Diet for a Small City has written a review of Bresca from a vegetarian’s point of view.
I do wish there had been a few more choices on the vegetarian front, but what we did have was delectable. In the end, our bill came to around $150. It was a pricey meal. Yes, there are places in Portland where one could have a comparable meal for less money, but I’ll be honest: this was an excellent dining experience. I’ll be back.
Soooo…You Really Don’t Like Cats, Do You? has published a pair of reviews for The Corner Room
Overall, the dining experience was lovely with only the minor salt snafu with the veal. The waiter and hostess were incredibly friendly and professional and as the night went on with more diners filing into the room, the waiter never forgot us. Chef Smith did a great job with the old documentary institute space, using the airy, spacious feeling to his advantage…Oh, and yes, the authenticity was mostly on par with the real deal in Italy. Maybe it was a good idea to go to The Corner Room right after coming back from Italy after all!
and Grace
I’m not sure why my expectations for food was so high, but since The Corner Room and Grace opened on the same night, I guess I expected the level of food quality to be exceptional, especially since Grace received an extra 3 weeks after my visit to Chef Smith’s new establishment. But Chef Eric Simeon may just be ironing out the kinks in his new digs…Nonetheless, the experience was quite enjoyable, the setting breathtaking, and the food still delicious.…At $45 for my meal of only an entree and dessert (plus 20% gratuity added in), Grace may be worth it as soon as they work out their issues with the dishes, but I’m not quite sold on it yet. I wouldn’t mind another visit to monitor their progress.
Otto Pizza received 4½ stars from the weekly Eat & Run column in today’s Press Herald.
If I had thought about it very long, I might have decided that a pizza with mashed potatoes and bacon was not really my idea of pizza.
Thankfully, as with most food-related queries, I did not think. I just ate.
So for $3, I bought one of the best slices of pizza I’ve ever had – from the new Otto Pizza on Congress Street, about a block from Congress Square. The place opened in June.
Food for Thought has published a review of Grace. While the author acknowledges, “Perhaps it’s too early in its 3-week history to assess such a place”, he does write about the issues he feels “that just don’t pass muster at the moment.”
The Portland Daily Sun has published enthusiastic praise for portlandtaps.com, “Brilliant. Folks, portlandtaps.com is Einstein-level brilliance.”
Portland Food Heads has reviewed Hot Suppa!.
Regardless, I did decide to walk through the door at Hot Suppa one day and haven’t turned back since. Sunday brunch is a prized commodity to me, and I don’t think I’ve ever turned it down when mentioned or offered. I’ve eaten at just about every spot in town that does Sunday brunch (or just breakfast in general) and I have to say that Hot Suppa is up near the top of my list.
Portland Bar Guide has published a review of Siano’s.
Entering Siano’s Pizzeria for the first time, I didn’t really know what to expect. The dark tables compliment the cobblestone floor and the red ceiling with yellow trim screams Italian eatery, welcoming large groups that my Nana would love to serve. Located in the heart of Deering, Siano’s was buzzing with energy, even though it was Monday night. Old friends were meeting at the bar, families were seated sporadically and later a kickball team met in the back room.
Down East‘s Tips from a Dweller column has posted some observations on the double opening night at Grace and The Corner Room earlier this month. (via Psst!)
There’s in an article in today’s Food & Dining section on a grant to support wheat farming in Maine and Vermont.
The grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture will fund a four-year project that brings together scientists, farmers, bakers and millers from both states to expand organic wheat production in New England, once a bread basket of the nation.
Ellen Mallory, a sustainable agriculture specialist with the University of Maine Cooperative Extension Service who is leading the project, estimates that Maine produces 200 to 500 acres of organic wheat. Vermont produces about the same.
“It’s hard to get a handle on what the demand really is, but we know that we’re well below supplying that demand,” Mallory said.
In the new installment of Inside Immigrant Kitchens Lindsay Sterling learns how to cook Estonian Roast Beef and Root Vegetable Salad from Maili Kern.
Maili Kern learned this from her mother in a village on the Baltic Sea in Estonia. It’s a popular dish served on buffet tables at celebrations. The color, bright pink from beets next to bright yellow and white hardboiled eggs, is a stunning example of how powerful simple things can be in the right hands.