This Week’s Events: Burger Night, Monte’s Opening, Yakitori Night, Chopped Re-Match

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Monday – Flood’s and Oxbow are teaming up on a Burger Night taking place at Oxbow on Washington Ave.

Wednesday – the Monument Square Farmers’ Market is taking place.

Friday – it’s the opening day for Monte’s Fine Foods (website, facebook, instagram). Monte’s plans to open at 9 am; they’re located at the corner of Washington and Ocean Avenues. Monte’s is owned by Steven Quattrucci and Neil Rouda. Former Little Bigs co-owner, Pamela Fitzpatrick Plunkett, has joined the staff to to manage their bakery operations. The West End Rosemont is holding a wine tasting. It’s the launch of the Yakitori Night at Duckfat Frites Shack.

Saturday – Evo is hosting a Chopped re-match between Evo’s chef Matt Ginn and his former competitor chef Airis Johnson. The Deering Oaks Farmers’ Market is taking place.

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.

Reviews: Sichuan Kitchen, Bánh Appétit, The Whiskey Barrel

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The Golden Dish has reviewed Sichuan Kitchen,

Each time I’ve gone to Sichuan Kitchen the food has been better than the last time. Though in the beginning the dishes were dull looking and brown, the kitchen now presents beautifully arranged plates with meticulously prepared food.

The last visit a few weeks ago was for a Chinese-style banquet. The dishes sparkled with decorous presentation and unique flavors.

the Press Herald has reviewed Bánh Appétit, and

Le said the traditional banh mi has proved to be the most popular sandwich. It’s made with Vietnamese sausage, Vientamese ham, mayonnaise, pork pate, pickled carrots and daikon, cucumber, cilantro and peppers. The traditional sandwich is just $5, as is the tofu version. My barbecue pork sandwich – filled with tender, well-seasoned meat, along with all the pickled veggies, cucumber and cilantro – cost $6, also the price of the chicken banh mi. If you prefer beef or shrimp, it will cost $7 – still a deal.

the Press Herald has reviewed The Whiskey Barrel.

All four of my visits were fabulous, thank goodness. Owner Jay Ferrara is technically a first-time bar owner but doesn’t come across as one. The Whiskey Barrel is the culmination of his longtime dream to open a country music bar, and he’s deeply involved in every decision, from handpicking the live music acts to greeting patrons (many of whom already have become regulars) by name. Despite living in Massachusetts, he’s a steady presence in the bar.

Brewery Extrava Launched

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Brewery Extrava held soft openings Friday and Saturday (they’ll be there until 7 pm Saturday) to introduce their line-up of Belgian style beers. They’ll be back open Friday and Saturday (and perhaps Sunday) next weekend, noon to 8 pm.

The current beer list includes Little Dark (3.8%, dark session ale), a 6% Saison, and B IPA (6.5%, 69 IBU, Belgian IPA).

Brewery Extrava is located at 66 Cove Street in East Bayside. The Grand Opening is scheduled to take place July 19.

Dean’sSweets East Bayside Opens Today

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The new Dean’sSweets location in East Bayside is scheduled to open today at 2 pm.

The new space provides them additional production capacity and a second retail location. As a special promotion for today, the first 75 people who visit the new shop will get free chocolate-dipped strawberries.

Their new location is located at the corner of Cove and Anderson Streets, just a few doors down from Tandem Coffee. Owners Dean and Kristin Bingham plan to continue to produce and sell their chocolates at 475 Fore Street as well.

Three of Strong Spirits Open

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Portland’s newest distillery, Three of Strong Spirits (website), launched their business and opened their tasting room earlier this week. They sell a line-up of three rums: a house made white, an imported 12 year old bourbon barrel aged rum from Colombia, and a spirit that’s a blend of those two. They’re also in the process of establishing their own barrel aged program.

The tasting room serves a variety of creative cocktails using their spirits as well as classic rum drinks. I tried the Sleepy Panda (peppered arugula, wormwood, pandan, lime) and the Take Two in the Morning (cold brew coffee, honey, saffron, quinine, bitters). For food they have Baharat hummus, pork tacos, olives, popcorn, key lime pie and flourless chocolate torte, and are working on a more ambitious menu to launch soon.

Three of Strong Spirits is located in East Bayside at 35B Diamond Street. They open today at noon.

They’ll be holding a grand opening party for the distillery on August 17th featuring a pig roast by chef Evan Mallet who is well known for his restaurant Black Trumpet in Portsmouth.

Gross Bakery Now Open

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Gross Confection Bar opened their new breakfast pastry and coffee service this morning at 7:30.

Owner Brant Dadaleares and team are serving muffins, cake, scones and ‘pie’ along with a pair of custom roasted coffee blends. The entrance is on Exchange Street.

They plans to be open until today’s supply of baked goods runs out. When you go be sure to get the peach pie with strawberry jam.

Acadia House Provisions Now Open

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Chicago Michelin-starred chef Ryan McCaskey opened his new restaurant Acadia House Provisions (website) in Stonington earlier this week.

Acadia House Provisions is located in the former Aragosta space at 27 Maine Street on the waterfront. The menu has a good mix of appetizers, sandwiches and entrees to address a range of appetites. The wine list at Acadia House was put together under the guidance of Maine’s new Master Sommelier, Scott Tyree. AHP is open Tuesday through Sunday, reservations can be made through OpenTable.

Portland Food Map took a road trip to check it out. You can see the full set of pictures on the PFM instagram account.

This Week’s Events: Black Dinah, Independence Day, Launch of Twist, Brewers Brunch

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Monday – Black Dinah Chocolatiers will be opening their new location in the Westin/Eastland at 10 am.

Wednesday – the Monument Square Farmers’ Market is taking place.

Thursday – it the 4th of July! Head out to the Eastern Prom to listen to the Portland Symphony and watch the fireworks. While you’re walking up the hill stop by the corner of Merrill and Congress Streets to check-out Twist (instagram), a new ice cream food truck set to launch at 2 pm on Thursday.

Saturday – the Deering Oaks Farmers’ Market is taking place.

Sunday – Mast Landing and Top of the East are collaborating on a 5-course Brewer’s Brunch.

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.

Maine Apple Camp 2019

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Registration for the Maine Apple Camp is now open. MAC is a 3-day gathering of apple enthusiasts, orchardists and cider makers taking place at the Maine Heritage Orchard in Liberty, Maine on August 16-18.

The program includes a talk on the history of apples in Maine by John Bunker, a round table on wild apple foraging, a presentation on apple storytelling, a guided cider tasting, a meeting of Cider Club, and more.

You can see the full program and register for the event on the Maine Heritage Orchard site.