Category: Year in Review

2014 was a very busy year for the food and dining industry in Portland. I’ve scanned through the records for the past year and here’s my summary of the key events and trends:

• Best Newcomers – There were more than 40 openings in 2014. Some lasted a few months or less, and others are very strong ventures that made an impact in their first year and I hope will be with us for many years to come. Of them, I’d put Central Provisions, Lolita and Palace Diner at the top of the class of 2014. Right out of the gate all three had a focused vision of what they wanted to be and delivered at a high level of consistency and quality.
• Crowdfunding – Portland food businesses have been tapping into crowdfunding sites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo since 2010 when Cakeface raised $1,545 on a $1,000 goal to buy baking equipment. This year that approach seems to have hit an all time high with approximately a dozen Maine food ventures raising more $350,000. Crowdfunding can be a good way for a new business owner to providing start-up capital while at the same building awareness and an online network of contributors who are also likely to be regular customers.
• National Press – national press coverage of the Portland food scene was truly amazing to watch this year. There were feature articles in Bon Appétit, Saveur, Food & Wine, and the Wall Street Journal, and nearly every week there seemed to be reports on Portland food in publications as diverse as Maxim and the Financial Times. Press attention from outside Maine does tend to be cyclical so I’ll be surprised if this continues at the same level into 2015.
• Beer – the amazing growth of the Maine beer industry continued in 2014 with approximately 20 new breweries opening across the state. In the Portland area a number of existing breweries added capacity, Bissell Brothers had an extremely successful first year, and both Foundation Brewing and Austin Street launched. Oxbow and Geary’s opened a tasting rooms in Portland in 2014, and Sierra Nevada brought their roving beer festival to Portland in August. Both the Maine Brew Bus and Maine Beer Tours seemed to be doing brisk business all summer. Another Portland brewery, the Fore River Brewing Company, is already under development with plans to open in 2015.
• Under Construction – There are 20+ new businesses currently in various stages of development. A few themes I saw evident in the past year were small plates (Lolita, Central, Sur Lie) and a shift in interest to Mediterranean cuisine (Ebb & Flow, Lolita, Sur Lie, Lazari, Tiqa). The Longfellow Square area continued to be a hot spot for new business development and several eateries are now venturing into the post-Longfellow stretch of Congress (Tandem Bakery, Bramhall, Figgy’s, Arabian Days). Inner Washington Ave and the portion of Congress immediately nearby seems to also be gathering momentum. We’re also seeing beginings of a mobile to brick-and-mortar transition with the acquisition of Steve & Renee’s by Hella Good Tacos and Small Axe taking over the East Ender.
• Upcoming in 2015 – the number of new businesses under development seems to be slightly tapering off but there are many new ventures already in process. The ones I’m looking forward to the most are:
  • the new incarnation of the East Ender by Karl Deuben and Bill Leavy
  • Figgy’s, a fried chicken and southern food cafe in the West End
  • Lincolns, a inexpensive bar in the Old Port
  • Maine & Loire, a natural wine shop opening soon on Washington Ave
  • Eventide/Hugo’s new restaurant, The Honey Paw
  • Dana Street and Sam Hayward’s new seafood restaurant on Commercial Street
  • The new eatery under construction on Market Street by Steve and Michelle Corry
  • The bar Joe Ricchio and Joel Beauchamp have in development

Notable Events of 2014

• January – Casa Fiesta and Miyake Diner opened, Small Axe’s Karl Deuben and Bill Leavy began the search for a brick and mortar restaurant, the Food Co-op announced that they leased a space at 290 Congress Street for their new retail store, Nathaniel Meiklejohn announced plans for his bar The Jewel Box, Novare Res and The Great Lost Beer were on Draft magazine’s list of America’s top beer bars, the Oxbow edition of Off the Wagon was released, Tandem’s Ayele Yirgacheffe was an award winner at the Good Food Awards, Shannon Bard was the featured chef of a James Beard House dinner, Little Bigs began selling crauxnuts and Mesa Verde went out of business.
• February – Central Provisions and Thai 9 opened, the blog Eating Portland Alive got started, Oakhurst Dairy was sold to a national dairy farm cooperative, a controversy flared up over an archaic provision in Maine law that prohibited bars from listing the ABV of the beers they serve, Black Dinah announced plans to open a facility in Portland, Peggy Grodinsky became the food editor of the Press Herald, Tortilleria Pachanga started production, the list of James Beard semifinalists were released, word first surfaced about a new waterfront restaurant being launched by Dana Street, Jonah Fertig left Local Sprouts to help other organization successfully launch cooperatives, the Meat House closed.
• March – Red Sea and Vietnam Bakery opened, Hella Good Taco bought Steve & Renee’s Diner, Portland Police made a formal recommendation to the City Council not to renew Sangillo’s liquor license, Maine Craft Distilling released their Fifty Stone single malt, Tandem announced plans to open a bakery in the West End, Star Chefs include several people from Portland in their 2014 Rising Star list, the Uprising iPhone app was released, three Maine chefs were contenders in the F&W’s People’s Best New Chef competition, MECA kicked off a culinary program, Hugo’s announced their Yankee Swap series and Maine Restaurant Week took place.
• April – India Bazaar, Liquid M2 and Ana’s Mobile Gourmet opened, the Chalice mobile app launched, Hugo’s and Miyake were included in the Opinionated About Dining list of the top 100 restaurants in the US, Pepperclub began a search for a new space, the City Council voted not to renew Sangillo’s liquor license, the books Eating in Maine and Portland Food were released, and Roost and Slainte went out of business.
• May – Clark Street Market, Old Port Spirits, Riverside Grill, Timber and Maine-ly Meatballs opened, Coastal Root Bitters launched, and Vincenza’s Bakery opened for a very short time on Exchange, Blue Rooster announced their summertime guest chef series, the inaugural Rum Riots cocktail festival took place, Piccolo held a Star Wars themed dinner on May the Fourth, PFM won the Best Food Blog category in the Phoenix readership poll, the Boston Globe published an article about Bissell Brothers, I led a Maine Brew Bus Portland Coffee House Tour and wrote a Portland dining guide for Down East magazine, El Rayo closed the Cantina, Gingko Blue and Down Home Cookin’ also closed.
• June – Lolita, Fishin’ Ships, CN Shawarma, King’s Head Pub, Foodworks, Anapurna’s Thali and Slab opened, Uncle Andy’s was featured in an episode of Restaurant Impossible, Dean’s Sweets announced plans to move to Fore Street, Food & Wine named Cara Stadler one of the Best New Chefs of 2014, Speckled Ax held a Panamanian/Gesha tasting, Bon Appetit published an article about food in Maine, partners Masa Miyake and Will Garfield decided to end their partnership resulting in the closure of Miyake Diner.
• July – El Rayo Scarborough and Maps Cafe opened, Zest magazine launched, Saveur and Maxim both published articles about the Portland food scene, Tasting Table produced a Portland eating guide, Andrew Zimmern put together a Portland eating guide for Food & Wine, Down East made an exhaustive search for Maine’s best lobster roll, Piccolo hosted brewers from Oxbow and Del Ducato for a beer dinner, and Portland & Rochester went out of business.
• August – The Farm Stand, Ten Ten Pie and Tandem Bakery opened, an SUV crashed into Bruno’s, Beer This Week launched, Andrea Swanson bought Foley’s Bakery, the Maine Seaweed Festival took place, Tiqa announced plans to open a restaurant in the Marriott on Commercial Street and O’Maine Media owner Rory Strunk announced plans to launch a media kitchen, Central Provisions and Palace Diner were on the Bon Appetit list of Best New Restaurants in the US and Hunt alpine was on their list of the Best New Bars, Zagat published their list of the 10 hottest restaurants in Portland, chef Natalie ‘Figgy’ DiBenedetto announced plans to launch Skillet/Figgy’s in the West End, Sierra Nevada’s traveling Beer Camp festival came to Portland, Liquid M2 and Thai 9 went out of business.
• September – Arcadia National, Geary’s tasting room, The Jewel Box, Huong’s, Golden Lotus and Sur Lie opened, Dean’s Sweets relocated to Fore Street, author Rowan Jacobsen was in town to launch his new book on heirloom apples, Novare led a campaign to get actor Bill Murray to come to Portland Beer Week, Rob Evans wrote an article about Portland for Serious Eats, the Pepperclub went out of business.
• October – Bramhall, Arabian Days, C Salt and Bao Bao opened, Rosemont announced plans to open in the West End and Hugo’s announced plans to open The Honey Paw, the Boston Globe published an article about the ‘culinary boom’ in Portland, David Turin was the featured chef for a dinner at the James Beard House, food writer Malcolm Bedell announced his plans to launch a food truck called ‘Wich, Please, the Financial Times wrote an article about the Portland food scene, Maine Pie Line announced plans to close and Harvest on the Harbor took place.
• November – Dutch’s, Oxbow tasting room, Ebb & Flow and the Portland Food Co-Op opened, the local chapter of the US Bartenders Guild got its start, Joe Ricchio posted his annual pumpkin beer survey, the Maine shrimp season cancelled for 2nd year, Sangillo’s appeal hearing took place, chefs Frank Anderson and Rebecca Ambrosi launched The Hunter’s Bend, the North Spore mushroom CSA got its start, preeminent wine writer/importer Terry Thiese was in Portland for a series of events, Portland Beer Week took place, Pocket Brunch held a breakfast and a game dinner, Mainebiz published an article about the Maine brewing industry, Alton Brown spoke at Merrill, and The Salt Exchange and Oscar’s New American went out of business.
• December – Otto opens 2nd location in South Portland, Maine Craft Distilling opened a tasting room in Freeport, Frank Cornelissen was at Vinland for a natural wine dinner, Two Fat Cats bought Maine Pie Line, Palace Diner’s tuna fish sandwich was highlighted by Bon Appetit as one of their best meals of 2014, Ilma Lopez shared new about her husband Damian Sansonetti’s illness.

Top 10 Articles

1. Tandem Bakery – first word on plans for Tandem Bakery (March 17)
2. Bao Bao – floor plan and draft menu of the restaurant (April 26)
3. Bramhall & Sur Lie – floor plan and draft menus for the bar and restaurant (August 2)
4. F&W Andrew Zimmern – details on Food & Wine article by Andrew Zimmern on his favorite places to eat in Portland (July 19)
5. Alton Brown – first word on his planned visit to Merrill in November (May 31)
6. Guest Chef Series – details on the Blue Rooster summer guest chef series (May 8)
7. The Jewel Box – first word on Nathaniel Meiklejohn’s plans to open The Jewel Box (January 7)
8. Dutch’s Opening Soon – details on the soon to open Dutch’s with photos by Zack Bowen (November 3)
9. The Honey Paw – first official word about Eventide/Hugo’s plans for a third restaurant (October 8)
10. West End Rosemont – first official word about a Rosemont Market in the West End (October 8)

Top 25 Restaurants

1. Central Provisions (-)
2. Timber (-)
3. Slab (-)
4. Vinland (-)
5. Empire Chinese Kitchen (11)
6. Lolita (-)
7. Outliers Eatery (2)
8. Bao Bao Dumpling House (-)
9. Blue Rooster Food Co. (3)
10. Back Bay Grill (22)
11. Caiola’s (10)
12. C-Squared (-)
13. The King’s Head (-)
14. Piccolo (7)
15. Eventide Oyster Company (4)
16. Fore Street (27)
17. Five Fifty-Five (18)
18. East Ender (40)
19. Grace (24)
20. Hugo’s (14)
21. Sur Lie (-)
22. Petite Jacqueline (6)
23. Blue Spoon (23)
24. Golden Lotuus (-)
25. Miyake Diner (-)

The numbers in parentheses indicate their rank last year. Order is determined by the number of times these restaurants were looked up on PFM during the year.

Passings

• Joseph Esposito, 84 – owner of Rudy’s Diner and Harbor Lunch, he was also a co-owner of Espans Quick Lunch and Forest Gardens
• Rudolph Ferrante, 91 – owner of Rudy’s Diner and Harbor Lunch, he was also a co-owner of Espans Quick Lunch and Forest Gardens
• Andrea Lee, 65 – bartender for 37 years at Sangillo’s
• Neil Taliento, 94 – co-owner of Tally Brothers Food Brokerage
• Joseph Vacchiano, 84 – former owner of Pat’s Meat Market

For some other perspectives on the past year see Dig Portland, The Golden Dish, Urban Eye, Map & Menu, Eater Maine, Maine Today, and Peter Peter Portland Eater.

For more information on Portland’s food past see the 2013, 2012, 2011 and 2010 year in review reports, as well as PFM blog posts from 2009, 2008 and 2007, and the Portland Food Timeline.

As in 2012, 2011 and 2010, it’s once again been a very busy year for the food and dining industry in Portland. I’ve scanned through the news and events for the past year and here’s my summary of the 2013 Portland Year in Food:

• Best Newcomers – there were a lot of strong contenders this year: Outliers, Salvage, Empire, Piccolo, Small Axe and Urban Sugar all come easily to mind.  However I think the two best newcomers of 2013 were Hunt + Alpine for Best Bar and the new Hugo’s for Best Restaurant. H+A owners Andrew and Briana Volk first announced their plans in late 2012, and organized the  Hush Hush cocktail series (February, March, April at Eventide) while their bar was under construction. They’ve assembled a talented staff of some of the city’s best bartenders and created a cool new space to see and be seen in. Imbibe called their menu “an ode to the beauty of cocktails, old and new”. Likewise, the trio who run the new Hugo’s have also created something really special. Great service, a spectacular urban space and truly innovative and excellent cuisine. It takes the already strong reputation of 88 Middle Street to a new high.
• Food Trucks – 2013 was the first full year of food trucks in Portland. El Corazon, Gusto’s, Mainely Burgers, Mainely Treats, Portside Picnic, Small Axe, The Squeeze,Urban Sugar and Wicked Good joined Bite into Maine and Love Cupcakes as part of the Portland food truck fleet, Rising Tide kicked off an event series featuring a different food truck each week, Flea-for-All hosted a monthly gather of trucks, a group of food bloggers worked together on collaborative review project, and by the end of the year 3-4 additional trucks were in development for 2014. The City Council also made some updates to food truck ordinance which should make it easier in the coming year.
• Best Dish – I enjoyed some truly excellent food in 2013. Some of my favorites were the soup prepared by Rob Evans for the January Pocket Brunch, the rabbit dish on opening night of Outliers,  the steak and fries at Little Tap House, several excellent dishes had at the new Hugo’s, the Mi Ga from Cong Tu Bot, the chicken adobo from Bar Lola, a General Tso’s Pork Belly sandwich from Small Axe, the chicken slovakia at Emilitsa, the lambs neck cavatelli and a number of the desserts at Piccolo, and a fantastic fluke crudo (with sea salt and tiny garlic flavored flowers) from Eventide. All were excellent. But standing above them all was the entree served at my final meal at Bresca, a perfect piece of pan-seared cod served over a root vegetable broth–simply unforgettable.
• East Bayside and South Portland – the Portland restaurant scene continued to push beyond the boundaries of the Old Port and Congress Street. Restauranteur’s seemed to finally discover South Portland this year. The former owners of Rachel’s opened Enio’s, Otto opened a location, Elsmere, Ruby Thailand, 158 began serving pizza, the Cia coffee shop, Little Bigs, Mainely Grains, Tony’s, and there’s more to come. East Bayside also saw a lot of growth. Maine Craft Distilling, Coffee by Design, Small Axe, Maine Pie Line, Pure Pops, Bomb Diggity all joined Rising Tide, Sorella’s Bakery, UFF, Bunker Brewing and Tandem in this small industrial neighborhood. A rezoning further expand the possibilities. As Meredith Goad recently pointed out, restaurant real estate in the center of the peninsula is getting expensive. That will inevitably drive more investment further afield—in the suburbs and in the off-peninsula section of the city.
• Coffee – the coffee scene continued to expand in 2013. Black Cat Coffee opened on Stevens Ave, Omi’s opened in the West End, Hilltop is in the process of moving to new quarters and Coffee by Design opened a 23,000 sq ft roasting facility with a new co-located cafe due in January. The city’s newer roasters also made in roads in the wholesale business to markets and restaurants Speckled Ax is served at Black Cat, Blue Rooster, Piccolo and Vinland, Tandem at Pai Men, Gelato Fiasco, Eventide and Hugo’s. Hopefully the diversification will continue in 2014.
• Local Beer and Spirits – Portland and Maine as a whole has seen a rapid expansion in the number and size of brewers and distillers in 2013. Allagash expanded their capacity as did Rising Tide, Maine Beer Company (now in Freeport), Baxter Brewing in Lewiston. In’finiti blazed on to the scene this summer. Bissell Brothers, SoMe Brewing in York and Banded Horn in Biddeford all launched in 2013. Oxbow Brewing from Newcastle has established a strong foothold on the taps in Portland restaurants. Two more Portland brewers (Foundation and Austin Street) should launch in early 2014. Little Tap House created a new beer bar in the West End and Maine Craft Distilling launched mid-year with a great line-up of artisanal spirits. Vena’s Fizz House now provides home cocktail enthusiasts a place to source accessories and Coastal Root will soon be supplying Portland with locally made bitters. Last but not least, Portland was home to 3 beer festivals in the past year, including The Festival which brought brewers and beer enthusiasts from all over the world to Portland.
• Under Construction – more than 40 new food businesses launched in 2013 and another 30 or so are already under development and set to launch in 2014 including another 3 food trucks, 2 brewers and a cocktail bitters company. Five spots that I’m especially looking forward to are Central Provisions, Miyake Diner, Slab, and the new restaurants being produced by Bar Lola and Tao Yuan.

Notable Events of 2013

• January – Supreme Pita opened on Forest Ave, Eventide made it on to the Find Eat Drink top 50 list, and Rob Evans was the guest chef for the January edition of Pocket Brunch.
• February – The North Point opened, The Chinese Laundry held an open house, From Away blogger Malcolm Bedell won an NBC’s Today show competition for his Apricot Shellacked Ghost Chile Chicken Wings; Rob Evans came in 2nd place on Chopped Champions, Chris Gould began working on Central Provisions, chef Eric Simeon was the guest chef of the February Pocket Brunch,  the Food Law Colloquium took place at USM, Maine magazine published their annual food issue.
• March – Enio’s, In’finiti, Little Tap House, Blue Rooster, Cia opened, Crooked Mile took over the former Udder Place location on Brighton Ave, Andrew Taylor and Michael Wiley were nominated in the Food & Wine People’s Best New Chef competition, Miyake and Hugo’s made it into the Opinionated Top 100 list, Brad Messier and Nolan Stewart were the guest chefs for the March Pocket Brunch, Oriental Table, Empire, Carmen’s and Bull Jager and The Wine Bar closed.
• April – Outliers opened, several Maine chefs were listed in the 2013 edition of Best Chefs America, Portland Food Map won Best Food Blog in the Phoenix Readership Poll, Bakery on the Hill and Seagrass Bistro closed.
• May – food trucks El Corazon, Wicked Good Street Kitchen, Mainely Burgers, Portside Picnic all launched, Union Bagel opened, Artemisia began serving dinner, Max Mejia was the guest chef at the May Pocket Brunch, Bresca and Korea House closed.
• June – Small Ax Truck launched, Bresca and the Honey Bee, Wannawaf, Mi Sen, GoGo Crepes and Flora Bliss opened, Cong Tu Bot got off to a start, The Festival took place, Bite into Maine made it on the Food & Wine list of the America’s Best Lobster Rolls and Eventide won the Editor’s Choice at the Lobster Roll Rumble, Bon Appetit called Leslie Oster’s dinner the standout event at the Kennebec Festival, From Away was recognized by Down East as having the Best Personal Food Blog in Maine, Portland Food Map got started on Twitter, Krista Kern Desjarlais was the guest chef for the June Pocket Brunch, Stephen Lanzalotta and Micucci’s parted ways.
• July – MJ’s Wine Bar, Maine Craft Distilling, the (short-lived) Compass Rose, Vena’s Fizz House, Portland & Rochester, and Mainley Treats opened, a newly renovated Hugo’s reopened.
• August – Black Cat Cafe, Little Bigs, Boone’s, Elsmere, a South Portland outpost of Tony’s opened, the NY Times and Food Republic wrote the Portland food scene, Bon Appetit named Eventide one of the 50 Best New Restaurants in America, at the suggestion of Map & Menu PFM got started on Instagram, DiPietro’s and Mike’s closed.
• September – Salvage BBQ, Omi’s, Hunt + Alpine, Empire, Piccolo, Oscar’s and El Tipico opened, Maine Pie Line launched, a 3-alarm fire on Fore Street impacted several restaurants, Sweet Marguerites went out of business.
• October – Urban Sugar Mobile Cafe and Daigle Baked Goods launched, Wannawaf and The Farmers Table closed.
• November – Mainely Grains Baker and Otto opened in South Portland, El Rayo bartender Henry Yost appeared in GQ, The Holy Donut opened a 2nd location on Exchange Street and Cafe Crepe moved to Portland and a food cart called Little Jamaica launched, the Press Herald began the search for a Food Editor, Bar Lola and Wok Inn closed.
• December – Mainely Wraps, Vinland and Daily Greens opened, Bissell Brothers Brewery launched, Chad Conley and Greg Mitchell announced plans to take over the Palace Diner in Biddeford, CBD threw a party to celebrate their new facility in East Bayside, Imbibe named Portland in their list of 10 places to watch in 2014.

25 Restaurants Looked-up Most Often on PFM

1. In’finiti (-)
2. Outliers Eatery (-)
3. Blue Rooster Food Co. (-)
4. Eventide Oyster Company (9)
5. Bar Lola (4)
6. Petite Jacqueline (3)
7. Piccolo (-)
8. Little Tap House (-)
9. The North Point (-)
10. Caiola’s (8)
11. Empire Chinese Kitchen (-)
12. Local 188 (13)
13. Enio’s (-)
14. Hugo’s (23)
15. Bresca (6)
16. Portland & Rochester Public House (-)
17. Schulte & Herr (1)
18. Five Fifty-Five (7)
19. Zapoteca (11)
20. Spread (2)
21. Hot Suppa (20)
22. Back Bay Grill (10)
23. Blue Spoon (5)
24. Grace (14)
25. Salvage BBQ (-)

The numbers in parentheses indicate their rank last year.

Passings

• Randall Chase, 71 – owner of the Miss Portland Diner for 24 years and the Middle Street Cafe for 6 years.
• Ralph Edward Dahms, 87 – he operated a concession stand in City Hall for 30 years.
• William C. Dilios, 74 – owned Christy’s Restaurant on Cumberland Ave in the 60s and 70s.
• Richard Foss, 96 – worked for 63 years at Schlotterbeck & Foss, a Portland specialty foods company founded by his grandfather Charles Foss and Augustus Schlotterbeck in 1866.
• Karen Kay Geary, 68 – co-founder of D.L. Geary Brewing
• Peter Reali, Jr., 60 – former owner of Portland’s Oldest Pub.
• Anna E. Russo, 93 – Russo and her husband Alphonso ran Al’s Luncheonette on India Street from the 1940s until 1964.

For some other perspectives on the past year see Peter Peter Portland Eater, the Portland Phoenix, The Golden Dish, Eater Maine and MaineToday.

For more information on Portland’s food past see the 2012 Year in Review, 2011 Year in Review and 2010 Year in Review, as well as PFM blog posts from 2009, 2008 and 2007, and the Portland Food Timeline.

It’s once again been a very busy year for the food and dining industry in Portland. I’ve scanned through the news and events for the past year and here’s my summary of the 2012 Portland Year in Food:

• Eventide – Eventide was the best new restaurant of 2012. The extensive selection of oysters, an inspired menu of small plate options and casual atmosphere have made a real hit that’s earned this Hugo’s spin-off rave reviews and a packed house. Visitors to our city have also discovered Eventide. The Wall Street Journal called it one of the nation’s most outstanding oyster bars, the James Beard Foundation named the Arctic Char at Eventide to their shortlist of favorite dishes for the year, and Food & Wine Executive Editor Dana Cowin included it on her list of the best restaurants of 2012.
• Food Trucks – after months of subcommittee meetings, debate and review the City finally approved an ordinance making food trucks legal in Portland. We were treated to a foretaste of food truck culture when the Great American Food Truck Race routed through Maine. By the end of the year 2 food trucks, Love Cupcakes and Esposito’s Food on the Go, were in operation. Deux Cochon is working on bringing their “southern food hooliganism” back to life in a food truck format, and a few other entrepreneurs are planning to launch food trucks in 2013. In October, several mobile food vendors banded together to kick-off Flea Bites which takes place in the Flea-for-All parking lot.
• Pop-ups – pop-up dinners and supper clubs came to life in 2012. David Levi ran Vinland, and Erika Joyce launched Cloak & Dagger. Damian Sansonetti moved to Maine and started running his series of Sonnet pop-ups, and visitors like CRUX and Outstanding in a Field  ran pop-ups in Maine. In 2013, we can look forward to the launch of Chinese Laundry which “will be popping up all over town, 3-5 times a week.  Find us at galleries, coffee shops, residences, First Fridays, and street corners.  We’ll be equipped with warm buns and steamy dumplings.” Last but certainly not least there’s Pocket Brunch, a full immersion monthly eating experience that collaborating with guest chefs to offer 5-course Sunday brunches. Pocket Brunch has quickly become the hottest event in the city—tickets for the December edition sold out in less than 2 hours.
• Coffee – 2012 was a great year for the Portland coffee scene. Speckled Ax launched in May and Tandem Coffee Roasters launched in July. Both bring new perspectives on coffee and coffee service to our city. Speckled Ax, Tandem, and Bard have raised the bar for what we should expect from a great coffee shop. This year also saw the opening of Arabica’s new venue, Crema, the closure of Udder Place, a visit by the owners of Blue Bottle Coffee, and several collaborations between the city’s roasters and brewers: Tandem and Bunker, Bard and Rising Tide, Speckled Ax and Allagash. In December, Down East magazine published a survey of the Maine coffee industry.
• Craft Distilling –  the micro-distilling industry got its start in Portland this year when New England Distilling’s first batch of Ingenium Gin appeared on store shelves. Novare Res is soon to launch In’Finiti, a distillery/brewpub, on Commercial Street and Maine Craft Distilling in East Bayside is just a few months away from selling their first batch of carrot gin. Three Sheets Mfg. is working on launching a locally made bitters. Hopefully, 2013 will see the continued expansion of this new segment of the Portland food scene.
• Under Construction – by the end of 2011 the Under Construction list had shrunk down to a handful of business, but during the year there was a renewed confidence and not only did we see the launch of 34 new eateries/bars/coffee houses/etc but the UC List has grown to include nearly 20 new ventures under development. Some notables for 2013 are the aforementioned In’Finiti and Maine Craft Distilling as well as Portland Hunt & Alpine Club, the Little Tap House, Salvage, Sonnet, the new old Miyake, and Harding Smith’s new Room on Custom House Wharf.

Notable Events of 2012

• January – Sabor Latino and El Rayo Cantina opened for business. The Portland Pie Council held the 3rd Annual Pie and Art Gala to celebrate National Pie Day, Novare Res and The Great Lost Bear were included in Draft magazine’s list of the nation’s best beer bars. Havana South, Bathras Market and Udder Place went out of business.
• February – Blackbird Baking acquired Two Fat Cats and Bayside Bowl won the WMPG Cajun Cookin’ Challenge.
• March – The Holy Donut, Catbird Creamery and Crema opened and the Cloak & Dagger supper club launched. The 3rd Annual Maine Restaurant Week took place, Miyake and Hugo’s made it on to the Opinionated About Dining list of the top 100 restaurants in the United States, Rob Evans sold Hugo’s to three of his staff: Arlin Smith, Andrew Taylor and Michael Wiley. Aurora Provisions catered a dinner for President Obama at the Art Museum.
• April – New England Distilling launched. Duckfat cook Melissa Corey won $10k on Chopped, the Portland Phoenix released the results of the Best of Portland readership poll. Gogi went out of business.
• May – Union Bagel, Speckled Ax, Captain Sam’s Ice Cream, LFK, Carmen at the Danforth and Spread opened. Maine Squeeze opened a 2nd location in the Public Market House. Bon Appetit included Miyake in their list of the 10 Best New Sushi restaurants in the country, and Y-Lime’s closed their retail shop in the Public Market House.
• June – Eventide, Portland Pottery Cafe, Sebastian’s and the Bier Cellar opened. Peter Weygandt was the special guest for a wine dinner at Caiola’s, a pair of finalists in the Great American Food Truck Race arrived in Portland, the 2012 Taste of the Nation took place. Three Sons was evicted from the Maine State Pier and District went out of business.
• July – The Loft and Flores opened. The City Council finally approved an ordinance to make food trucks legal in Portland, the Epicuranoid published a great article about Portland restaurants in the 70s and 80s,  the first edition of Pocket Brunch took place, Urban Farm Fermentory announced a 5,000 sq ft expansion plan. Mr. Sandwich & Mrs. Muffin went out of business and Food Coma TV came to an end.
• August – Zen Chinese Bistro, Tandem Coffee, Roost, Kushiya Benkay opened and Maine Beer Tours launched. Portland Food Map celebrated it’s 5th anniversary. Food & Wine Executive Editor Dana Cowin was in town, Margaret Hathaway and Kark Schatz published Portland Maine Chef’s Table, and a group of prominent food bloggers visited Maine.
• September – Love Cupcakes, Teresa Esposito’s on the Go and Gather opened. From Away published a comprehensive primer on how to start a food blog, and Maine Home Cooking by Sandy Oliver and Pastries by Standard Baking were published. The Press Herald restaurant health inspection coverage began; the cost of repairs and the negative publicity eventually resulted in The Porthole going out of business.
• October – the Salt Cellar opened and Frosty’s opened a new branch in South Portland. Taste, Memory by David Buchanan was published, the inaugural Flea Bites took place, the owners of Blue Bottle were in town for a book signing, the Washington Post published an article about Portland dining, the 2012 Harvest on the Harbor took place. The Porthole closed as did G&R Dimillo’s.
• November – Buck’s Naked BBQ, Opus Ten, Otto expanded their location in the Arts District, Maine Brew Bus launched, Katie Made announced plans to move to Congress Street and the Food Coma Show premiered. Portland Beer Week and the Maine Brewers Festival took place, Joe Appel had an article published in Art of Eating, Erika Joyce announced plans for Chinese Laundry, Cantillon Zwanze Day took place at Novare Res. ILPM assembled an interesting list of Portland restaurants and the TV shows they’ve appeared on. Sebastian’s and Plush West End went out of business.
• December – Three Buoys, Taqueria Tequila and Veranda Asian Market opened and Vino Portland started up. Joe Ricchio announced he’s moving to Boston, Maine Craft Distilling secured their federal license, Holy Donut was featured on Anderson Cooper Live. Food & Wine Executive Editor Dana Cowin  included Petite Jacqueline and Eventide in her list of the best restaurants of 2012, and the James Beard Foundation included the arctic char at Eventide in their list of the best dishes of 2012. Figa and the South Portland Wok Inn closed.

25 Restaurants Looked-up Most Often on PFM

1. Schulte & Herr (4)
2. Spread (-)
3. Petite Jacqueline (1)
4. Bar Lola (6)
5. Blue Spoon (24)
6. Bresca (5)
7. Five Fifty-Five (10)
8. Caiola’s (9)
9. Eventide Oyster Company (-)
10. Back Bay Grill (28)
11. Zapoteca (2)
12. Emilitsa (19)
13. Local 188 (11)
14. Grace (13)
15. LFK (-)
16. The Salt Exchange (17)
17. Fore Street (25)
18. Pai Men Miyake (23)
19. El Rayo Cantina (-)
20. Hot Suppa (31)
21. Figa (8)
22. Paciarino (18)
23. Hugo’s (15)
24. Zen Chinese Bistro (-)
25. David’s (33)

The numbers in parentheses indicate their rank last year.

Passings

• Theresa Ciampi – her family owned Commercial Fruit and she was featured in Amato’s signature advertisement from the 1970s.
• Tyler Curtis Cole – a Portland chef who had worked at The Front Room and other restaurants.
• Joseph L. Discatio – the founder of Joe’s Smoke Shop.
• Dorothy Larsen – ran Moran’s Market with her husband Bernard.
• Ruth G. Leadbetter – the founded the Lobster Shack with her husband Jim.
• Russell Libby – the longtime Executive Director of the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association.
• Stavros Elias Shamos – owner of the Quality Shop on Stevens Ave.

For some other perspectives on the past year see Edible Obsessions, the Portland Phoenix, Map & Menu, Maine Eater, The Golden Dish and the Portland Daily Sun.

For more information on Portland’s food past see the 2011 Year in Review and 2010 Year in Review, as well as PFM blog posts from 2009, 2008 and 2007, and the Portland Food Timeline.

A lot happened the past year in our little culinary paradise: restaurants opened and closed, major trends and minor ones emerged and lots of wonderful food was crafted and gratefully consumed. I’ve scanned through the news and events for the past year and here’s my summary of the 2010 Portland Year in Food:

• Trader Joe’s –Easily the biggest food story of the year was the opening of Trader Joe’s. Each step in the process was widely covered in print and online: the late 2009 leaks from Trader Joe’s store clerks in Massachusetts, steps in the FTC approved sale of the old Wild Oats property, breathless articles in the week leading up to opening day and  coverage of the Grand Opening itself. Once the market opened there were reviews of their beer and wine selection, reports on the lack of gate access to the Bayside trail, commentary on crazy appeal of the place, the gridlock in the parking lot, and so on. In late December, the West End News even published a commentary on the commentary.
• Cupcakemania – cupcakes have turned into a full blown product segment in 2010 with at least 4 bakeries (Tulips, Cha Cha, Cakeface, Buttercup) devoted to the little snacks and many others producing them on the side. There’s even a Portland blog who’s sole focus is to seek out the best cupcake in Portland and three other bloggers banded together to review 12 cupcakes from 7 different bakeries. Even Google’s new Book Ngram Viewer seems to concur that cupcakes are hot.
• Longfellow Square – there’s been a lot of change in the area in and around Longfellow Square: Pai Men Miyake, Boda, Yordprom Coffee all opened in or near the square. Local Sprouts opened in the renovated Portland Hall. King of the Roll underwent a facelift during the summer and in November Hot Suppa started dinner service. An Asian fusion restaurant named Gogi is under construction where Barava used to be and the Corry’s are starting up a casual dining restaurant in what had been Evangeline. A little further down Congress Street Quimby Colony set up shop in the old Roma Cafe. The former restaurant has been the location for a number of food events including the Rabelais cookie swap with Joanne Chang from Flour. There are still a few vacant store fronts in Longfellow Square available for anyone who wants to join in on the fun. Perhaps in 2011 a cupcakery could fill the spot left vacant by Tropa Wine Co.
• Pizza, Pizza Pizza – the city saw an uptick in the number of pizzerias in 2010. Pat’s Pizza returned to Portland, Siano’s opened a third location, Pie in the Sky opened at the Public Market House and Otto’s expanded their original location and went on to open a much larger pizzeria at the foot of Munjoy Hill. Maple’s even got in on the act by opening Pizza Magnolia in South Portland.
• Korean Anyone? – Korean cuisine emerged from the long shadow of Portland’s Thai and Sushi restaurants. Happy Teriyaki transformed into Korea House to become Portland’s first restaurant to focus exclusively on Korean Cuisine, and both Soju and Little Seoul opened their doors. For a time, until the close of Soju, Portlanders hungry for Korean had 3 venues to choose from.
• Moving – Chiang Mai and Katahdin moved from their longtime homes. Local Sprouts graduated from the basement of the Public Market House to the steel clad building at 645 Congress Street and Spartan Grill moved next door to the Public Market House through a buyout of Zarra’s Monumental Coffee. Lastly, Rosemont Market expanded operations with a move across Brighton Ave.
• Farming – a mild Winter and unseasonably warm Spring lead to what one farmer referred to as the “best growing year I have had for 30 years“. There were additional vendors at the Farmers Markets, an effort to start a 3rd market day on Monday, Cultivating Community started a set of neighborhood farmers markets, the Winter Market found a new home and is returning for a second season, there was an heirloom tomato CSA during the Summer, and a rare apple CSA this Fall.
• Ice Cream – MDI Ice Cream and Catbird Creamery joined longtime Old Port favorite Beal’s this Summer, Spartan Grill owner Mike Roylos opened Harbor Scoop Shop at the corner of Cumberland and Washington, Bonobo re-opened their ice cream window, Maple’s opened a gelato scoop shop in South Portland, and in December Gorgeous Gelato opened on Fore Street in the Old Port.
• Make mine a double – the trend of restaurateurs owning more than one restaurant continued in 2010. Jay Villani who owns Local 188 opened Sonny’s, the owners of Green Elephant converted Bangkok Thai into Boda, Michael Boland and Deirdre Swords who own Havana in Bar Harbor opened Havana South on Wharf Street, Big Sky opened Pie in the Sky Pizzeria, Bar Lola bought Hilltop Coffee Shop, Masa Miyake opened Pai Men Miyake, and several of the restaurants under construction will continue the trend. This isn’t a recent phenomena. Back in the 1980’s Steve and Rose Harris bought Ruski’s and opened Rosie’s. In the 1990’s Dana Street owned Street & Co. and co-founded Fore Street; he also went on to open a pizzeria on Forest Ave and a casual seafood restaurant called Scales in the Public Market.

Calendar of Notable Events

• January – Dual Site Dinner Theater took place at Whitney Art Works, both Nosh and Sonny’s (see photos of the opening from PortlandTown) opened their doors.
• February– Boda opened and Katahdin moved to Forest Avenue.
• March– the 2nd Annual Maine Restaurant Week took place, Skinny Cart BBQ begin service on Washington Ave, Yordprom Coffee opened in the West End, and Otto gave birth to Enzo.
• April– Kamasoutra opened on the second floor of the Public Market House, Cranberry Island Kitchen moved into Portland, and Pat’s Pizza opened on Market Street.
• May– Soju replaced Thai Chef Buffet, Siano’s opened their third pizzeria, South Portland landmark Red’s Dairy Freeze was severely damaged by a fire, and later in the month Cape Elizabeth landmark The Cookie Jar reopened after being knocked out of commission by a storm in 2006.
• June– Local Sprouts, Bayside Bowl and  Havana South all opened.  New York chefs Frank Falcinelli and Frank Castronovo were in town for a book signing, Joe Appel started writing a weekly wine column for the Portland Press Herald.
• July– Venue Music Bar and Whaddapita both opened on Forest Ave.
• September– Pai Men Miyake and  Little Seoul opened for business, Norm Jabar shut down the East End Grill and the North Star Music Cafe closed.
• October– the 3rd Annual Harvest on the Harbor and the 4th Annual 20 Mile Meal took place, Trader Joe’s and Figa opened, and Happy Teriyaki became Korea House.
• November– Soju closed, District opened on Danforth Street, Rosemont Market on Brighton moved across the street, Evangeline closed, and wine expert Bob Kacher was in town for a dinner at Havana South.
• December– Otto East and Gorgeous Gelato opened followed the next day by 15 Exchange, Mousse Cafe closed, and wine guru Terry Thiese and his wife, chef Odessa Piper, were in town for a book signing and wine dinner at Bar Lola.

The 25 Most Popular Restaurants of 2010

Every month I publish a list of the 10 restaurants looked up most often on Portland Food Map. Here’s the top 25 list for 2010.

1. Bresca
2. Bar Lola
3. Boda
4. Five Fifty-Five
5. Nosh
6. The Salt Exchange
7. Otto’s
8. Sonny’s
9. Caiola’s
10. Local 188
11. Walter’s
12. Katahdin
13. Evangeline
14. Paciarino
15. Grace
16. Blue Spoon
17. Emilitsa
18. Po’Boy’s & Pickles
19. Miyake
20. Back Bay Grill
21. Hot Suppa!
22. Havana South
23. Pai Men Miyake
24. Fore Street
25. Vignola

Passings

• Bob Smith died unexpectedly in December at the age of 49. Bob was a chef, a cheesemaker and a friend to many people throughout the Portland food community.
• Jack Rosen passed away at the age of 76. He worked the counter at Full Belly Deli which was started in 1987 by his son David.
• The co-founder and longtime owner of the Sportsmen’s Grill, John Severino died at the age of 80 in late September. The Sportsmen’s Grill operated on Congress Street near the intersection of Saint John from 1952 until 1999 when it was damaged by a fire.
• Eric Hartglass, Mister Bagel himself, passed away at the age of 64. He started the Mister Bagel chain on Forest Ave in 1977.
• Amedeo Reali died at the age of 83 after a lifetime working at and running the family restaurant. His father, Vincenzo Reali,  opened The Village Cafe in 1936. Amedeo Reali oversaw the expansion of the 20 seat cafe into a restaurant that could serve 500. The Village Cafe closed in 2007.