This Week’s Events

Wednesday Wine Wise is teaching a class at The Wine Bar and the Grace wine club will be meeting to discuss/taste Summer wines.

Thursday — Cultivating Community is hosting one of their biweekly Twilight Dinners at their farm in Cape Elizabeth, and a wine tasting is scheduled to take place at Downeast Beverage.

Friday — there will be a wine tasting at the West End Deli, and the First Friday Art Walk is taking place. Restaurants will be busy so make your reservations early.

Saturday — there will be a wine tasting at the LeRoux Kitchen.

Farmer’s Markets — the traditional series of Farmer’s Markets are taking place Monday (Monument Square), Wednesday (Monument Square) and Saturday (Deering Oaks Park). Cultivating Community is running their new series of markets Wednesday, Thursday and Friday at various locations around the city.

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.

Review of Soju

Soju received 2½ stars from the Taste & Tell column in today’s Maine Sunday Telegram.

Yaki udon ($8.50) held big, fat, square rice noodles — again not a favorite, but well-liked by my dinner companion. The mild sauce and scallions, zucchini, carrots, onions and mushrooms mixed with cubes of tofu that had a crisp, thin fried coating kept the dish interesting.

Review of DiMillo's

From Away has published a review of DiMillo’s.

It’s the sort of place where you share molten chocolate cake. It’s the sort of place you bring your grandma for her 90th birthday and delight in watching her wear a bib adorned with anthropomorphic shellfish. It’s the sort of place where your waitress forgets to fire your order but you forgive her and she comps you a glass of Chardonnay while career waiters in their black vests swan around mocking her failures. It’s crenolins and mary janes and falling asleep in the back of the station wagon while your parents smoke and argue, The Moody Blues on the radio. DiMillo’s is nostalgia for the future.

Review of DiMillo’s

From Away has published a review of DiMillo’s.

It’s the sort of place where you share molten chocolate cake. It’s the sort of place you bring your grandma for her 90th birthday and delight in watching her wear a bib adorned with anthropomorphic shellfish. It’s the sort of place where your waitress forgets to fire your order but you forgive her and she comps you a glass of Chardonnay while career waiters in their black vests swan around mocking her failures. It’s crenolins and mary janes and falling asleep in the back of the station wagon while your parents smoke and argue, The Moody Blues on the radio. DiMillo’s is nostalgia for the future.

Review of Hot Suppa

From Away has published a review of Hot Suppa.

Open for breakfast and lunch, but not actually “Suppa,” a fact that my 11-year-old nephew finds hilarious and fascinating, you may hit a bit of a wait on the weekends. The tables turn quickly, though, and seeing the smiling, satisfied faces on their way out inspire you to wait just a little longer. Hot Suppa has emerged, in our brief time in Portland, as our favorite place to bring out-of-town guests for a cozy, bleary-eyed breakfast.

Review of Mike's

Mike’s, the new sandwich shop on Congress Street, has received 4 stars from the Eat & Run review in today’s Press Herald.

Opened this month, Mike’s is a small restaurant. The front room houses a few stools, where you can eat looking at Congress Street out the front window, beverage coolers and the kitchen. The back room has tables for seating. There are band posters and other art work celebrating rock ‘n’ roll decorating the restaurant’s two rooms.

Review of Mike’s

Mike’s, the new sandwich shop on Congress Street, has received 4 stars from the Eat & Run review in today’s Press Herald.

Opened this month, Mike’s is a small restaurant. The front room houses a few stools, where you can eat looking at Congress Street out the front window, beverage coolers and the kitchen. The back room has tables for seating. There are band posters and other art work celebrating rock ‘n’ roll decorating the restaurant’s two rooms.

Outdoor Eats at The Porthole and Silly's

An article in Wednesday’s Portland Daily Sun writes about outdoor eating in Portland with special attention paid to The Porthole and Silly’s. For a complete (I think) list of outdoor eating spots in Portland see this list on PFM.

An endless summer doesn’t appeal to everyone, and even I look forward to pulling out my oversized sweaters, roasting freshly carved pumpkin seeds with different spices, and hitting the Cumberland County Fair to ogle the pies and bovines. It’s the change of seasons that makes each individual one so tasty; but for now, as Springsteen says, I’m going to keep “drinkin’ warm beer in the soft summer rain” as long as Mother Nature will allow.