This Week’s Events: Portland Foodscapes, Noble BBQ Pop-up, Street Eats, Kosher BBQ

| Posted in Events

Monday – there will be a meeting of Portland Foodscape Allies at Local Sprouts.

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

Thursday – there will be a Collective Arts Brewing tasting at the Bier Cellar.

Friday – Noble Barbecue will be providing a  preview of the menu of their upcoming Riverton restaurant during a pop-up at Oxbow, and there will be a wine tasting at the Rosemont Market on Brighton Ave.

Saturday –  the annual Street Eats and Beats food truck festival is taking place, Immigrant Kitchens is teaching a Dominican cooking class, and the Deering Oaks Farmers’ Market is taking place.

Sunday – Novare Res is celebrating their 9th Anniversary, and the 4th Annual Holy Smokes! Kosher Barbecue 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.

Maine Cookbooks by Rudalevige, Jubinsky and Ahearn

| Posted in Openings, People

Three new cookbooks by Maine authors are being released:

  • Christine Burns Rudalevige has written Green Plate Special where she “shares her recipes for sustainable and delicious meals, alongside tips and tricks for greening your kitchen and making the most of your produce. From the farmer’s market to the dessert plate, this book is filled with ideas that will surprise and delight home cooks and eco-advocates, including recipes for meatless mains, summer barbecue favorites, and mouth-watering side dishes.”
  • Annemarie Ahearn has written Full Moon Suppers at Salt Water Farm which “invites you to a series of magical, seasonal suppers where friends gather around the table to celebrate the bounty of land and sea. This menu-driven cookbook offers twelve beautifully crafted meals derived from more than one hundred sold-out dinners at Salt Water Farm, the author’s cooking school in Maine.”
  • Sandy and Michael Jubinsky have written No Passport Required, “A blend of international but very doable dishes and a breezy, casual style make for a cookbook that’s as much fun to read as it is to use.”

B&M Baked Beans Factory

| Posted in People, History

Today’s Maine Sunday Telegram includes an article on the B&M Baked Bean factory in Portland.

Inside, the production line is gravity-fed, for the most part. On the top floor, empty 200-pound iron bean pots swing from a ceiling-mounted rail system. Hairnet-clad workers use brute force to roll the cauldron-like pots from one station to the next, filling them with beans, molasses, cane sugar and other ingredients.

The article includes a video interview with Thomas Coreau who has worked at the plant for nearly a third of the company’s 150 year history.

Reviews: LB Kitchen, Union, Francine

| Posted in Reviews

The Press Herald has reviewed LB Kitchen,

I ordered the Hell Yes Kale Caesar bowl ($11), filled with things I might usually pass on. It had chickpea croutons, kale and a mixture called “cashew obsession” on romaine lettuce. But it also had pieces of chicken poached in broth, so my whole lunch, which looked like a salad, smelled like chicken soup. And it tasted like a very rich chicken soup that had been poured onto a very fresh salad.

Peter Peter Portland Eater has reviewed a beer dinner at Union,

I really liked what UNION did with this meal. First of all, they put out some awesome food. Regardless of whether you order from the menu or eat a prix fixe meal, you’re sure to get something great. But the pairing with a top shelf local brewery is a long overdue endeavor. More restaurants should be doing this.

and while Camden is far beyond the bounds of Portland I can’t but include this review from the Maine Sunday Telegram of my favorite Midcoast restaurant, Francine Bistro.

It’s simple, but exceedingly good. Very much like his local, skillet-roasted chicken ($25), braised with in-season artichokes, leeks and Fiana wine, then basted with butter and thyme. Served with a crunchy slice of lemon ricotta-brushed toast, it’s classic French comfort food executed perfectly – the kind of plate that highlights Hill’s talents and reminds you how even a modest dish can manage to conjure a little springtime magic.

Restaurant/Life Balance

| Posted in People

The Press Herald published an article this week on the challenges restaurant owners face when raising children and working late night shifts at their establishments.

The Goulds are one of many young couples in Portland’s restaurant industry who have started a family at the same time they launch and run restaurants in the hottest market in the state. Working in the restaurant business, with its long hours, odd schedules and loads of stress, is difficult enough for any parent. It’s even harder when both parents are in the business. How do they do it?

The Price of Lobster

| Posted in Fisheries

Close on the heels of the BDN’s article on this topic earlier this week, the Press Herald has published an article about the price of lobster meat.

Wintry weather and a cool spring have limited supply, as lobsters have stayed put offshore and lobstermen have stayed home, waiting for the lobsters to migrate closer to shore with warmer water. Add in the international competition for Maine lobster in Europe and Asia, and lobster prices are becoming harder than ever to predict.