Restaurant Real Estate: May 2021

| Posted in Real Estate

Welcome to the May 2021 edition of the Portland Food Map restaurant real estate listings sponsored by The Boulos Company. This monthly column gathers in one convenient place the spaces available in Portland that could be potential sites for restaurants and food producers/retailers to locate their next business.

Even in these tough times for the hospitality industry some people are pursuing their dreams and opening new food businesses. Finding the right spot is one of the crucial early challenges in launching a new business and hopefully this new resource will make that step just a little bit easier.

West End

101 York St – a 15,000 sq ft sub-dividable space in the new building on the corner of York and High Street is available for $15-20/sq ft (NNN). The space already has a hood vent and grease traps installed.

Arts District

555 Congress St – the former Five Fifty-Five building is for sale for $2,400,000.

605 Congress St – Two spaces in the State Theater Building is available. They are 543 sq ft and 2,685 sq ft and are listed at $25-35/sq ft (MG).

Bayside

148 Anderson St – 3,000 sq ft in East Bayside located next to Tandem Coffee available for $17/sq ft (NNN).

170 Anderson St – 2,000 – 3,500 sq ft in East Bayside available for $15/sq ft (NNN).

15 Chestnut St – the 14,000 sq ft building that was the former home of Grace is for sale for $3,730,000.

84 Cove St – The 8,969 sq ft former Milk & Honey in Bayside is available for $13/sq ft (NNN).

360 Cumberland Ave – two spaces (900 sq ft on Cumbeerland Ave and 1,000 sq ft in a building set back from the street) are available for $24-25/sq ft (NNN).

178 Kennebec St – a new building under construction will have 1,800 – 5314 sq ft for lease at $30/sq ft (NNN).

23 Marginal Way – a 1,300 sq ft space in Century Plaza is available for $28/sq ft (NNN).

25 Portland St – 2 spaces in the Flat Iron Block (600 and 725 sq ft) ar available for $1,300 and $1,500/month respectively.

34 Portland St – the 4,256 sq ft building that was formerly occupied by Candy’s is available for $3,500/month.

24 Preble St – former location of Arcadia is available.

225 Oxford St – 600-2,000 sq ft of build to suit space in a new building for $25/sq ft (NNN).

Old Port

1 Commercial St – the original location of Benkay at the corner of Commercial and India Streets is available. The 2,494 sq ft is for lease at $35/sq ft (NNN).

266 Commercial St – 6,689 sq ft of new construction retail space will be available for $20-22/sq ft (NNN).

383 Commercial St – 4 street retail spaces will be available (1,631 – 1,971 sq ft) at $28/sq ft (NNN) in a new building under construction at the corner of Maple and Commercial Streets.

98 Cross St – a 991 sq ft retail space is available for $20/sq ft (MG).

18 Exchange St – 1,800 sq ft of retail space for lease at $6,950/month (MG).

425 Fore St – The former Five Guys is available. $2,900/sq ft and $40/sq ft (MG).

446 Fore St – 1,600 – 3,400 sq ft in the former Pearl space with entrances on Wharf and Fore Streets is available for $30-40/sq ft (MG).

40 Free St – A new building is under construction on Free Street by JB Brown. The first floor will have 4/5 storefronts ranging in size from 1,358 to 3,067 sq ft. The construction is expected to be completed in early 2021. The rate is $30/sq ft (NNN).

56 Hampshire St – a 1,450 sq ft space in the new condo building on Hampshire Street is available for $24/sq ft (NNN).

55 Market St – this 3,700 sq ft space on Market Street was formerly occupied by the Big Easy. It’s available for $24/sq ft (NNN).

28 Monument Square – the former Maine Squeeze juice bar in the Public Market House is for lease. Contact leasing@juicery.com for more information. Also, the second floor space formerly occupied by Sichuan Kitchen is available, call (207) 939-0980 for information.

66 Pearl St – the 5,796 space formerly occupied by Bull Moose is available for $15.75/sq ft (MG).

2 Portland Square – the turnkey former Walter’s is on the market. 3,219 sq ft for $28/sq ft (MG).

3 Portland Square – This new building will include 2,500 – 20,000 square feet of retail space for$28.50/sq ft.

3 Spring St – the 2,554 – 3,500 sq ft former Lio space is available at $23/sq ft (NNN).

23 Temple St – this 947 sq ft is located in the same building as the Nickelodeon. It’s for lease at $25/sq ft (MG).

India/Washington Ave

100 Fore St – 2 retail spaces are available in a new building planned for Fore Street. 1,141 and 1,914 sq ft respectively, $27 – 30/sq ft (NNN).

Forest Ave

701 Forest Ave – this former Rite Aid building is being converted and has 4 retail spaces available for $20-25/sq ft (NNN).

1053 Forest Ave – the former Papa John’s on Forest Ave is available, 1,200 sq ft at $25/sq ft (NNN).

1190 Forest Ave – located right in the center of Morrill’s Corner. 3,000 – 5,082 sq ft at $12 – 20/sq ft (NNN).

1569 Forest Ave – a 1,400 sq ft “soon to be completed restaurant/retail building” is available on outer Forest Ave.

Other

865 Brighton Ave – a 1,232 sq ft former gas station/quick market is for sale for $400,000.

1041 Brighton Ave – 1,500 -7,000 sq ft of space available in the strip mall that’s the longtime location of Panda Garden. The space is available for $10-13/sq ft (NNN).

118 Congress St – a 1,088 sq ft retail space on Munjoy Hill for $25/sq ft (NNN).

441 Congress St – The 2,400 sq ft former home of Guitar Grave across the street from 1 Monument Square is available for $20/sq ft.

469 Stevens Ave – the 850 sq ft space formerly occupied by Simply Scandinavian Foods is for lease for $1,500/month (MG).

Riverside Gold Course – the City of Portland is looking for someone interested in taking over the restaurant at the Riverside Golf Course.

Westgate Shopping Center – two spaces are for least at $17-37/sq ft (NNN).

23 Lincoln St, Biddeford – a 12,600 sq ft space divided equally on two floors, each floor has a kitchen with hoods is available for $11/sq ft (NNN). Contact Tony Delois for more information at anthony@uncommongroups.com.

117 Route 1, Freeport – the former Conundrum building in Freeport is for sale for $1.2M.

111 Main St, Westbrook – the former Ruby Tuesday’s in Westbrook Crossing shopping plaza off of Brighton is for lease. Contact nick.margitza@wsdevelopment.com.

Other Spaces – some vacated restaurant spaces haven’t yet been formerly listed for by the owner (e.g. Piccolo). Check the closing announcements for the latest information.

Glossary

MG – Modified Gross which indicates that the operating expenses (taxes, insurance, maintenance, etc.) for the property are included in the lease rate. The tenant would pay its own utilities, which sometimes includes heat.

NNN – Triple Net which indicates that operating expenses are not included in the lease rate, and the tenant will pay them separately. They are often referred to as CAM (Common Area Maintenance) charges and taxes, which are expressed as $/sf. The tenant is also responsible for utilities.

Gross – Gross indicates all expenses including utilities are included in the lease rate. The tenant would be responsible for phone and internet access, as well as interior janitorial.

Jackrabbit Cafe in Biddeford

| Posted in General

The opening of Jackrabbit Cafe (instagram) will take place this coming Friday on May 7th. The bakery and cafe from Elda (instagram) chef/co-owner Bowman Brown will “focus on Scandinavian-inspired breads and pastries as well as seasonal vegetable dishes, sandwiches, and heartier small plates”. Jackrabbit is located in the first floor of 14 Main Street in Biddeford. The second floor of the newly renovated building will be the future home of Elda when it re-opens (timing still TBD but likely this summer).

Here are some photos from both Jackrabbit and Elda. The picture above is of the Jackrabbit dining room, below you can see photos of co-owners Bowman and Anna Brown, Jackrabbit signage, the Russian dumplings and a cardamom bun. The bottom 4 pictures are of the new dining room and bar of Elda. The Browns worked with Carrie Dessertine of Mey & Co on the design of the cafe and restaurant.

Brown moved to Maine from Salt Lake City where he was the co-owner and chef of Forage. He was a Food & Wine Best New Chef in 2011. Additionally, Brown was six time Beard semifinalists in the Best Chef: Southwest from 2011 to 2016. Elda was named one of the Best New Restaurants in America by Bill Addison at Eater in 2018, and was the feature of a New York Times article in that same year.

Jackrabbit Cafe will be open Wednesday through Saturday 8:30 – 3.

Cheese Louise Opens Today

| Posted in Openings

Cheese Louise (website, facebook, instagram) is holding their grand opening today at 11 am. The restaurant is located at 363 Fore Street in the space formerly occupied by Cheevitdee. The menu includes 6 grilled cheese sandwich options which you can order online.

Cheese Louise was founded by  James Gaudreault, Ian Lubkin and Bryce Harrison as a food truck in New Hampshire and have two restaurants in Conway. Hours for the Old Port location will be Sunday through Thursday 11 – 9, and Friday/Saturday 11 – at least midnight.

New Food Trucks

| Posted in Openings

Two new food trucks are set to launch this weekend:

The Pink Waffle (instagram) has its Portland debut at Bellefower Brewing on Sunday, 1-4 where they’ll be serving up a menu of waffle plates, waffle-based sandwiches and waffle snacks.

Snowology (instagram) will be launching on Saturday serving up bowls of flavored ice. The have a menu of 20 flavors and 5 house combos like Acadia Sunrise (cherry, mango, orange dreamsicle). Snowology will be in the Oakdale neighborhood starting around 3 pm.

Rosemont Market & Wine Bar

| Posted in Under Construction

Rosemont Market has announced plans to open the Rosemont Market & Wine Bar on Thompson’s Point.

With the anticipated opening of the Children’s Museum at the Point, we jumped at the opportunity to put fresh, local food into the hands of more Maine families and those visiting from away.

Our intention for the wine bar space is to create a gathering place for our community to come together and enjoy a glass of wine, some local snacks, and to share the stories of our producers that make Rosemont’s wine program so special.

We look forward to hosting our friends and neighbors, farmers, and suppliers as we all experience and celebrate good food, delicious wine, and our community. We can’t wait to welcome you in.

The new Rosemont location will be located in one half of the space formerly occupied by the Cellardoor Winery tasting room (Rwanda Bean Coffee is already building out a new roastery in the other half of the space).

The market and wine bar is expected to open as soon as this summer.

Ben Jackson Joining Magnus

| Posted in People

James Beard Award nominated chef Ben Jackson will be joining the team at Magnus on Water for the relaunch of the Biddeford cocktail bar and restaurant.

Alchemy /ˈalkəmē/ a seemingly magical process of transformation, creation, or combination.

The food Ben cooks is deeply comforting, yet vibrant. It is often full of subtle surprises—some may even say it’s alchemy. Yet, perhaps most of all, Ben is inspired by the phenomenal land and seascape of Maine; the bounty and gifts of all the beings here. He hopes to honor these lives, our family, and the change of seasons, via the food on our plates.

I think this is an amazing match-up of talent, and am looking forward to seeing how the synergies develop between Jackson’s food, Catapang’s cocktails and the stellar hospitality Magnus got known for in the short time they were open.

Magnus on Water (website, facebook, instagram, twitter) was launched by Carmen Harris, bartender Brian Catapang, general manager Brittany Saliwanchik and Julia Russell on January 18th 2020 and had a short run of regular service before being shutdown by the pandemic. They re-opened during this past summer for outdoor service on their granite patio.

Prior to moving to Maine, Jackson was a sous chef at Diner and Marlow and Sons and the executive sous chef Reynard in the Wythe Hotel in Brooklyn. In Portland Jackson was the founding chef at Drifters Wife which closed in 2020. Jackson was a James Beard Best Chef nominee in 2020 and Drifters was named one of the 10 best restaurants in America in 2018 by Bon Appétit. In the time since Drifters closed Jackson has been private chefing as well as operating events and the Beautiful Swimmer takeout pop-up series.

Magnus plans to open early this summer. Stay tuned to their instagram account for updates and further information.

Friends & Family in the Arts District

| Posted in Under Construction

A combination bar/cafe and specialty market called Friends & Family (instagram) is under development at 593 Congress Street in the space formerly occupied by Vinland. The 30-seat counter service eatery will serve small plates, cheese and charcuterie as well as wine, beer, and aperitivos. During warmer months Friends & Family is also planning additional seating in Congress Square Park.

Friends & Family situated in the center of the Arts District with the Portland Museum of Art, Portland Stage, Space Gallery, and State Theater all within easy walking distance. Being a go to casual space to gather pre/post a show or visit to a gallery is a key part of the vision for Friends & Family.

Founders Cecily Upton and Michael Malyniwsky hope to open Friends & Family in July.

Upton grew up in Maine. Early in her career she worked at former Portland restaurants Natasha’s and Pepperclub, as well as Space Gallery and the PMA. In New York she was part of the front of house staff at Gabrielle Hamilton’s restaurant Prune. She worked as the youth programs director at Slow Food USA before co-founding FoodCorps. Upton returned to Maine in 2015.

Malyniwsky grew up in Ottawa and moved to the US in 2001. The last 7 years he’s worked in California where most recently he was the founding chef of Cellarmaker House of Pizza in San Francisco.  Malyniwsky was on the opening teams of Birch & Barley in DC, and was the sous chef at CityZen working with Michelin-starred chef Eric Ziebold.

Follow Friends & Family on instagram to stay in the loop as they work towards an opening day this summer.

Pandemic Series: Identity and Resilience

| Posted in General News

The Press Herald has published the final article in their 5-part series on the pandemic’s impact on the Portland restaurant industry. Today’s article looks back at the factors that contributed to the success of the hospitality industry pre-pandemic and shares confidence that the restaurant scene will rebound albeit changed by the experience of the past year plus.

For more than a decade, Portland has enjoyed a national reputation as a food town, a place to go for its impressive restaurants, expansive craft beer scene and independent groceries trading in local food sourced from nearby farms and the adjacent sea. Looking for a cider house, an upscale knife store, a well-stocked cheese shop, an Eritrean restaurant or a hummusiya? Portland’s got those and much more. Its status as a bustling, walkable food town may be hardly a blip in the city’s almost 400-year-old history, but to many of its residents today, its intertwined food, drinks and restaurant scene is a source of pride, jobs, community, entertainment – even a reason they moved here.

Pandemic Series: Labor Shortage

| Posted in General News

Today’s Press Herald includes the fourth article in a 5-part series on the pandemic’s impact on the Portland restaurant industry. Today’s article reports on the tight labor market for restaurant staff and the factors contributing to it.

Over the last year plus, you’ve lost much of your staff through furloughs and layoffs. Some you’ve hired back. Some have left the industry for good; real data is hard to come by, but estimates predict as much as 25 percent of the workforce may never return. At the same time, restaurant staffers still overseeing their children’s schooling and care may not be able to work their usual hours. And federal unemployment assistance – that extra $300 a week – has been extended through early September, the beating heart of Maine’s tourism season, providing a disincentive to work, some employers say.

RAS Wine: Arkadia

| Posted in Openings

RAS Wines (website, instagram) is just about to release their first vintage of Arkadia, a sparkling wine produced from organically raised wild Maine blueberries. RAS is a Maine-based winery that will be focusing on sparkling and aromatized wines produced from organically raised Maine fruit.

The winery was founded by Dan Roche, Joe Appel and Emily Smith. All three are former Rosemont Market staff, and Joe Appel was Rosemont’s wine buyer and a former Press Herald wine columnist.

Arkadia (product sheet) is a spontaneously fermented with native yeasts, produced without added sulfur and with no fining or filtering. A secondary in-bottle fermentation is used to bottle condition the wine. Appel describes Arkadia as “dry, snappy, super bright, with a lot of dark fruit and savory character” which “sits at a new nexus point where artisanal wine, cider and beer intersect.”

In addition to Arkadia RAS is currently developing a vermouth which should come to market later this year—other wild-blueberry-based wines are in the works with plans to also expand into grape-based wines as well.

The first bottles of Arkadia are getting delivered later this week and will begin appearing on the shelves and menus around April 28th.

Look for it on the shelves at Bow Street Beverage, Higgins Beach Market, Leroux Kitchen, Lorne Wine, Maine & Loire, Old Port Wine Merchants, Rosemont Market, Speckled Ax (Thames Street), The Cheese Shop, and Vessel and Vine in Brunswick.

It’s also set to be on the takeout bottle lists and menus at Central Provisions, Chaval, Hunt + Alpine, Magnus on Water and The Honey Paw.

Check in with your favorite bottle shops and restaurants to find out if they’ll also be stocking Arkadia.