The December edition of Dispatch includes a list of the Best Bakeries in Maine and NH. Portland area bakeries dominate the list: Scratch, Standard, The Holy Donut, Two Fat Cats, 158 Picket Street Cafe, Aurora Provisions, Bam Bam, Big Sky, Borealis, East End Cupcakes and Rosemont. The article isn’t available online but you can pick-up a paper copy at Longfellow Books.
And in separate news, Standard Baking is #4 on a list of America’s 50 Best Bakeries put together by The Daily Meal.
El Rayo’s Henry Jost participated earlier this year in the Bombay Saphire Most Imaginative Bartender competition. Jost (2nd from the left in this segment of the image) and the other 45 bartenders from the competition are featured in a 4-page tableau in the December issue of GQ.
Jost’s entry in the competition was the High Port which is made with “fresh honeydew juice, fresh lemonade infused with three botanicals, juniper berry, coriander seed and orris root; Cocchi Americano Apertif; and Bombay Sapphire gin”.
El Rayo’s holding a release party for Jost on Tuesday, 6-8pm at El Rayo Cantina.
As usual a number of Portland area restaurants plan on serving a Thanksgiving dinner. Here are the ones I know about so far. I’ll update the list as more info comes in:
For those of you hosting your own meal at home:
Community Dinners & Donations:
Inspiration:
Is there a local restaurant, market, bakery, or Thanksgiving event that’s missing? Post a comment with the info and I’ll add them to the list.
Peter Peter Portland Eater has published a review of the Portland & Rochester Public House.
Reasonably priced, our meal came to just a notch below 70 bucks before tip. Portland and Rochester Public House is definitely onto something. I had heard mixed reviews prior to visiting, but there was no uncertainty on my part. The food was amazing, the service was right where it should be, and the scenery was among the best around. The worst criticism I have is that the beignets were a little short on peanut butter flavor. Other than that, the food was perfect right down to the last lima bean in my succotash.
Monday —MPBN’s Jennifer Rooks will be interviewing Sam Hayward, Kathy Gunst and Amanda Beal about Maine’s farm-to-table movement.
Tuesday — the monthly local food networking breakfast is taking place at Local Sprouts, and an Oxbow tap takeover and izakaya menu, dubbed Oxbozakaya, is taking place at Pai Men.
Wednesday — Five Fifty-Five is serving a 4-course seafood dinner in collaboration with GMRI, there will be an open house in East Bayside for Bomb Diggity Bakery, Pure Pops, Maine Pie Line, and Swallowtail Farm and the Monument Square Farmers Market is taking place.
Thursday — Josh Christie, author of Maine Beer: Brewing in Vacationland will be delivering a lecture at the Maine Historical Society on the history of Maine’s post-Prohibition brewing industry, Rosemont and Tandem are collaborating on the 4th in their tasting series, MJ’s is having a Beaujolais Nouveau release party, and there will bee a wine and cheese tasting at the Public Market House.
Friday — Jason C. Anthony, author of Hoosh: Roast Penguin, Scurvy Day, and Other Stories of Antarctic Cuisine, will be giving a lecture at the Portland Public Library.
Saturday — the Deering Oaks Farmers Market is taking place.
Sunday — the American Sommelier foundation series will be featuring wines from the southern hemisphere, and Petite Jacqueline will be holding a Beaujolais Nouveau wine dinner.
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, publicize it by adding it as a comment to this post.
The Maine Sunday Telegram has published a review of Piccolo.
For authentic southern Italian cooking, elegantly and simply prepared, Piccolo offers an outstanding dining experience in a small, casual café setting. The wine list offers serious bottlings from Italy’s outstanding wine-producing regions; the list is well-priced. The menu changes daily, but best dishes include any of the pastas, pork, lamb and fish preparations. When available, the slow-baked fish with potatoes cooked in whey is a standout, as is the brined sardines and cavatelli with lamb ragu. Desserts are made by pastry chef and co-proprietor Ilma Lopez.
MPBN and the Press Herald report that four companies have submitted bids for the state’s liquor contract.
When the 2 p.m. deadline arrived and the bidder’s identities were revealed, four contenders emerged: All Maine Spirits LLC and Pine State Trading, both out of Augusta, CD&M Communications of Portland and Dirigo Spirit Company LLC of Cumberland.
The Golden Dish has published a review of Becky’s Diner.
I had a simpler dish of broiled haddock with lemon and buttered crumbs. The fish was flakey, cooked just right and the lemon-scented crumbs were perfect. I chose the twice-baked potato and Brussels sprouts with bacon as my sides. The potato was so big it looked like a beached dirigible. The flesh from a giant spud was scooped out and mixed with a kitchen sink of spices, sour cream, onion and plenty of bacon. It’s put back into the skin and baked until crisped and puffed. The boiled Brussels sprouts were still firm and nicely smoked from the bits of bacon. The buttermilk biscuit was classic.
The Press Herald reports that work has begun to renovate and eventually reopen Colucci’s.
The city of Portland’s inspections division approved a building permit Oct. 30 to Congress 135 Market LLC to “rehabilitate and renovate” Colucci’s Hilltop Superette at 135 Congress St.
The renovation work began Tuesday. According to documents filed with the city, the renovation is expected to cost $300,000.
In the latest entry from Immigrant Kitchens, Lindsay Sterling learns how to make Mexican Tamales from Jenny Sanchez (read the story, get the recipe and see the photos).