Shrimp Season Cancelled Again

| Posted in Fisheries

Federal regulators have again cancelled the Maine Shrimp season. According to a report in the Press Herald,

Federal regulators are canceling the commercial fishing season for shrimp in the Gulf of Maine for a second straight year, citing a population collapse blamed partly on rising ocean temperatures.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Northern Shrimp Section voted Wednesday in Portland to cancel the upcoming winter season. Regulators say the region’s population of northern shrimp fell dramatically from 2011 to 2013.

MECA Mixology Class

| Posted in Events

The Blueberry Files reports on the MECA mixology class she recently attended, taught by bartender John Myers.

Myers started out by saying that he’d structured the class like an art history class, “from cave drawings to the modern weirdos.” After a short history of early American drinking habits (a lot of cider, rum) we delved into the first time a cocktail was defined. First appearing in a New York newspaper in 1806, the cocktail was described as “spirits of any kind, sugar, water, and bitters.” None of us guessed the answer, but that definition also describes the recipe for an Old Fashioned and thus, our first drink of the course. 

Ebb & Flow Opens Thursday

| Posted in Openings

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Ebb & Flow (facebook, twitter, website, instagram, opentable) has been fine tuning their operation over the last few days with a series of private events and plans to open Thursday at 5 pm. The menu is a mix of Mediterranean inspired seafood and meat dishes. Appetizers will generally be in the $8-14 range and entrees $15-25. The “1000 Degree” items will be a bit more expensive.

Ebb & Flow is co-owned by Angello Ciocca, founder of Nova Seafood, and chef William D’Auvray. It is located at 100 Commercial Street in the completely renovated space formerly occupied by Spread.

To start out Ebb & Flow will be open for dinner Monday though Saturday. They to eventually start serving lunch and Sunday brunch as well.

Oxbow Tasting Room Opens Thursday

| Posted in Openings, Beer

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Oxbow Brewing Company’s new tasting room in Portland is set to open on Thursday at noon. The room is part of a 10,000 sq ft space at 49 Washington Ave that Oxbow took over this summer to use for aging, blending and bottling their beer.

The door to the tasting room is at the back of the driveway to the left of CBD. It’s hand lettered sign (by Will Sears) reads Oxbow Blending and Bottling.

Updated: A Happy Tummy and Maine Today have both posted photos of the new tasting room.

Under Construction: Tempo Dulu

| Posted in Under Construction

A new Asian restaurant called Tempo Dulu(facebook) is under construction according to a brief report in today’s Press Herald,

The new owners of the Danforth Inn, 163 Danforth St., plan to open a Southeast Asian fine dining restaurant called Tempo Dulu in early 2015. It will be the first restaurant at the inn since Carmen at the Danforth, a Latin restaurant, closed in early 2013.

Here’s an explanation of the name from the restaurant’s facebook page,

Many ask us what does Tempo Dulu (or Doeloe) mean? It is Indonesian for the Olden Days..Tempo + Dulu means time of old. A time when Indonesian was part of the Netherlands East Indies and more specifically the time between 1870 and the beginning of the First World War. A time when life was good, the paste was slow and a where an ‘Indies’ lifestyle was created, blending Indonesian and European elements. The rijsttafel (rice table), a meal of rice with spicy side dishes, is one of the best-known aspects of this mixed Indonesian European culture.

See the PFM Under Construction list for information on other projects under development.

Review of Ruski’s

| Posted in Reviews

Peter Peter Portland Eater has reviewed Ruski’s.

Ruski’s prices are very reasonable, their pours are strong, and their atmosphere is definitively dive. This place is fun for any time of day, week, or year and since they are open both early AND late, you can test that for yourself. I envision this as a go-to hangout in the event my wife isn’t around for a weekend, though I couldn’t see myself spending more than eight or ten hours at a time there. That would be overboard.

North Spore Mushroom CSA

| Posted in Farming

northsporePortland now has a mushroom CSA.

North Spore is run by ” three friends and graduates of College of the Atlantic with an admiration for all things related to the mycological world,” Jon Carver, Eliah Thanhauser and Matt McInnis.

One of our primary goals at North Spore is to engage with the Greater Portland community and help to supply that community with local, sustainably produced mushrooms. What better way to do that then with a mushroom CSA? By becoming a member of our CSA you help to support your local mushroom farmers as well as the larger local food community. As part of this CSA you not only will receive the freshest gourmet mushrooms possible but you will also become part of our mycological network. We will be including education material with our CSA shares and will also be hosting tours and workshops that all CSA members are encouraged to attend.

The CSA will run for 18 weeks, from December 1st through March 30th. Participants receive a pound of culinary mushrooms per week for $250. Half shares are an option. Medicinal mushrooms are available for a $50 premium. Full details are available at northspore.com/mushroom-csa

 

The Hunter’s Bend

| Posted in People

thehuntersbend A new supper club and catering operation called The Hunter’s Bend (website, twitter, instagram) is now in operation in Portland.

Founders Frank Anderson and Rebecca Ambrosi originally hail from northern Maine and Chicago respectively. Frank has spent the last 15 years cooking restaurants across the country including as the chef de cuisine at Son of a Gun in Los Angeles. Rebecca is a graduate of the Natural Gourmet Institute and has worked for both Thomas Keller and Jean-Georges Vongerichten.

The supper club is described as a “closed-door restaurant offering an intimate, dinner party style experience at unique locations around Portland.”

The hunter’s bend club is a closed-door restaurant offering an intimate, dinner party style experience at unique locations around Portland. The evening includes a guided food tour of the one of a kind menu, where Frank and Rebecca explain every course, it’s ingredients and why they chose it. Their favorite parts of the dinners so far include bringing people together, strangers who are seated next to each exchanging their information by the end of the night and answering guest’s questions about technique, ingredients and anything else they might be curious about.

The upcoming dinner they have planned is a 6-course meal featuring Ora King king salmon from New Zealand.

The Hunter’s Bend is a reference to a type of knot credited to Dr. Edward Hunter.

Review of Schulte & Herr

| Posted in Reviews

The Portland Phoenix has reviewed Schulte & Herr.

Most fundamentally it is nice that they manage to preserve what is comforting in German cuisine while giving it unexpected brightness. So a salad of smoked trout and potato does not chase flavor with an aggressive dressing or by over-smoking the fish, but instead uses peppery arugula, spicy shards of radish, and tart-sweet pickled beets to enliven things. Even potato pancakes are almost light—under the thin layer of gorgeous brown crunch is a whipped up fluff. The dish is best ordered with salmon, cured in house with notes of citrus and pepper suffusing its creamy texture.

Dutch’s Opening Soon (Updated)

| Posted in Under Construction

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Dutch’s (facebook, instagram, twitter) is making good progress and co-owners plan to open on Tuesday November 11th.

They’ll be serving breakfast and lunch from their new store at 28 Preble, right next to Arcadia and across the street from Slab. Here’s a look at the sandwich section of the menu.

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Co-owners Lucy and Ian Dutch have have spent the early part of their career working in fine dining and as a private chefs. According to a recent article from Urban Eye,

Together the 30-year-olds have two decades of culinary experience and kitchen star credentials. Ian has worked for top chefs like Todd English and the couple helped open Market for global chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten at the W Hotel in Boston.

And here’s a few of the wonderful set of photos that Zack Bowen from Knack Factory shot Monday at Dutch’s.

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