Maine Sunday Telegram restaurant critic Andrew Ross has assembled his list of the best meals he had last year.
Looking back, I count myself extraordinarily lucky to have lived in Maine over the past 12 months – fork (and occasionally chopsticks) in hand to fend off the world outside.
Down East has published a feature about Bubba’s Sulky Lounge.
The “mayor of Portland Street,” as Bubba has been called, is a retired Marine, former high-school basketball star, and proud owner of 14 race horses (hence the bar’s name — a “sulky” being a two-wheeled, jockey-toting cart used in harness racing). Bubba’s tall and soft-spoken, a lifelong Portlander who doesn’t like talking about his age but is somewhere in the neighborhood of 80. He opened Bubba’s in 1961, rebuilt it after a fire in 1981, and put in the light-up dance floor sometime thereafter (no one quite remembers). He stops in daily, often adding this or that to the decor.
Maine Craft Distilling will begin serving brunch this Sunday, 10 – 3.
As a kid my favorite part of reading Scientific American was the 50 and 100 Years Ago section. Being able to look back and see what the hot topics in science with a century earlier was fascinating.
While I don’t (yet) have an accurate take on the food scene in Portland a century ago, Portland Food Map reached its 10-year anniversary last year. Daily chronicling the food scene has produced a lot of information to work with and this month I’m going to start a new monthly column looking back at what the key stories were a decade ago.
Here’s a look at the top stories from January 2008:
A new poké shop called Poké Pop is under construction at 658 Congress Street in Longfellow Square. The 29-seat restaurant plans to serve poké, bubble tea and bingsu, a dessert made with shaved ice sweetened with condensed milk and fruit syrup.
I’ve scanned through the records for the past year and here’s a summary of events and trends for 2017:
The most popular articles published on Portland Food Map in the past year.
February – LB Kitchen, Trattoria Fanny, Vieux Port Creole, Jager and A&C Grocery opened, 12 Maine chefs/restaurants were semifinalists for the 2017 James Beard Awards, and the Maine Restaurant Association named Josh Berry their Chef of the Year.
April – Battery Steele Brewing, Mami, Cheevitdee and the Mashed food truck opened and Holy Donut opened a new location in Scarborough, Joe’s opened at their new location on Congress Street, the International Pectinid Workshop took place in Portland, Hugo’s and Miyake were named to the Opinionated About Dining Top 100 list, Milo DeGoosh participated in the US Barista Guild competition, Cara Stadler reverted her restaurants to the standard tipping model, and Aurora Provisions was purchased by Melissa Carr.
June – Hifi Donuts, Yobo, Maiz, Yes Brewing, the Hakka Me and Falafel Mafia food trucks, Blyth & Burrows, Opium and North 43 Bistro opened, 1820 Wines launched, Allagash pledged to buy one million pounds of Maine-grown grain per year by 2021, the 1st Annual Inner Washington Block Party took place, the first issue of Edible Maine was released, Knack Factory produced a video about Rabelais, Fork Food Lab merged with Foodworks in Brooklyn, and Zapoteca closed.
August – Roma Cafe, Island Creek, Nonesuch River Brewing, and the Kind Stack and Mainely Hotdogs food carts opened, Bon Appetit named The Purple House and Nina June to their list of the 50 Best New Restaurants in America, it was the 10th anniversary of Portland Food Map, and Joshua McFadden, chef of Ava Gene’s and Tusk in Portland Oregon served a dinner at the Palace Diner, and Trattoria Fanny closed.
October – Eventide opened their new location in Boston, the Scratch Baking Toast Bar, Belleville, Mainely Wraps, Little Woodfords, Leavitt & Sons and Higher Grounds opened, the 4th Annual Heirloom Apple Tasting took place, Rep. Chellie Pingree received a leadership award from the Beard Foundation, Drifters Wife announced plans to expand, and Falafel Underground closed.The numbers in parentheses indicate their rank last year. The order of the list is determined by the number of times these restaurants were looked up on PFM during the year.
For some other perspectives on the past year see the Portland Press Herald, Portland Phoenix, Portland Magazine, Map & Menu, The Beer Babe, Peter Peter Portland Eater, Maine Sunday Telegram and The 207 Foodie.
Here are links to the Portland Food Map year in review reports for 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011 and 2010.
The Golden Dish has reviewed Tuscan Table, and
The restaurant is barely a week old, but it seems like it’s been there forever; the well-trained staff keeps it all going. This certainly is a restaurateur’s marvel of good work and efforts, and I’m glad that it has established itself so quickly.
Peter Peter Portland Eater has reviewed Boda.
Boda createss Thai food that transcends typical takeout and makes the customer feel like they’re dining finely, but in a very casual, relaxed atmosphere at a moderate price. It’s one of the first places I bring guests when I have someone visiting. If you haven’t been there, you should probably go.
Rhum, the tiki cocktail bar and restaurant on Cross Street, closed last night, December 30. Rhum launched February 6, 2016. It was part of the Fifth Food Group led by Jason Loring.
Update: The Press Herald has now also posted a report about Rhum closing.
Today’s Maine Sunday Telegram traces the oysters “journey from sea to table”.
Customers may not know where Basket Island is – a 10-acre island one mile southwest of Cousins Island, owned by Chebeague & Cumberland Land Trust – or the specific origins of any of the other 11 Maine-grown oysters on Eventide’s menu. They might know only that slightly sweet oyster they slurped down with a flavored ice or a red wine mignonette is local, of Maine. And delicious.
But how did it get to their table? How long was its journey and what did it entail?
Omi’s Coffee Shop has announced plans to open at their new location in Willard Square at 372 Cottage Ave on Monday January 1st.