The Portland Press Herald has published a profile of Norm Sprague. Sprague recently retired from a “30-year stint instructing culinary arts at Westbrook Regional Vocational Center.” He is now working as the daytime manager at the Miss Portland Diner.
Under Construction: Wasabi
Here’s a look in the window (above) at the building site for Wasabi, a new sushi bar under construction at 7 Exchange Street. Floor plans supplied to the city as part of the liquor license application, (below) show seating on the left of the door with sushi bars in back and on the right.
Kosher Maple Syrup
A Gorham sugar shack, The Lockman Place, is now producing kosher maple syrup certified by Hechsher of the Vaad of Portland. Rabbi Akiva Herzfeld from Congregation Shaarey Tphiloh administers the kosher certification process for the syrup.
Maine’s California Winery Connection
Chow Maine‘s Bob Rossi has written an interesting article about Maine’s connection to two California wineries: Serenity Vineyards and Thunderstone.
This Week’s Events
Tuesday is St Patrick’s Day. The biweekly Winter Farmers’ Market is scheduled for Wednesday morning. Boys and Their Beers a 5-course prix fixe dinner with beer pairing, is taking place at Frog and Turtle Wednesday evening; five local chefs are collaborating on the meal. There are two cooking classes this week: Piatto per Tutti on Monday and Black Tie Bistro on Wednesday. The last class of Maine Food & Drink Institute’s cheese course is on Tueday night. Thursday night, The Great Lost Bear is showcasing beers from Brooklyn Brewing. Old Port Wine Merchants, Black Cherry Provisions and Rosemont on Brighton are all holding wine tastings this week. Maine Maple Sunday, a celebration of maple sugaring in the state, is this weekend. For more information on these and other upcoming food happenings in the area, visit the event calendar.
Under Construction: The Corner Room
I took a look in the window (see above) at the site of Harding Smith’s upcoming restaurant, The Corner Room. Construction seems to be moving right along. Building plans supplied to the city (see below) show the curved bar now being built.
Maine Maple Sunday
Today’s Maine Sunday Telegram has an article about next weekend’s Maine Maple Sunday. It includes a list of participating sugar houses in York and Cumberland Counties. For a state-wide list visit the Get Real, Get Maine! website.
Micucci’s Pasta Sauces
Micucci’s is planning on releasing a series of house branded pasta sauces. The sauces are the creation of chef/baker Stephen Lanzalotta. The set of four sauces include Puttanesca Sauce, Original Pasta Sauce, Marinara Sauce and Vodka Sauce.
St Patrick’s Day
Portland Bar Guide has published a round-up of St Patricks day entertainment and eating/drinking specials.
Barava
Portland in a Snap has published a profile of Barava, the new Somali restaurant located on Congress near Longfellow Square.
Along with the tea, Ahmed gave me a primer on Somali cuisine, which calls on a wide-range of influences. These include food traditions from India, other African nations and other Middle Eastern countries, which reflect Somalia’s long history as a trading hub. Somali cuisine also contains elements of Italian cooking, picked up during the years of Italian colonization.