Fuji has changed its name to N To Tail (instagram) and is now a Korean BBQ restaurant. N To Tail opened Saturday night in the basement of 29 Exchange Street. My understanding is that the first floor is still undergoing renovation.
Here’s a look at the menu.
Gross Confection Bar (website, facebook, instagram) owner Brant Dadaleares has announced plans to open his new dessert/cocktail bar in the first week of January.
Gross Confection Bar has been under construction for the last few months in the 2,000 sq ft subterranean space in the former location of Christmas Noel at 57 Exchange Street.
Strata (website, instagram) a cutlery retail business and knife sharpening service that launched earlier this year, has leased unit 4 of the The Black Box container building on Washington Ave.
Owner Evan Atwell sells specialty Japanese, French and New England made cutlery, as well as sharpens knives using a traditional Japanese whetstone process. Atwell moved to Portland from California where he worked for the Bi-Rite Market group.
He plans to open the new Strata retail store on February 1st.
Hop Culture has included Tomaso’s on their list of the Best Beer Bars of 2018.
I love that Tomaso’s stocks a handful of uber-fresh, local, craft cans and draft beers at all times (check their IG). However, this place is mostly a local spot for tall boys and wings. They also have a beer + shot menu, which always gets me. So yeah, you probably won’t find proper glassware, but you’ll always find a great time.
Two beer releases are taking place this weekend:
A new Mexican restaurant called Bird & Co. is under construction at 539 Deering Ave in the space formerly occupied by Abilene.
The cover letter supplied by owners William Dowd and Jared Dinsmore indicates they’ll be serving a menu of “reasonably priced entrees drawing on Mexican and American Southwestern cuisine”. You can see the draft menu supplied with the liquor license application on page 85 of the City Council materials for Monday’s meeting.
Dowd and Dinsmore plan to open Bird & Co. 6 days a week, 11 am to 10 pm for lunch and dinner. They hope to open the restaurant in January.
Eighteen Twenty Wines is planning to move from their current location to the adjacent space at 219 Anderson Street which is currently occupied by Blue Lobster Wine.
Rose Foods is teaming up with the staff from Ripka to hold a Pierogi Pop-up on Sunday, 10 am to 2 pm.
The Press Herald talked with chefs Rob Evans, Matt Ginn, Austin Miller, Mark Gaier and Clark Frasier, Rachel LeGloahec, Zachary Pratt, and Shanna O’Hea about their experiences appearing on reality cooking shows like Chopped.
Contestants described a typical day filming “Chopped” in New York City. All the chefs appearing on the same episode meet at a fast food joint around 5:30 a.m. for a day that won’t end until 9 p.m. They are ushered into an unmarked building, where they must give up their cell phones. Ginn says that for “Chopped Champions,” pockets were checked for hidden recipes and smuggled kitchen equipment. Chefs say they were not even allowed to go to the bathroom alone.
Mainebiz has published an update on Monte’s Fine Foods which is slated to open on Washington Ave in May.
The plan morphed into a retail operation selling local and imported food products, mostly Mediterranean. Plus, they’ll have in-store dining featuring Roman-style pizza made on the premises. There are several types of Roman pizza, he said. In this case, they’ll make Roman “pinsa,” a rustic multi-grain flatbread that’s crispy and light, he explained. Toppings will feature the local and imported ingredients sold in the store.