqueline space in Longfellow Square in 2017. The 158 Pickett Street Cafe closed last August after 20 years in business.
David Kessel from Moonday (instagram) and his partner Rebecca Perea-Kane who is the founder of Thicket (instagram) have leased the former Ishi Ishi space on Washington Ave where they plan to jointly operate their coffee bar and jewelry businesses.
Kessel launched Moonday this past summer as a food cart serving espresso-based coffee drinks prepared with beans from Speckled Ax. Moonday will be expanding their menu with a selection of teas at the new shop.
Renovations are well underway and they expect to open within a few weeks. Hours for the business are still TBD.
A new food cart called Slide Street Co. (instagram) is under development and expected to launch in spring 2022.
Chef/owner Adam Heath is planning a menu of “Slider sized burgers and sandwiches with a colorful twist”. The flagship burger will be The Acadia which is a Maine beef burger prepared with bacon rillette, IPA jalapeño pickle, Pineland Farms cheddar, and a blueberry mustarda. Heath also expects to have a rotating list of specials. Other items on the menu will be the Lil’ Squeeler (confit Pork belly, rose harissa, miso pineapple relish, green jade matcha bun) and the Hibiscus Biscuit (Hot fried chicken patty, basil honey, pickled cabbage, hibiscus biscuit). As a special twist that makes Slide Street sandwiches colorful and distinctive Heath will be creating house-made buns that use natural food colors to create brightly colored sandwich buns.
Heath moved to Portland in 2008 and has worked for a number of local restaurants including as part of the kitchen team that initially launched Tiqa, summers working at The Inn on Peaks Island and at Union at The Press Hotel for the last 4-5 years. He’s excited to be launching his own business and the opportunity to “showcase my own dishes and flavor profiles that I know the all patrons will enjoy everyday”.
Heath is planning to launch a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter next week to raise funds to support this new business.
The Portland Stonewall Kitchen store on Middle Street is expected to close by the end of March. Stonewall is still searching for a new space in Portland to move to. Stay tuned for details on the location and timing as they become available.
The current store is located at 182 Middle Street across from Bard Coffee and Tommy’s Park. There’s no word yet on anyone moving into that spot.