According to reports from the Bangor Daily News and Press Herald Bull Feeney’s will be permanently closing this Sunday.
In a letter sent out on Wednesday, the owner and operator Douglas Fuss wrote that the bar will officially close on Sunday, March 26. He did not cite any particular reasons for stepping away from the business on Wednesday evening.
Fuss opened his two-story Irish-themed bar and restaurant in 2001. He named it after famed Hollywood director — and Portland native — John Ford.
The New York Times has published an article about baker Briana Holt’s buttermilk biscuits at Tandem Coffee entitled “The Best Biscuits Outside of the South“.
Whenever Briana Holt is baking at home, her rescue dog, Gravy, is usually close by waiting for a treat. She named him after Wavy Gravy, the Woodstock-era peace activist and the former official clown of the Grateful Dead, one of Holt’s favorite bands. Her dog’s name, she says, has nothing to do with the fact that she happens to make the best biscuits I’ve ever tasted outside the South. Holt is an owner and the head baker at Tandem Coffee + Bakery in Portland, Maine, which has a line out the door more often than not. I met her for the first time at the front of that line. As I was ordering my third biscuit of the week, I felt a gentle tap on my shoulder. “Eric?”
Today’s Press Herald reports on how a maturing craft brewing industry is adding food service to evolve their business model and better address their customer’s needs.
“What we’re seeing at the highest level is the next move in a maturing marketplace,” said Sean Sullivan, executive director of the Maine Brewers’ Guild, a trade group.
Tasting rooms still draw visitors who want to try the latest beers. But the market has changed since the heyday of specialty can releases, when people would line up outside breweries to get the newest creation before it sold out.
The beer makers have also changed. Craft breweries are outgrowing their first tasting rooms, adding second or third locations in new towns, building in-house kitchens and expanding their food menus.
For a recent example read about Battery Steele’s plans to open a pub in Wells.
Maples owner Robin Ray has announced plans to close and sell the original Yarmouth location. March 29 is tentatively slated to be the last day of business.
There is big stuff happening and I have been struggling to find the words that will ring true and sound like me but also finding a balance of reality and emotion. I am selling the Maples Yarmouth location. I intended to keep two locations open but as the reality of New Gloucester opening came closer I realized that I could not physically and emotionally keep up with the demands that they both would require.
Ray is in the process of launching a new/second Maples location in New Gloucester which is located at 1055 Lewiston Road. in the building formerly occupied by Rosanna’s.
Rebel Cheesesteaks (instagram) owner Peter Murphy has leased the former Dos Naciones space at 649 Congress Street where he plans to open Rebel Munchies & Libations this fall.
Murphy will be expanding the menu and adding a full bar. He shared he’s excited to scale up the business from its start as a food cart, and looks forward to building out a team.
Renovations will be getting underway with the a master design theme of keeping it “rebellious as always.”
March 20 – the Seafood Innovation & Quality Summit is taking place in Portland, and chef Nikhil Naiker will be collaborating with Crispy Gai on a Fijian Indian pop-up dinner.
March 22 – Josh Berry will be the guest chef for a Spanish wine dinner at the Maker’s Galley.
March 24 – Full Turn is reopening. The new menu theme for the restaurant will be Italian Sunday Dinner.
March 26 – it’s Maine Maple Sunday. See the Maine Maple Producers Association website for a full list of events at maple syrup producers across the state.
March 27 – Batson River in Portland is hosting ChopTails bartender competition featuring Rob Roy from Primo, Jake Bosma from Cocktail Mary, LyAnna Sanabria from Papi, Sylvi Roy from Twelve, and Bailey White from The Danforth.
March 29 – the James Beard Foundation will release the list of nominees for this year’s awards. There are 11 semifinalists from Maine under consideration.
April 3 – Scratch Baking is teaching a bagel baking class.
April 4 – Roma is holding a Central Italian wine dinner.
April 16 – Turamali will be serving two seatings of an 8-course Mexican dinner at the Knotted Apron (tickets go on sale on March 24th).
April 18 – Avery Yale Kamila will be giving a talk on the 300 year history of vegetarianism in Maine in Buxton.
April 20-22 – chef Johnny Spero from the Michelin-starred Reverie in Washington DC will be serving a 9-course dinner at Hugo’s.
April 21 – The Good Food Awards will take place, there are 12 finalists from Maine in the running this year.
May 20 – Maine Wild Wine Fest is taking place in Freeport.
June 12-18 – Portland Wine Week is taking place with events at restaurants all over the Portland area.
July 23 – Open Farm Day.
August 23 – an Outstanding in the Field dinner is taking place at Dandelion Spring Farm. Tickets go on sale March 20th.
September 10 – Maine Cheese Festival.
October 8 – Maine Open Creamery Day.
Battery Steele Brewing (website, facebook, instagram) is opening a second location. They’ve bought the former Varano’s Italian restaurant in Wells where they plan to open a 180-seat pub. The building is undergoing renovations and they hope to open to public as soon as May.
Owners Jake Condon, Meaghen Kenney, Scott Kenney, Lee Thibodeau and Shane Noble plan to serve a focused menu of elevated pub food along with wine, cocktails and, of course, Battery Steele beer. A wood-fired pizza oven and raw bar are being added to the downstairs bar.
Battery Steele launched their brewery and tasting room on Industrial Way in April 2017. It’s been a long term aspiration to add a restaurant outlet to their business, and in an increasingly crowded Maine brewery industry it has the added benefit of diversifying their revenue. In the last few years we’ve seen other breweries such as Maine Beer Co, Bissell Brothers, Goodfire, Banded Horn and Mast Landing adopt the same mixed business model.
Varano’s closed their doors in late December after 23 years in business. The building is located at 60 Mile Road, just off US Route 1, just around the corner from Congdon’s Donuts and almost across the street from Batson River.
A new gluten-free brewery called Orange Bike Brewing (website, facebook, instagram) is under development at 31 Diamond Street in East Bayside. Construction of the brewery recently got underway.
When Orange Bike launches it will be one of very few dedicated gluten-free breweries in America and the second gf brewery in Maine in addition to Lucky Pigeon Brewing in Biddeford. Brewmaster Alan Pugsley has joined the team as a consultant and is developing a set of gluten-free beer recipes. Orange Bike’s beer will be produced on a 10-barrel vintage Peter Austin brewery system.
In addition to the 60-person tasting room, Orange Bike is also building out (see floor plan below) an outdoor courtyard with room for an additional 90+ people.
Tom Ruff is the founder of Orange Bike Brewing and Neil Spilane—a co-founder of Fork Food Lab—is the COO for the business. Ruff’s plans to establish a gluten-free brewery originated when he became gluten intolerant himself.
In addition to brewing a beer that is both excellent and gluten-free, Ruff’s ambition for Orange Bike is to be a mission-oriented organization.
Orange Bike is committed to raising the bar for gluten-free beer and intends to make OBB a center and symbol of positive change in Maine and beyond. With a focus on the triple bottom line – social, environmental, and financial – the OBB team is committed to setting a new standard within the craft beer industry. In addition to pioneering a new standard in sustainable brewing, OBB is defined by its commitment to making a positive impact on the local community, welcoming Maine’s rich diversity of people in a spirit of hospitality, inclusivity, dignity, and friendship, and expanding the potential for meaningful new jobs for Mainers.
Ren Navarro from Beer. Diversity. has joined Orange Bike as their diversity consultant. As a part of her work on governance and DEI, Navarro will guide the brewery as they begin hiring staff and managers for the brewery as well as recruiting for the Orange Bike board of directors.
Orange Bike Brewing has received funding from the Maine Venture Fund and the Indiana University Angel Network in addition to a diverse range of individual investors. They have begun the process to become a certified B Corporation which requires meeting “high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability.”
Ruff and the team hope to launch Orange Bike Brewing by this fall.
Thai Esaan (facebook, instagram) has leased the former Back Bay Grill at 65 Portland Street where they plan to re-open their restaurant. The original Thai Esaan on Forest Ave location closed in late 2021 when a fire damaged the building they were located in.
Owners Ben Boonseng and Siwaporn Roberts plan to launch with their classic menu and then expand it over time with new dishes and specials. Additionally, beer and wine will also now be available. They’ll continue to offer takeout as well as dining on-site with counter service and seating for approximately 60 customers.
Some light renovations are underway, but the layout of the restaurant will remain generally the same. Roberts and Boonseng hope to launch Thai Esaan later this month. Their hours will be Tuesday through Sunday, 11 am – 9 pm.
March 12-19 – Biddeford Restaurant Week is taking place.
March 13 – the Greeks of Peaks food truck is holding a pop-up at Hunt & Alpine.
March 15 – the new Puerto Rican-inspired bar and restaurant called Papi (website, facebook, instagram) is scheduled to open, and Meet on the Street is holding a pop-up at Amigo’s.
March 16 – importer Vinum will be taking over the wine list at Cong Tu Bot serving wine from Central and Southeastern Europe.
March 17 – the final Flanagan Farm Supper Club (tickets) is taking place in Buxton. The cocktails, hors d’oeuvres and multi-course dinner at being produced by Big Tree, the parent company of Eventide and The Honey Paw restaurants. Tacos La Poblanita is opening their new restaurant in Westbrook. Also, it’s Saint Patrick’s Day so check with you favorite bars and restaurants for holiday specials.
March 18 – Chris Toy is teaching a virtual cooking class to benefit the Oasis Free Clinic in Brunswick.
March 19 – Helm is holding a Prime Night dinner.
March 20 – the Seafood Innovation & Quality Summit is taking place in Portland.
March 22 – Josh Berry will be the guest chef for a Spanish wine dinner at the Maker’s Galley.
March 27 – Batson River in Portland is hosting ChopTails bartender competition featuring Rob Roy from Primo, Jake Bosma from Cocktail Mary, LyAnna Sanabria from Papi, Sylvi Roy from Twelve, and Bailey White from The Danforth.
March 29 – the James Beard Foundation will release the list of nominees for this year’s awards. There are 11 semifinalists from Maine under consideration.
April 3 – Scratch Baking is teaching a bagel baking class.
April 18 – Avery Yale Kamila will be giving a talk on the 300 year history of vegetarianism in Maine in Buxton.
April 21 – The Good Food Awards will take place, there are 12 finalists from Maine in the running this year.
May 20 – Maine Wild Wine Fest is taking place in Freeport.
June 12-18 – Portland Wine Week is taking place with events at restaurants all over the Portland area.
July 23 – Open Farm Day.
August 23 – an Outstanding in the Field dinner is taking place at Dandelion Spring Farm. Tickets go on sale March 20th.
September 10 – Maine Cheese Festival.
October 8 – Maine Open Creamery Day.