Category: Under Construction

A new food touring company called Maine Food for Thought (website, twitter) is under development.

Founders Sarah and Bryce Hach are looking to provide a look behind the scenes of the Portland’s culinary scene to the talk about the origins of the food we eat and the people who make it all happen.

Discover how Portland’s stellar food scene tells the story of Maine’s vibrant and unique food system. Beyond a tasting, beyond an exploration of how food gets to your plate, we’ll look at how being a nationally celebrated food destination affects the people, ecology and economy of America’s eastern-most state.

Visit the Food For Thought website to sign-up for their mailing list and keep updated on their launch.

Even during these colder months, local entrepreneurs are making progress to turn their mobile food plans into food truck realities:

• White Cap Coffee has announced plans to launch a food truck.
• The Greeks of Peaks have bought a food truck and are in the process of renovating it.

Tom Minervino along with his sister Meg and business partner Mike Barton have leased 1000 sq ft of space at 855 Main Street in Westbrook where they plan to open Legends Rest Taproom (facebook, instagram, twitter). 855 Main is located in the same building as Big Fin Poké.

Legends Rest will feature smashed burgers and a rotating selection of local draft beers and will have a full bar.

The Minervino family also founded and operates Samuel Bar and Grill, and Tomaso’s Canteen.

Legends will be working with the creative folks at Might and Main to develop the branding for the business.

Legends Rest will join Quill Books & Beverage and Veranda Thai (672 Main St), both of which are also under construction in Westbrook.

Yarmouth’s Ice It Bakery (website, facebook, instagram, twitter) will be opening a second location at 502 Stevens Ave, reports the Press Herald.

Alan Fried, who owns Ice It! Bakery in Yarmouth with his wife, Sharon Kuhrt, said the new location at 502 Stevens Ave. will feature everything sold at the Yarmouth bakery – pastries, cupcakes, custom cakes – but it will also be a coffee shop with full espresso bar service. Fried and Kuhrt plan to emphasize more prominently their savory hand pies at the Portland bakery, and they’ll add some breakfast sandwiches and light lunch items to the menu.

See the Portland Food Map Under Construction page for a complete list of new food businesses in various stages of development.

A bookstore/coffee shop/bar called Quill Books & Beverage (facebook, instagram) is under construction in Westbrook. Owners Matthew Irving and Allison Krzanowski have leased space at One Westbrook Common.

Irving has worked for several years as a bartender at Lolita in Portland and Krzanowski is a weaver. At Quill they’ll be serving cocktails as well as bagels, baked goods, yogurt and oatmeal for breakfast, and sandwiches and salads for lunch, as well as a line-up of toasts, cheeses and charcuterie for small snacks.

Quill plans to stock a “diverse selection of carefully curated gently used books, including many recent titles” and will host “author and poetry readings, book clubs, and a weekly board game night”.

A new brewery called Stars and Stripes Brewing Co. (website, facebook, instagram) is under development in the Portland area. Owner Brad Nadeau is a retired Marine. He plans to donate a percentage of proceeds to veteran related organizations and families.

Nadeau plans to open sometime this Winter.

Sagamore Hill Lounge (website), a new “high-end cocktail with outdoor, seasonal, sidewalk seating,” is under construction at 130 Park Street in the lobby of the Lafayette Building at the corner with Congress Street.

Owners Ryan Deskins and Michael Savona hail from Newton, Pennsylvania. They hope to open Sagamore Hill in April.

The Portland Pottery Cafe has applied for a liquor license. They plan on adding dinner hours when they’ll operate under the name Lena’s and serve an Italian menu. You can see a draft menu for Lena’s on page 72 of Monday’s City Council packet.

Blue Lobster Wine Co. (facebook, website, instagram) launched their wholesale business in September and is now planning to open a tasting room at their location at 219 Anderson Street.