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.
Under Construction: Blue Lobster Tasting Room
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.
Under Construction: The Tasting Room
Bow Street Distributing has purchased 495 Forest Ave where they plan to open The Tasting Room. They plan to use for “beer, wine and liquor tastings and trainings”.
Don’s Lunch Moving
The American Journal reports that Westbrook-based food truck, Don’s Lunch, is in search of a new location.
The van, which doesn’t roll out at the end of each day, has been stationed in various Westbrook locations over the years, including Cavallaro’s Auto Repair, Bernie’s Auto and Friendly Gas. Bernier said he’s looking for a new location on a main road with good visibility.
Maine Food Sovreignty Law
The Press Herald has published an article about The new and revised food sovereignty law,
“People can have an idea and try it out in their home kitchen or on their farm,” said Heather Retberg at Quill’s End Farm in Penobscot, a Maine food advocate. “I have apples on my trees; I am now able to can and sell applesauce. Or my neighbor’s been coming here for years and saying, ‘Oh, I really love that goat cheese you make; can you sell it to me?’ and people have had to say no, and now they can say yes.”
Portland Beer Week
Portland Beer Week kicks-off on Sunday. The full schedule more than 50 tap takeovers, lectures, beer dinners, and tours.
It would be close to impossible to get to them all so I’ve made a short list of the ones I’m most interested in getting to:
- Blind IPA Tasting on Sunday at The Thirsty Pig
- Early History of Maine Beer Lecture on Monday at The Great Lost Bear
- Silence of the Lambics on Tuesday at Novare Res
- Cookie and Beer Pairing on Wednesday at The Thirsty Pig
- Allagash Mystery Beer Night on Tursday at The Great Lost Bear
- Goodfire Brewing Launch on Thursday at The Thirsty Pig
- Oxbozakaya on Thursday at Pai Men
- Austin Street Beer Dinner on Thursday at Terlingua
- From There to Here on Friday at Slab
- Where the Wild Biers are on Saturday at Novare Res
- Zymurgy Home Brew Tour on Sunday with the Maine Brew Bus
- Freshman Orientation on Sunday at Bayside Bowl
This Week’s Events: Food Stories, Nonesuch River, Portland Beer Week, In Search of Israeli Cuisine
Monday – Meghan and Phil Gaven from The Honey Exchange will be interviewed on WMPG’s Food Stories radio program.
Wednesday – Browne Trading is hold a wine tasting, and the Monument Square Farmers’ Market is taking place.
Thursday – there will be a cider tasting at the Public Market House, and The Great Lost Bear will be showcasing Nonesuch River Brewing.
Friday – there will be a wine tasting at the Rosemont on Brighton.
Saturday – the Deering Oaks Farmers’ Market is taking place.
Sunday – it’s the first day of Portland Beer Week, you can review the full schedule on portlandbeerweek.org. There will be a screening of In Search of Isreali Cuisine at the Jewish Community Center.
For more information on these and other upcoming food happenings in the area, visit the event calendar.
If you are holding a food event this week that’s not listed above, please provide details as a comment to this post.
Reviews: Lazzari, Yobo, Bolster Snow, Scratch Toast Bar, The Treehouse, Cong Tu Bot
The Maine Sunday Telegram has reviewed Lazzari,
The pizzas he creates in the copper-clad monster Le Panyol oven at the rear of the restaurant are excellent, with a lightly charred, gorgeously blistered crust and toppings that are – whenever possible – roasted in the fiercely hot wood-fired oven. His crowning achievement isn’t pizza, though. It’s his meatballs, served with a ladling of fresh marinara, a rough scoop of black-pepper-dusted housemade ricotta, and a slice of the bread he bakes himself…
the Portland Phoenix has reviewed Yobo,
While Yobo is good at the light and bright, it’s just as good at the rich and hearty. A chicken confit, first braised then fried and coated in red chili paste, was double-rich and beyond tender. Potstickers are done in a thick, homemade-country style. The mung bean pancake combines the earthy and sweet, the garlicky and sour. Bi bim bap eschews crunchy vegetables for a version that is heartier, with wilted leaves mixing in among the yolk, sauce, crispy rice and tender seared beef.
The Golden Dish has reviewed Scratch Toast Bar,
What you get here is a line-up of toasts that come with various spreads…On my first visit I thoroughly enjoyed the cheese toast. I was expecting a glorified grilled cheese sandwich but was taken away instead by the house-made pumpkin enriched ricotta spread on a multi-grain sprouted bread. It was lightly toasted and the ricotta, laced with honey, was beautifully made.
Portland Magazine has reviewed Bolster Snow, and
We’re even more wowed by the day’s catch—sea bass on our visit—served as a whole, pan-seared filet in a sauce containing earthy chanterelles, pickled raisins, and subtle curry oil ($30). The fish is tender and sweet, and the skin crackles. Accompanying florets of cauliflower will convert even the staunchest non-believer.
the Portland Press Herald has reviewed The Treehouse.
A great place to go for whimsical ambiance; get there soon before the weather chills too much to enjoy that patio.
Also this week, Down East published a review of Cong Tu Bot. The article isn’t online yet, but the magazine is available at your local newsstand.
Allan Kellis, 68
Allan Kellis, co-owner of The Holy Donut, passed away earlier this week at the age of 68, reports the Press Herald.
Soon after Leigh Kellis started making doughnuts in her kitchen in 2011, her father, Allan Kellis, jumped in to help.
He would show up at 6 every morning to make deliveries to coffee shops and retailers like Coffee by Design and Whole Foods. For the next five months, he delivered doughnuts and worked tirelessly to help his daughter grow the wholesale business and secure a retail space.
Under Construction: Highroller Lobster Co.
Highroller Lobster Company has announced plans to open a brick and mortar restaurant. The restaurant will be located at 104 Exchange Street in the former Portland Meatball Company space.
Owners Baxter Key and Andy Gerry launched their first food cart in June 2015. They’ve been a fixture at tasting rooms in the Portland area and have added a second cart on Commercial Street. Key and Gerry are working with Peter Bissell on this project to as they put it “make this place SLAP!”