Under Construction: Piccolo

| Posted in Under Construction

Chef Damian Sansonetti has leased 111 Middle Street, the former location of Bresca, and plans to open a new restaurant called Piccolo. Sansonetti will be serving a menu inspired by cuisine of Calabria and Abruzzi, tapping into the rustic tastes of of the regions where his family hail from. He plans to make some changes to the interior design of the dining room but otherwise leave the overall layout the same, and hopes to open the restaurant in September.

Sansonetti moved to Portland from NYC where he had been the Executive Chef of Bar Boulud. He’s a co-owner of Blue Rooster Food Co. on Dana Street. In addition to Piccolo, he still has plans to open a restaurant in Portland called Sonnet at some point in the future.

In and Around Town

| Posted in Reviews

Boston food blogger In and Around Town recently paid a visit to Portland and has written about her experiences at Standard Baking, Duckfat, Street & Co. and East Ender.

Everything at East Ender was out of this world.  Who would have thought that such delicious fried chicken would come out of Maine?!  The hoisin BBQ sauce on the pulled pork was surprising and added a fun twist in flavor.  The donut was literally the icing on the cake.  Going to East Ender for any form of food is a good decision.

Reviews: Outliers & Brian Boru

| Posted in Reviews, Beer, People

Today’s Press Herald includes a review of Brian Boru,

My barbecue was outstanding. I loved the zesty flavor of the barbecue sauce, and I really appreciated that the slaw came as part of the sandwich instead of on the side.

The slaw tempered the tender barbecue just enough to create a nice contrast in flavors and texture, and was not at all juicy to dampen the bun.

a bar review of Outliers,

Cocktails made with beer are a trend that in the wrong hands can go, well, wrong. At Outliers, capable hands mixed up my order, Postman Always Rings Twice (wheat beer, gin, St. Germain, lemon and grapefruit juices and orange bitters), a refreshing, perfectly balanced libation for warm summer evenings. On such nights, the outdoor deck beckons, with its view across Harbor View Park to the bridge.

an interview with the owners of Gelato Fiasco,

Since starting out with little idea how to make gelato, let alone profitably, they have won accolades from Food Network Magazine (top frozen dessert in Maine) and Down East magazine (best ice cream in the state) and a trip to the White House for an event honoring young entrepreneurs.

and the latest installment of the What Ales You column.

Miyake Farm

| Posted in Farming

WCSH has aired a report about Miyake’s farm in Freeport which supplies produce and meat products to Miyake and Pai Men Miyake.

Chef Masa Miyake has been cooking in restaurants since he was 16, now he is realizing another dream of his, raising many breeds of animals he cannot find for his restaurants in his own backyard farm.

“Farming is more work. More difficult,” he admits, but says there is a certain type of satisfaction that comes from growing your own produce and nuturing livestock that is served at your table.

 

Food Trucks: Love Cupcakes

| Posted in Profiles

The Forecaster has published an interview with Anna Turcotte about Love Cupcakes and the challenges of running a food truck in Portland.

The newly remodeled truck has the same color scheme of the little trailer and will be located in a parking lot at Fore and Center streets. They plan to be open dessert hours, 7-10 p.m., Thursdays, Fridays and most Saturdays, if they don’t have an event to cater.

Turcotte said the new truck will give her more freedom and mobility to cater events like weddings and bridal showers, which have been much more successful, but previously required her to have more help.

J’s Oyster Bar

| Posted in Profiles, History

Maine magazine has posted an article about J’s Oyster Bar that appeared in the July issue.

On the stool to my right sits a slight man in a baseball cap with a gray mustache who tells me, “I was here on opening night back in 1977!” The man is Frank Kimball. He is 75 years old, grew up on Peaks Island, and is a former Navy sailor, postman, drag racer, and husband. He doesn’t eat oysters, but he loves the scallop casserole. “You got to get it,” he says. “The atmosphere is 90 percent of the reason I come here. The rest is the scallop casserole.”

Sweetgrass Farm Distillery

| Posted in Farming

In part two of The Root’s series on Maine craft distilleries blogger Sharon Kitchens and Portland Hunt & Alpine Club co-owner Andrew Volk paid a visit to Sweetgrass Farm Winery & Distillery in Union, Maine.

Keith Bodine, co-owner, winemaker, and distiller for Sweetgrass Farm Winery & Distillery in Union, Maine, is a man with a healthy science background and a passion to create something. Thankfully, one of those things is gin.

“I really like gin,” said Bodine. “Distilling always appealed to me. I took a couple distilling classes at (UC) Davis. It’s not a major part of their curriculum, but I was always intrigued by it.”

Interview with Fluid Farms

| Posted in Farming

MaineToday.com has published an interview with Jackson McLeod and Tyler Gaudet, owners of Fluid Farms (website, facebook) an aquaponics company operating in Falmouth that’s farming basil and tilapia.

How do you explain this process to others?

Jackson- Aquaculture is raising fish in water. Hydroponics is raising plants without soil. In any system, you have to put nutrients in. Our nutrient is fish feed.

Tyler- We feed the fish, they excrete the waste that feeds the plants, the water comes back to the plants clean.

Jackson- The plants are the living filter for the fish. The fish are the nutrients for the plants.

Under Construction: Coastal Root Cocktail Bitters

| Posted in Under Construction

A new company called Coastal Root is working to launch a line of locally produced bitters later this summer. Owner Nolan Stewart developed an interest in bitters during his tenure as a bartender at Five Fifty-Five. The first of his bitters has a base of gentian, burdock and dandelion root with sassafras and sarsaparilla playing a leading role. Stewart has a second bitters in the planning stages that will feature hibiscus, jasmine and ginger.

The Coastal Root Facebook page explains, “We are a company dedicated to creating cocktail bitters, and innovative cocktail ingredients in Portland Maine. It is our goal to use local ingredients to give our bitters a Maine identity.”

Portland’s cocktail culture is making some good strides forward. Maine Craft Distilling recently joined New England Distilling to provide locally produced spirits, craft cocktail bar the Portland Hunt & Alpine Club is under construction on Market Street, a mixology shop called Vena’s Fizz House opened last week, and now Coastal Root will be providing a source for locally produced bitters.

Imbibe: Maine Mead Works

| Posted in Profiles

An article on American mead appears the latest issue of Imbibe magazine. Maine Mead Works is one of the meaderies featured in the article.

The HoneyMaker meads from Portland’s Maine Mead Works also taste markedly different. They drink dry, crisp and delightfully delicate, making them more in line with well-crafted white wines. “We want to show that mead is light, food-friendly and can be a part of everyday life,” says owner Ben Alexander, whose initial ignorance of mead led to an infatuation.