Category: Under Construction

A new food truck called The Pink Waffle (instagram) is now under development, and owner Roux Kehoe hopes to have renovations completed in time for a launch on March 1st.

This Sunday you can try out their waffle-centric menu at a Pink Waffle pop-up taking place at Figgy’s on Walker Street (10 am – 1 pm).

The pop-up menu features a variety of waffle breakfast sandwiches, a vegan waffle breakfast sandwich, and a build your own waffle option with a variety of sweet and savory toppings.

Kehoe is a 2009 graduate of the culinary program at SMCC, cooked in Colorado for several years, and since moving back to Maine has worked in catering and in restaurants and helped launched the kitchen at Candy’s when it opened on Portland Street.

Bissell Brothers has leased the kitchen adjacent to their Thompson’s Point brewery. The kitchen was formally occupied by Locally Sauced. They’ve posted a want ad for an executive chef position and are in the very early stages of planning out the new food service component of their business. Stay tuned for more details as their vision comes into focus.

The Portland Phoenix checked in with five businesses about the new ventures, locations, investment and strategies they’re deploying in 2021.

Some other local restaurateurs are also moving forward with plans to open new businesses in the coming months, while others are changing their business models to better navigate the pandemic after a year that saw the U.S. lose more than 110,000 restaurants, according to a recent study by the National Restaurant Association.

The article features Bam Bam Bakery, Belleflower Brewing, Cale Louis/Eaux, Little Giant/Sugar Giant, and Fork Food Lab.

Highroller Lobster bought a food truck last May. As you can see from this picture, they’ve made good progress on the renovations. The launch date is still TBD but may be as soon as this winter.

The Maine Juice Company has announced that they are closing their location at 129 Spring Street, and are planning to open a new retail location in mid-February at the Maine Mall in South Portland.

A new plant-based foods takeout business called S+P (website, instagram) is under development at the Fork Food Lab in West Bayside.

Owners Shelby Faux and Payson Cunningham recently moved to Portland from the Midcoast where they ran a pop-up event series serving multi-course vegan dinners. They plan to start offering S+P vegan takeout meals this winter, and hope to continue creating pop-up events here in the Portland area.

Faux and Cunningham will be offering a menu of “high quality, visually appealing, fresh takeaway meals and pantry items as the Maine seasons allow. Their desire to make eating an abundance of nutritious plant based meals simple and accessible for everyone…”

Their meals will come with heating and plating instructions, and will be designed to be ready from fridge to plate within 20 minutes. S+P will also be available to cater private dinners and can be contacted at hello@sp-foods.com.

Sign-up for their mailing list and follow them on instagram to stay in the loop on the launch of S+P.

A new food truck called Vy Banh Mi (facebook, instagram) is under development. Owners Minh Nguyen and Vy Phan are originally from Vietnam and moved to Maine 10 years ago. Vy Banh Mi will be a way they can share their passion for food and perhaps be a first step in opening their own restaurant.

Nguyen and Phan plan to have six different types of banh mi on the menu:

1. 1. The Traditional Banh Mi (pork roll cold cut and pate)
   2. Grilled beef
   3. Grilled chicken
   4. BBQ pork
   5. Meat ball
   6. Tofu

All the sandwiches will be served on a Vietnamese baguette with mayo, fresh cucumber, cilantro, jalapeños, pickled carrot and daikon radish.

Look for Vy Banh Mi to launch sometime in late February or early March, and in the meantime follow them on instagram to stay looped in on the latest news about their food truck.

Bam Bam Bakery (website, facebook, intagram) has leased a 3,000 square foot space in East Bayside where they plan to reopen their gluten-free bakery. The new space space is located at 148 Anderson Street in a building next to Tandem Coffee.

Owner Tina Cromwell closed her Commercial Street retail operation last year and has been offering weekly pre-order baked goods since then. She anticipates opening the new bakery this spring with an expanded menu that will include more savory options. The new Bam Bam will also have an all gluten-free grocery section with some of their favorite items and take home mixes. Once they reopen they’ll also begin shipping their baked goods countrywide via the Goldbelly service.

Bam Bam was featured on an episode of  Good Morning America back in May.

Update: This project is currently on hold.