This Week’s Events

| Posted in Events

Wednesday — a Wine Wise class at The Wine Bar.

Thursday — Cultivating Community is holding the next in their series of biweekly Twilight Dinners in Cape Elizabeth, and The Great Lost Bear is holding their annual Christmas in July night that features Maine-based holiday beers.

Friday — the 4th Friday Film Series is screening the movie The Garden.

Sunday — Sunday is Open Farm Day in Maine; 12 farms (see page 4) in Cumberland County are participating. Sam Calagione, owner of Dogfish Head Brewing, will be at Novare Res where 23 of Dogfish Head beers will be available on tap.

Farmer’s Markets — the traditional series of Farmer’s Markets are taking place Monday (Monument Square), Wednesday (Monument Square) and Saturday (Deering Oaks Park). Cultivating Community is running their new series of markets Wednesday, Thursday and Friday at various locations around the city.

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.

Sustainable Gulf of Maine Fishing

| Posted in Fisheries

An article in today’s Portland Press Herald describes progress Maine among Maine fishermen and consumers in supporting sustainable fishing practices.

Fishing regulations have increased nets’ minimum mesh size from 4 inches 30 years ago to 6.5 inches today, making New England’s net mesh sizes the largest in the world, said [GMRI’s Jen] Levin. The larger mesh has dramatically reduced the unintentional catch of untargeted fish species.

Today, many of the heavily regulated Gulf of Maine groundfish stocks are rebuilt or are on the rebound. “If it is caught by a Maine fisherman, you should feel really good about eating it,” said Levin.

Cold Brew Coffee, Venue, A Little Chicken with that Vodka

| Posted in General News

The Portland Daily Sun interviewed Jeremy Pelkey from Bard, Stella Hernandez from Hilltop and others about a cold brew method for ice coffee that’s gaining currency in Portland coffee houses,

“A lot of people go for the cream and sugar, they know what they like, but we recommend trying it without,” said Jeremy Pelkey owner of Bard Coffee, where they have been using the cold brew technique in their iced coffee since day one.

The techniques differs from the traditional ice coffee technique, which calls for hot coffee to be brewed at twice it’s normal strength and then chilled, a method that according to some, dilutes the drink when poured over ice.

Wednesday’s newspaper also included a report on the opening of Venue Music Bar,

A counterpart to Venue at 5 Depot St., Box 5, in Freeport, Portland’s version is larger, accommodating around 150 inside with a deck that seats 50.

“The idea here is to do bigger shows, more food, lunch, dinner, happy hours,” Roper said.

and an article on how “Adding liquor can add some culinary zest” to a dish.

Review of Otto Pizza

| Posted in Reviews

The Portland Phoenix has published a review of Otto.

A pizzeria should offer some simple pleasures that have been lost in our era’s obsession with gourmet this and that. The bobos can head to Bonobo for wood-fired delicacies and a restaurant atmosphere. The experience at Otto has more of a working-class(ic) appeal. At Otto you stand in line in a cramped shop, and watch young people sweat in front of big ovens. In the summer months most customers grab a $3 slice and join the pleasantly disorganized gathering of eaters out front. Not everyone is lucky enough to grab one of the few stools or the little red tables scattered out front, so they perch on the curb, or fold their slice and eat standing up. It’s the most appealingly informal and haphazard display of eating in the city.

Review of Bazkari Catering

| Posted in Reviews, Beer

The Bazkari Catering food cart received 4½ stars from the Eat & Run review in today’s Press Herald.

When I tried Bazkari for lunch the other day, I sampled the Bazkari Chicken Pie for $4.50. This was a cold dish featuring a top and bottom layer of creamy mashed potato and flavored with lemon, yellow pepper and extra virgin olive oil. Between the potato layers is a thick layer of Bazkari’s chicken salad made from Ana’s chicken soup along with vegetables, mayonnaise and extra virgin olive oil.

Although I don’t think of mashed potatoes as cold food, this chicken pie was fantastic as I ate it outside on a warm July day. It was plenty filling for one person.

Also in today’s paper is an interview with Dave Geary about his thoughts on extreme beers and other topics.

Urban Farm Fermentory, Clam Shucking Champion, Picnic Wines

| Posted in General News, Profiles

The Food & Dining section in today’s Press Herald includes an article about Beattie Quintal who is the reigning shucking champion at this weekend’s Yarmouth Clam Festival, advice on picnic-worthy wines and a profile of the Urban Farm Fermentory, a new venture taking shape in the Bayside neighborhood.

Even a small patch of earth in a neglected industrial area can become an oasis of food production.

That’s one of the lessons to be learned at the new Urban Farm Fermentory located on Anderson Street in Portland’s East Bayside neighborhood. Tucked in back of a single-story former warehouse and hidden from view by a jungle of Japanese knotweed, a greenhouse and a container garden grow lush and verdant with the fullness of midsummer. Here, tomatoes ripen and lavender blooms along with cilantro plants.