Review of JP’s Bistro

| Posted in Reviews

The Maine Sunday Telegram has reviewed JP’s Bistro.

If you’re looking for ease and comfort in a neighborhood bistro, JP’s fits the bill. The small dining room is appealing and the wait staff uber-welcoming. Dishes, however, can be overly complicated, and with prices north of $25 for steak and a few pasta-based entrees, it’s worth ordering with care. Keep it simple and try chicken, sausage and white bean soup, a flavorful starter filled with chunks of white meat, spinach and ditalini pasta. Ribeye is nicely marbled and competently grilled, but skip the bourbon sauce and enjoy it solo. Definitely get two spoons to share chef John Paul Gagnon’s excellent bread pudding for dessert. Made with slices of challah from Sorella’s Bakehouse, it’s surprisingly delicate and pleasingly sweet; you may find yourselves dueling over the last bite.

Down East: Best New Restaurants

| Posted in Reviews

The cover article of the April issue of Down East is the magazine’s list of the Best New Restaurants in Maine.

Portland area restaurants on the list are: Bao Bao, Blue Rooster, Bramhall, Central Provisions, Dutch’s, East Ender, Ebb & Flow, El Rayo in Scarborough, Elsmere BBQ, Empire, Enio’s, Hugo’s, Isa, Outlier’s, Lolita, Piccolo, Salvage BBQ, Slab, Sur Lie, Timber, Tiqa and Vinland as well as the upcoming restaurants The Honey Paw, MC Union, Scales and Tempo Dulu.

The article is not available online yet.

Isa Is Now Open (Updated)

| Posted in Openings

isa_dessertIsa(facebook, website) is opening for business tonight. Owners Suzie St. Pierre and Isaul Perez have a number of years experience working in restaurants in New York City. It’s billed as a “cozy neighborhood bistro serving an eclectic yet seasonally driven menu“.

The restaurant is located at 79 Portland Street just a couple doors down from Back Bay Grill. Isa will be open 6 days a week Wednesday through Monday. They’ll initially be serving just dinner but plan to eventually be open daily 11am – close.

Update: The Golden Dish has published a first look post on Isa.

Bar Review of Petite Jacqueline

| Posted in Reviews

The Press Herald has published a bar review of Petite Jacqueline.

In a city that becomes increasingly more popular for its bars and restaurants by the day, there are two reasons Petite Jacqueline stands out in Portland. The first is that this traditional French bistro is exactly that – traditional. Many of Portland’s newest dining additions feature trendy small plate menus, or experimental New American cuisine. Petite’s steadfast and classic French menu actually makes the restaurant more unique among an otherwise adventurous gastronomic town.

Interview with Mike Wiley and Andrew Taylor

| Posted in People

The Press Herald has published an interview with Mike Wiley and Andrew Taylor, the chefs/co-owners of Hugo’s and Eventide.

Q: You are both owner/chefs. What’s the division of labor?

TAYLOR: He focuses much more on Hugo’s, and I focus much more Eventide. We’ve hired an old sous-chef for Honey Paw. Both of us are intimately involved with the menu at Honey Paw. If I have a flash of inspiration that fits better at Hugo’s, I’ve no problem saying that. And the same for him. We try to cultivate a collaborative atmosphere in the restaurant. I really like it when a cook says, “I’d really like to do this.” It’s much better if the cooks have a sense of ownership because it’s going to taste better.

WILEY: It sounds clichéd, but we have a really awesome community that helps us run the restaurants.

Taylor and Wiley are semi-finalist nominees for this year’s James Beard Best Chef: Northeast award. Along with their co-owner Arlin Smith, they’re currently in the process of launching a third restaurant, The Honey Paw.

Local Food Initiative

| Posted in Farming, Fisheries

The Bangor Daily News has published a report on a recent 1-day meeting of Mayor Brennan’s local food initiative.

To reach the city’s goals, members of the mayor’s subcommittee such as John Naylor, co-owner of Rosemont Market and Bakery, are strong disciples. Naylor, who spoke at the conference, works with 40 farmers and local food producers in his four markets, (the fifth Rosemont opens in Portland’s West End soon) and says a commitment is needed across the board to keep the movement robust.

2nd Annual Rum Riots

| Posted in Events

rumriots_logoThe schedule for the 2nd Annual Rum Riots(facebook, twitter, instagram, website) is starting to take shape. This year’s program includes:

The mission of Rum Riots is to “celebrate cocktails, bars and bartenders”. It’s scheduled to take place May 30 – June 1.

Under Construction: PHAC x Piccolo Collaboration

| Posted in Under Construction

The owners of the Hunt + Alpine Club and Piccolo are in the early stages of collaborating on a new restaurant. Damian Sansonetti, Briana and Andrew Volk and Ilma Lopez plan to launch the new venue sometime in 2016 which they’ll operate in addition to continuing to run their current establishments. Details on concept and location are not yet public.

WSJ: Dynamic Food Cities

| Posted in Reviews

The Wall Street Journal published an article about the rise of the culinary scenes America’s smaller cities. It mentions Portland in passing,

And then there’s this: These are places where chefs can make a difference. The most dynamic food cities in the country right now are the two Portlands (Ore. and Maine), Nashville, Tenn., Charleston, S.C., Houston and Philadelphia. All took off in the past decade thanks to the arrival of a few gifted chefs who pioneered a new dining scene.