Upcoming Food & Dining Events

| Posted in Events

Saturday – Waxwing Bakery is holding a pop-up at Bumbleroot Farm in Windham.

July 18 – Richard Lee and Clair Guyer from Little Brother Chinese will be the featured chefs at the July taco night at Dandelion Spring Farm in Bowdoinham.

July 19 – Cafe Mugen (instagram) will be holding a ramen pop-up at Belleville on North Street. Belleville baker and self-described “ramen nerd” Noah Codega will be serving a take on a classic Tokyo-style shoyu ramen with homemade noodles. The menu will also include a blueberry-ginger sorbet for dessert.

July 19-21 – The Yarmouth Clam Festival is taking place.

July 20 – The premiere of the movie One Pint at a Time will take place in East Bayside. The screening is part of a two day event in partnership with Toad & Co, Orange Bike Brewing, Black Travel Maine, The Third Place and the National Black Brewers Association.

July 24 – Christina Zani from Pasta Night (instagram) in Philadelphia will be holding a pasta making workshop and dinner at Subcircle Residency in Biddeford. The Coastal Alchemist in Ogunquit will be serving a 5-course dinner featuring wines from Spain and Portugal.

July 25/26 – The Kneading Conference is taking place in Skowhegan.

July 27 –Andare is holding at pasta pop-up dinner at Otto Pizza. On the menu will be a walnut pesto, Tuscan chicken, and a gochujang arrabbiata.

August 3/4 – The Maine Wild Blueberry Weekend is taking place.

August 10 – Space Gallery along with Goodfire Brewing, The Jewel Box and the Ten Mothers food truck will be holding Feastland, a farm dinner, at Broadturn Farm in Scarborough.

August 11/12 – 2Gether is holding their next Secret Table dinner at an as-yet-undisclosed farm in the Portland area.

August 15 – Billy Hager and Hannah Buoye from Waxwing Bakery will be the featured chefs at the August taco night at Dandelion Spring Farm in Bowdoinham.

August 30 – September 1 – The Maine Apple Camp is taking place.

September 8 – The Maine Cheese Festival is taking place in Pittsfield.

September 20-22 – The Common Ground Fair will be taking place.

October 13 – The 16th Annual Open Creamery Day is taking place.

Restaurant Real Estate: July 2024

| Posted in Under Construction, Real Estate

Welcome to the July 2024 edition of the Portland Food Map restaurant real estate listings sponsored by The Boulos Company—a commercial real estate brokerage that has helped Maine’s restauranteurs buy and lease restaurant spaces since 1975.

This resource gathers in one convenient place the spaces available in Portland (and a few in the surrounding area) that could be potential sites for restaurants and food producers and retailers to locate their next business. Finding the right spot is one of the crucial early challenges in launching a new business and hopefully this resource will make that step just a little bit easier.

West End/Parkside

867 Congress St – the 3,200 sq ft former church that had been slated to be a new home of Vena’s is for sale for $725,000.

Arts District

547 Congress St – the 1,582 sq ft space formerly occupied by Broken Arrow is for lease for $3,800/month (NNN).

553 Congress St – the commercial kitchen in the former Five Fifty Five space (now leased by the Core Cannabis Museum) is available to a co-tenant for $2,000/month (MG).

554 Congress St – 1,621 sq ft former Dunkin’ Donuts space for $2,301/month (NNN).

594 Congress St – the 2,592 sq ft space in the Upper H. H. Hay Building formerly occupied by Starbucks is available for $28/sq ft (MG).

600 Congress St – for lease signs are in the window of the ground floor space at the corner of High and Congress. The Schwartz Building has been under renovation for a decade. For more info call (207) 773-7100.

Bayside/Inner Washington

219 Anderson St – Blue Lobster’s former tasting room in the Rockingham Electric building is available; 2,700 sq ft for $16/sq ft (NNN).

73 Cove St – a 5,519 sq ft industrial space in East Bayside is listed for $35/sq ft; it’s expected to become available later this year.

52 Hanover St – On the first floor of the Armature is 1,500 – 3,000 sq ft of retail space available for $30/sq ft (NNN). One spot in the building has earmarked for a coffee shop.

178 Kennebec St – 2,644 sq ft of space are available in a newly constructed Bayside building for $25/sq ft (NNN).

55 Washington Ave – this 7,815 sq ft space is in the Nissen Bakery building right in between Cong Tu Bot and Hardshore Distillery. It’s available for $13,708/month (NNN).

Old Port

1 Canal Plaza – 4,284 – 14,412 sq ft of ground floor retail space will be available as part of upcoming renovations; $30/sq ft (NNN).

15 Chestnut St – the building that was home to Grace restaurant is for sale. It includes the property, business assets and all FF&E. The restaurant seats 175 and features a large circular bar on the first floor of the former church. The building has 14,358 sq ft of space. It’s for sale for $2,985,000.

185 Commercial St – a new building on Commercial Street has a 2,334 sq ft ground floor retail space that is available for $55/sq ft (NNN).

266 Commercial St – a 6,689 sq ft retail space is available in this new construction building for $20-22/sq ft (NNN).

383 Commercial St – 1,193 – 4,805 square feet of space in a newly constructed building on Commercial Street is available for $28/sq ft (NNN).

8 Exchange St – 1,800-3,600 sq ft of space formerly occupied by The Bar & Bites on lower Exchange Street is available for $34.99/sq ft (MG).

201 Federal St – a 2,300 sq ft space in the new 18-story Casco building is available for $40/sq ft (MG). The building owners are looking for someone who wants to open a market in that space.

420 Fore St – the space formerly occupied by the Old Port Slice Bar is for lease. The 2,600 sq ft space is available for $40/sq ft (MG).

477 Fore St – the 1,361 sq ft space formerly occupied by B + B Bakery is available for $25-30/sq ft (MG).

40 Free St – a 1,511 sq ft space in the new building constructed by JB Brown is available for $27.50/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 $18/sq ft (NNN).

100 Middle St – a 350 sq ft cafe space on first floor of an Old Port office building is available for $850/month (MG).

111 Middle St – the 1,622 sq ft former Cabana building is for lease for $3,500/month (NNN). See this post on instagram for more information about the property and its history.

121 Middle St – a 2,482 sq ft retail spot is available for $45/sq ft (MG).

157 Middle St – 2,039 – 5,155 sq ft of retail space is available for $27.95/sq ft (MG).

184 Middle St – this newly renovated space becomes available in August. It was formerly occupied by Blanche & Mimi. It includes 1,169 sq of first floor retail and 808 sq ft of basement storage space all for $48.43/sq ft (MG).

5 Milk St – this 2,199 sq ft former hair salon is available for $28/sq ft (NNN).

1 Monument Square – 1,500 sq ft of first floor space adjacent to Cera is available for $25/sq ft (MG).

28 Monument Square – a number of spots on the first and second floors of the Public Market House are available.

25 Pearl St – 1,689 sq ft former Subway space available for $30/sq ft (MG).

66 Pearl St – 5,796 sq ft of space—the former Bull Moose retail shop—is available for $15.75/sq ft (MG).

3 Spring St – the space formerly occupied by Stage Cannabis is for lease; 2,000 sq ft for $15.50/sq ft (NNN).

144 State St – 2 retail spaces are available in the former Mercy Hospital building on State Street. The 1,100 and 2,477 sq ft spaces are available for $20/sq ft (MG). Chocolate Passions occupies the 3rd commercial space in this new development.

53 Wharf St –a 1,600 sq ft space on the corner of Wharf and Union Streets is available for $30/sq ft (MG).

India Street Area

144 Fore St – the former VA building is near the Portland Foreside development and adjacent to several new office buildings off Thames Street. It has 1,560 – 10,620 sq ft of space available for $22-29/sq ft (NNN).

Outer Forest Ave

503 – 509 Forest Ave – the exterior of this building is slated to be restored to its historic design. It has 1,268 – 6,313 sq ft of space available for $10-15/sq ft (NNN).

701 Forest Ave – 3,147 – 6,405 sq ft of space in a former Walgreens building is available for $16/sq ft (NNN). The building has its own parking lot.

Deering

164 Veranda St – the 1,000 sq ft former location of Other Side Deli is available for $2,500/month (Gross).

550 Washington Ave – 1,500 – 2,400 sq ft of the former Botto’s bakery is available to lease for $18/sq ft (NNN).

Elsewhere in Portland

Old Port Bar – an 1,160/sq ft bar/restaurant in the Old Port is for sale for $195,000.

1339 Washington Ave – the 4,150 sq ft former Parker’s Restaurant building in North Deering is for sale for $1,750,000.

Northgate Shopping Center – 2,000 to 3,500 sq ft of space is available.

Westgate Shopping Center – three spaces are for lease 1,400, 3,800 and 5,000 sq ft. The lease rates are negotiable and the property owner has a strong interest in finding a restaurant tenant for the shopping plaza.

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

Outside of Portland

Trudy Birds, North Yarmouth – The business, land and both building are for sale for $1,625,000.

358 Main St, Yarmouth – the building that had housed a collection of gluten-free baking businesses is for sale for $499,000.

Ferry Village – The building that’s been home to the Knitting Nook is available; 500 -1,200 sq ft at $2,000 (MG).

188 Lincoln St, Lewiston – this 2,371 – 5,554 sq ft former fire station has been renovated for use as a retail/restaurant space. It’s listed at $5-14/sq ft (NNN).

60 Mile Rd, Wells – an 8,684 sq ft turnkey restaurant in Wells is for sale for $2,150,000.

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.

Maxwell’s Farm Closing

| Posted in Closings

Maxwell’s Farm shared the sad new that this was the final year in business for their Cape Elizabeth strawberry farm.

…Believe when we say, we feel the weight of nine generations in this decision. The lives of Ken, Elsie, Bill, Lois, Joel, and Joy have revolved around their faith, their family, and this farm. Due to growing challenges for small family farms and increasing barriers at most every turn, we’ve found it impossible to balance these three pillars. We have poured love, stress, sweat, sleepless nights, and so much more into this land, this lifestyle, and this community. After years of painstaking consideration and attempts to adapt to the challenges of farming in the current landscape, we have come to the very hard decision to close Maxwell’s Farm…

See the full announcement on facebook and on instagram.

Interview with Rob Evans and Nancy Pugh

| Posted in People

The Maine Sunday Telegram has published an interview with Rob Evans and Nancy Pugh, the recently retired former owners of Hugo’s and founders of Duckfat.

This spring, Evans, 60, and Pugh, 57, sold the Duckfat properties and left restaurant life behind to focus on building a home on their property in western York County. We sat down with the couple recently to talk about how they got their starts in the industry, how working in some of the country’s most elite restaurants prepared Evans for Hugo’s, the challenges facing married restaurateurs, and what Portland’s restaurant scene might look like in the years to come.

Evans and Pugh moved to Portland and took over Hugo’s in 2000 and for nearly a quarter of a century were central figures in the Portland restaurant community. The couple launched Duckfat in 2005 and Duckfat Frites Shack on Washington Ave in 2018. Evans was a Food & Wine Best New Chef in 2004, and he won a James Beard award in the Best Chef North East category in 2009. They sold Duckfat and the Frites Shack and retired in Late April.

Rabelais Now Open

| Posted in Openings

Rabelais Books (website, facebook, instagram) opened for business on Friday. The culinary bookstore is located at 93 Washington Ave in one of the Black Box shipping container spaces.

Bookseller Don Lindgren has stocked the shop with printed books, ephemera and manuscripts spanning across the past six centuries and covering a wide range of culinary subjects from mushrooms and mixology to farming and food photography, and of course cookbooks covering nearly every corner of the globe.

This Rabelais pop-up shop will be in business now through the end of September, Wednesday through Monday, 11 am – 7 pm.

For more information on Rabelais and Lindgren see this article from June.

New Food Trucks: Toku Truck & Vendredi’s

| Posted in Openings

Here’s a look at two of the food trucks that have launched in Portland this year.

The Toku Truck (website, instagram, order online) was launched in early June by chef/owner Felicia Dumont. Dumont previously ran Harvest Bar in Bethel and since moving to Portland has worked at The Shop. When you go, be sure to try the delicious roasted veggie sandwich (shown here topped with blackened shrimp). The name of business is a reference to Dumont’s family heritage and means wave in the Passamaquoddy language. You can find the Toku Truck at 82 Parris Street in West Bayside. They’re open Tuesday through Saturday, 8 am – 3 pm.

Vendredi’s (website, instagram) is operated by Matt Lair with Michael Irish. Their burgers are gaining some ardent fans which shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise once you learn that Lair worked for acclaimed Chicago burger restaurant Au Cheval prior to moving to Portland. Vendredi’s is open today 4 – 11 pm. They’ll be launching a new Sunday brunch service this weekend 11 am – 4 pm with coffee from the Side by Side (website, instagram) cart. Vendredi’s is located at Oxbow on Washington Ave.

Maine Food & Dining News: Rockland, Phillips, Wiscasset, Bangor, Van Buren

| Posted in Maine

New food and dining developments are taking place all across Maine. Here are some recent updates to keep you in the know:

  • The Courier-Gazette reports that the owners of the Sterlingtown Public House are planning to open a second location for their restaurant The Spot (instagram) in Rockland. The original The Spot is located in the town of Washington.
  • The Bangor Daily News reports that the Northern Maine Kolache Co. has begun construction on a new building in Van Buren. Owner Donita Ayotte expects to move her business to the new location in 2025.
  • Tuesday’s segment of Maine Calling on Maine Public Radio explored listeners Favorite Eats in Maine with guests Press Herald food editor Peggy Grodinsky and author Mike Urban.
  • The Lincoln County News has published an article about the new Aekeir Brewing tasting room in Wiscasset.
  • Clifford’s Donut Stop in Phillips launched this week.
  • The Bangor Daily News reports that a new business called Mainely Juice is under construction in downtown Bangor and expected to launch next month.

For a statewide guide to eating and drinking see the Maine Food Map—a growing list of coffee shops, bars, restaurants, bakeries, cafes, and other food and dining businesses in all of Maine’s 16 counties.

Observer: Where to Eat in Maine

| Posted in Reviews

The Observer has published an eating guide to Maine.

Over the last decade, Maine has transformed from a quiet coastal retreat to a culinary powerhouse, luring food enthusiasts with the promise of oceanic delights and forest-foraged treasures. Its geography reads like a chef’s wish list: rugged coastlines teeming with seafood, pristine forests hiding wild edibles and fertile farmland bursting with fresh produce. From the iconic Maine lobster to the coveted Damariscotta oysters, the state’s cold, clean waters serve up nature’s finest.

The article highlights: Bite into Maine, White Barn Inn, Primo Restaurant, Havana, Mr. Tuna, Highroller Lobster Co., Earth at Hidden Pond, The Alna Store, Aragosta, The Lost Kitchen, Long Grain, Bombay Mahal, Oxbow Beer Garden, Leeward, Eventide Oyster Co., Crown Jewel, and Chez Rosa.

Upcoming Food & Dining Events

| Posted in Events

July 19-21 – The Yarmouth Clam Festival is taking place.

July 24 – Christina Zani from Pasta Night (instagram) in Philadelphia will be holding a pasta making workshop and dinner at Subcircle Residency in Biddeford.

July 25/26 – The Kneading Conference is taking place in Skowhegan.

August 3/4 – The Maine Wild Blueberry Weekend is taking place.

August 30 – September 1 – The Maine Apple Camp is taking place.

September 8 – The Maine Cheese Festival is taking place in Pittsfield.

September 20-22 – The Common Ground Fair will be taking place.

October 13 – The 16th Annual Open Creamery Day is taking place.

Lil Chippy Now Open

| Posted in Openings

A  new fish and chips shop called Lil Chippy (website, instagram) opened for business on Friday. They’re located at 52 Washington Ave in the space formerly occupied by Radici (and before that Terlingua). The restaurant will be open Wednesday through Sunday, noon – 8 pm.

Owners Ashley Wolf and William Durst have lightly renovated the space. In addition to bar and table seating there are three sidewalk picnic tables for outdoor seating.

Fish and chips is the signature dish on the menu (see below). Durst and Wolf are also serving a variety of buddy sandwiches, salads and crudos, sides, and a selection of wine, beer and non-alcoholic drinks.

Wolf was previously the GM of Liquid Riot and when the couple lived in Vermont she was the GM at Hen of the Woods in Waterbury. Durst also worked at Hen of the Woods, and was the original chef at Bistro Leluco is South Portland when it opened in 2023.