This Week’s Events: Prohibition Dinner, Queer Soup Night, Bibliophile Supper Club, Polish Dinner

| Posted in Events

Wednesday – Eaux, Good Fire Brewing and Mr. Tuna are collaborating on a Prohibition-themed dinner.

Thursday – This month’s edition of the Bibliophile Adventurer’s Supper Club will be at Schulte & Herr.

Friday – Solo Italiano and Allagash are teaming up to put on a special menu with matched beer pairings.

Saturday – Swallowtail Farm is serving a 4-course Polish dinner, there will be a wine tasting at Browne Trading, and the Winter Farmers’ Market is taking place.

Sunday – Cong Tu Bot is hosting a Queer Soup Night.

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.

Vegan Sandwiches, Restaurant Theft

| Posted in General News

The Food & Dining section in today’s Maine Sunday Telegram includes articles on rampant theft from restaurants,

At DiMillo’s on the Water in Portland, customers steal steak knives, souffle cups, and nautical decorations from buffets. A chef who owns several Maine restaurants says pictures have been removed from their frames. And someone once stole a large ficus tree – like Volk’s painting, a gift from a parent – at one of his openings.

and on the improved availability of vegan breakfast sandwiches.

A few years ago I couldn’t buy a vegan breakfast sandwich in Portland for love or money, and now at least five places sell them. The sandwiches reflect a wider boom in vegan breakfast taking place across the city. From sandwiches to tofu scrambles to pancakes and doughnuts, it’s become easy to eat vegan in the Forest City for the first meal of the day.

Reviews: Hugo’s, Duckfat Frites Shack

| Posted in Reviews

The Maine Sunday Telegram has reviewed the Hugo’s, and

Think of it as the Anne Brontë of the trio: It keeps the lowest profile, but it is almost certainly the most interesting of the bunch. An eclectic, New American restaurant that plays up both its Asian and Mediterranean influences, Hugo’s offers a menu of small (and slightly larger) plates that demonstrate new chef de cuisine Ben Christie’s mastery at equilibrating acid and umami, heat and sweetness, as well as textural contrasts. His best dishes include smoky, hand-rolled tortellini in a sparklingly clear pork consommé and a remarkable pairing of uni (sea urchin roe), pickled ginger and carrots.

the Press Herald has reviewed the Duckfat Frites Shack.

What the soup lacked in quantity, though, it made up for in quality. It was more like a duck chili – smoky, warm and satisfying. Bits of carrots and other veggies were mixed in with the duck and the fried duck skins. The tiny bits of fried duck skin were a little soggy by the time I ate them – my fault – but I picked a few out to taste separately and they were delicious, definitely adding to the layers of flavor.

Kuno Launches Sunday

| Posted in Under Construction

Kuno (instagram) a new food truck serving Malaysian Peranakan cuisine is set to launch on Sunday at Battery Steele Brewing.

Wikipedia describes Peranakan cuisine as “the result of blending Chinese ingredients with various distinct spices and cooking techniques used by the Malay/Indonesian community,” and with some Thai influences.

Owner Nick Yee has acquired the former Thainy Boda food truck which he has converted into Kuno.

Under Construction: Flood’s

| Posted in Under Construction

Boston.com has an update on Greg Mitchell’s new 50-seat restaurant called Flood’s (instagram) which is currently under construction in the West End in the space formerly occupied by Bolster Snow.

Flood’s will focus on dinner when it first opens, before serving breakfast and lunch at a later date. While Mitchell, who is still in the process of hiring a chef and bar manager, hasn’t nailed down specific dishes quite yet (other than “a delicious burger”), he said that the menu will have a strong focus on classic, hearty meat and fish dishes, including a Sunday roast that he hopes will “remind people of eating at their grandma’s house at 3 or 4 in the afternoon.” A drink list of cocktails, beer, and wine will offer hotel guests and locals a solid place to wind down in the evening.

Under Construction: Magnus on Water

| Posted in Under Construction

The Journal Tribune has published an update on Magnus on Water, the new cocktail bar under construction in Biddeford.

Through that exterior space thee partners’ vision of being part of improving their community will extend through and beyond their restaurant. On Tuesday, City Council approved entering a lease-purchase agreement for Tale Wind to purchase 2 Water St., known as Liberty Park from the city. The LLC will pay $100,000 over 20 years for the lot and will pay to redesign and maintain new landscaping for the park. That area will be connected to new green space the city will create and maintain when the intersection and Main, Water and Hill streets is reconfigured by the Maine Department of Transportation later this year.

This Week’s Events: 207, Rosemont Falmouth, Hush Hush, Wine Dinners, Valentines Day

| Posted in Events

Monday – Rosemont Market is opening their new store in Falmouth today. Chef Krista Kern Desjarlais is the subject of a segment on the show 207 airing today at 7pm on Channel 6 in Portland and Channel 2 in Bangor.

Tuesday – the February edition of Hush Hush is taking place.

Wednesday – Sur Lie and the Portland Chamber Music Festival are collaborating on a sold out salon series dinner, and there will be a wine tasting at the RSVP.

Thursday – A little holiday called Valentines Day is taking place. Consult the social media accounts for your favorite restaurants for V-Day special events.

Friday – Black Tie is holding a Graze farm dinner is taking place in Yarmouth, and there will be a wine tasting at the new Rosemont Market in Falmouth.

Saturday – the Winter Farmers’ Market is taking place.

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.

Perennial Cider Bar

| Posted in Under Construction

A new cider bar and “farm kitchen” called Perennial (website, instagram) is under construction in Belfast.

Perennial is a cider bar and farm kitchen in Belfast, Maine. We offer a menu of traditional and heritage hard ciders from Maine and beyond, along with dishes inspired by the products of our local farms, forests, and coastline. By showcasing the variety of expressions of the apple, the landscapes where they grow, and the culinary traditions that inspire us, our goal is to offer a taste of place and time that acknowledges the richness of the past while savoring the moment in front of us. We hope you’ll join us for a meal, a drink, or both when we open in April 2019.

Chef/curator Khristopher Hogg and barkeep Hunter Sunrise intend for Perennial to be not only a cider bar and restaurant but also a location for “tastings, talks, and other events“ that help “our community to meet and connect with the stories behind what we serve and even develop some new skills or interests along the way”.

Perennial is scheduled to hold their grand opening on April 3rd.

Under Construction: Basket & Blanket

| Posted in Under Construction

A picnic-themed food truck called Basket & Blanket (instagram) is under development with plans to launch this summer.

Co-founders Mike Allen and Avril Williams have launched a $25,000 Go Fund Me campaign to raise funds to purchase the truck and cover other start-up costs of the business. You can read more about their vision for the truck and it’s community service component on the Go Fund Me campaign page.