Boston-based website The Food Lens has published eating guides to Biddeford and to Kennebunkport.
Review of Lenora
Today’s Maine Sunday Telegram includes a review of Lenora, and
Chef Rian Wyllie’s Mexican-street-food-inspired menu features the dishes you’d expect, served on cute, funky melamine dishes you might not. Baja fish tacos, housemade tortilla chips to dunk in green-apple-and-tomatillo salsa cruda or guacamole, and a Oaxacan twist on a Nashville hot chicken sandwich are all standouts, as are cocktails like the grapefruity Luna Rosa.
a a round-up of vegan/vegetarian food news from around Maine.
With summer in the air, seasonal spots selling plant-based eats are open. At the same time, Maine entrepreneurs are adding vegan products and expanding vegan menus. Here’s the latest vegan and vegetarian news from Maine.
Fire on Exchange Street
The Press Herald reports there was a fire Friday night at on Exchange Street. The damage seems to have been limited to The Grill Room. A statement from the restaurant on imstagram reads,
We regret to inform our customers that our restaurant is closed until further notice due to a fire incident. Our priority is always the safety of our customers and staff, and we are currently assessing the damage and working with the authorities to investigate the cause of the fire. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and appreciate your understanding during this difficult time. We will update you as soon as possible on when we will be able to reopen and serve you again.
Thank you for your support.
South Freeport Village Market
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Big Tree Hospitality is opening the new South Freeport Village Market (website, instagram) this weekend. The building is owned and recently renovated by Mary Beth and Chris Lorenz, and is located a few blocks away from the Freeport Town Wharf and Harraseeket Lunch & Lobster.
The South Freeport Village market has been a staple in the community since the 1950’s and we are excited to be a part of this revitalization project. The market will have a café and a bean to cup coffee program featuring Rwanda Bean. Offerings will include pastries and breads from Little Spruce Baking Co. The Market will focus on breakfast and lunch as well as, local produce, beer and wine, fresh flowers and sundries.
The market will be open daily 7 am – 8 pm.
Big Tree Hospitality bought Hugo’s from Rob Evans and Nancy Pugh and launched Eventide Oyster Company in 2012, they opened The Honey Paw in 2015, and then Eventide Fenway in 2017. In addition to the South Freeport Village Market they also operate the Higgins Beach Market in Scarborough and the Town Landing Market in Falmouth.
Portland Beer Hub to Reopen
Zachary Poole, Joey Joseph and David Phillips have bought the Portland Beer Hub (website, instagram) and plan to reopen the business early this summer. The new Beer Hub will retail packaged beer, wine and prepared foods. Customers will also be able to enjoy a menu of drinks and snacks at the Beer Hub. The 10-tap draft system will serve beer, wine, cider and seltzer, and they plan to also serve a limited range of bottled wine.
Poole and Phillips are the co-owners of the Maine Brew Bus. The Portland Beer Hub is located at the corner of Pearl and Fore Streets in Boothby Square.
A Maturing Beer Industry
This week’s Tap Lines article in the Press Herald provides an overview of the developments in brewery industry in Maine.
Bart Watson, the chief economist for the Brewers Association, projects brewery openings and closings to become “more balanced” in the coming years. Writing in The New Brewer, Watson says this is “not a sign of a collapsing market or bubble bursting, but the realization of a longer trend toward a more mature market.”
Lecha Opens Saturday
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Lecha (instagram), the new bubble tea cafe and ice cream shop in Deering Center, is scheduled to open this Saturday. Lecha is located at 502 Stevens Ave near Pat’s Meat Market and Norimoto Baking.
Owners Som Mantasut and Genko Stanilov will be serving a selection of hard serve ice cream from Gifford’s, house made Thai ice tea and vanilla soft serve, bubble tea (their brown sugar bubble tea shown above), and coffee. Later this year they hope to add some baked goods to the menu including waffles.
Starting this Saturday Lecha will be open Thursday through Tuesday, 11 am – 7 pm.
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To get caught up on all the new restaurants, bars and other hospitality businesses in development visit our Under Construction List.
Angoor Wine Bar
Portland Old Port has the story on the Angoor Wine Bar (instagram) which is under development at 100 Fore Street in the new WEX building.
Angoor will be a self-pour wine bar serving a few dozen wines which customers can dispense in 2, 4 and 6 ounce pours. Owners Sangeeta Nasiff and Rafael Dones plan to also serve beer, cocktails and small plates sourced from established local businesses. The owners hope to open Angoor this fall.
Eaux Launches Thursday
The new Eaux (website, instagram) food truck is set to open this Thursday at 4 pm. Eaux will be located in the Oxbow/Hardshore parking lot. Here’s an advance look at the menu:
Chicken and Waffles – with Steen’s cane syrup, pickled fresno chiles, fried sage and apples.
“Hen” and Waffles – Maitake mushrooms, Steen’s cane syrup, pickled fresno chiles, fried sage and apples.
Pimento Cheese and Firecrackers – Smoked Gouda, roasted garlic, pimento peppers and crystal hot sauce, served with baked and seasoned saltines.
Khmer Kitchen Now Open
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Khmer Kitchen (facebook) opened last week initially serving a selection of Cambodian sandwiches. Shown above is a delicious Pork Belly sandwich from the opening week menu.
The menu has been expanding and starting Tuesday, chef/owner Khanya Mimande will begin serving three different types of Katiew soup (Phonm Penh, Sach Ko, Sach Muon), a beef stew with noodles, and Bah Bor which is a rice porridge dish served with chicken, fried garlic and sprouts.
Khmer Kitchen is located on the 2nd floor of the Public Market House in Monument Square. Their hours are Monday through Saturday, 10 am – 9 pm.