NYT 2022 List: Leeward & Twelve

| Posted in Reviews

The New York Times has included Leeward and Twelve on their newly released 2022 list of the “50 places in America we’re most excited about right now.”

We traveled widely and ate avidly as we built the annual list of our favorite restaurants in America. From Oklahoma City to Juncos, Puerto Rico, to Orcas Island off the coast of Washington State, our food reporters, editors and critics found revelatory Ethiopian barbecue, innovative Haitian cooking and possibly the most delicious fried pork sandwich in the United States.

Upcoming Events: Lobster Week, Whiskey Tasting, Délicieux, Common Ground

| Posted in Events

Monday – Sunday – Maine Lobster Week is taking place.

Thursday – Man & Oak is holding a free whiskey tasting featuring the “Jack Daniels Single Barrel series, Gentleman Jack, and the Woodford Reserve Family of Brands”.

Friday – there will be a screening of Délicieux (watch the subtitled trailer) directed by Eric Besnard at Talbot Hall on the USM campus. The movie is part of the Champlain Film Festival.

Saturday – Cantillon Zwanze Day is taking place at Novare Res.

Friday – Sunday – the Common Ground Fair is taking place in Unity. While you’re there be sure to stop by the Hayloft Tent where heirloom apple experts John Bunker (from Super Chilly Farm and Out on a Limb CSA) and Sean Turley (aka The Righteous Russet) are holding apple tastings (Fri/Sat 4-5, Sun 3-4) and a cider apple tasting on Sunday 2-3.

October 1 – the Uncork Me wine festival is taking place at the Portland Expo.

October 8 – Oxbow is holding their annual Goods from the Woods event in Newcastle.

October 9 – Dandelion Spring Farm is holding a Harvest Feast. The meal will be a “Contemporary American style dinner influenced by Kristie Rudolph’s Korean American heritage. This multi-course dinner will be celebrating the best of seasonal produce along with local proteins.”

October 9 – the Maine Cheese Guild is holding Maine Open Creamery Day.

October 12 – the chefs from Oberlin (from Providence, Rhode Island) and Regards will be serving a collaboration dinner.

October 16 – MOFGA is holding Great Maine Apple Day at Unity.

October 27 – 29 – Harvest on the Harbor is taking place.

Portland HS Customers

| Posted in People

The Press Herald reports on the relationship between downtown restaurants and their Portland HS customers.

“I feel every student should be able to eat,” said Trinh Le-Tran, owner of the Vietnamese kiosk Pho Huong and mother of a 2-year-old daughter. “If someone comes and they don’t have enough money, I’ll still go ahead and make them the meal. It feels better to know they’ve had something to eat during the day.”

Pho Huong’s entrees run between $8 and $14.50. But for the start of the school year, Le-Tran also offers a dozen $6 student specials, including banh mi sandwiches, burritos and pho. She said pad Thai and fried rice are usually the big specials sellers, and bubble tea with its chewy balls of tapioca is a must for the student set.

Upcoming Events: Me Lon Togo Dinner, Farms for Food Equity, Pasilla

| Posted in Events

Monday – Me Lon Togo in Rockland will be hosting winemaker Tinashe Nyamudoka from  Kumusha Wines in South Africa for a wine dinner.

Tuesday – The Well at Jordan Farm is holding a benefit dinner for Farms for Food Equity (website).

Friday – Sunday – the Roux Institute is holding a start-up weekend focusing on Blue Tech business ideas.

Sunday – Pasilla is holding a pop-up at Apres in East Bayside.

September 19 – 25 – Maine Lobster Week is taking place.

September 23 – 25 – the Common Ground Fair is taking place in Unity. While you’re there be sure to stop by the Hayloft Tent where heirloom apple experts John Bunker (from Super Chilly Farm and Out on a Limb CSA) and Sean Turley (aka The Righteous Russet) are holding apple tastings (Fri/Sat 4-5, Sun 3-4) and a cider apple tasting on Sunday 2-3.

October 1 – the Uncork Me wine festival is taking place at the Portland Expo.

October 8 – Oxbow is holding their annual Goods from the Woods event in Newcastle.

October 9 – Dandelion Spring Farm is holding a Harvest Feast. The meal will be a “Contemporary American style dinner influenced by Kristie Rudolph’s Korean American heritage. This multi-course dinner will be celebrating the best of seasonal produce along with local proteins.”

October 9 – the Maine Cheese Guild is holding Maine Open Creamery Day.

October 27 – 29 – Harvest on the Harbor is taking place.

Review of Jing Yan, Ice Cream Trucks, Foodtopia

| Posted in General News, Reviews, Profiles

Today’s Maine Sunday Telegram includes a review of Jing Yan,

You won’t find menu categories for countries or cuisines; instead you’ll find inventive twists on techniques and ingredients. Start with a plate of numbing Sichuan chicken wings with prickly, tingly spice: some of the best wings anywhere in town. Then go for a bowl of brothless Korean “spaghetti” (really a gochujang-seasoned mazemen ramen) and a clay pot of Eslami’s lush, confit Persian-Peking duck fesenjoon. Thanks to Eslami’s breadth of experience, Jing Yan isn’t a haphazard pan-Asian joint. It’s a tightly conceived restaurant that unites comforting flavors and rock-solid technique.

as well as article about the Deering Ice Cream truck and an article about the book Foodtopia.

Layalina Opens Friday

| Posted in Openings

A new Middle Eastern restaurant called Layalina (instagram) is scheduled to open today at 10 am. Layalina is located at 275 Main Street in Biddeford a few doors down from Elements Coffee Shop.

Layalina will specialize in Middle Eastern food Arabian Gulf region. Owner Talal Alzefiri will be serving a menu that includes lentil soup, fatoush salad, falafel sandwich, chicken or beef shwarma sandwiches, grilled lamb sandwich, a mixed grill plate, stuffed grape leaves and hummus. You can pre-order takeout online. Alzefiri is also the owner of Alhadidi Market in Biddeford.

Layalina will be open Wednesday through Monday, 10 am to 9 pm.

Allagash Tasting Room Moving to Scarborough

| Posted in General News

The Press Herald reports that Allagash Brewing plans to move their tasting room to Scarborough.

Allagash Brewing Co. plans to build a tasting room in Scarborough that will replace the one at its Portland brewery, which it says it’s outgrown.

The brewery’s current tasting area on Industrial Way, which has been outdoor-only since the start of the pandemic, will remain open until the new one is built at The Downs, a mixed-use commercial and residential development on the site of the former Scarborough Downs race track. Allagash announced Thursday that it plans to open the new tasting room, which will have both indoor and outdoor spaces, in 2024.

BA Best New 50: Regards

| Posted in Reviews

Bon Appetit has included Regards in their 2022 list of the Best New Restaurants.

Sparkling-fresh Maine seafood doesn’t need much adornment, but chef Neil Zabriskie’s thoughtful garnishing makes the argument for fancying it up. Zabriskie draws on the cuisines of Mexico, Japan, and his native California for his savvy takes. Briny local oysters shine brighter with a judicious splash of yuzu mignonette. Peekytoe crab tastes even sweeter when pressed into a cake with crispy brown rice. Rich, supple hamachi collar feels at home served alongside nori, tare, and lettuces for wrapping. Throw in a smart bar program, a well-curated natural wine list, and Regards feels like a welcome reminder that when it comes to the very best ingredients, a little adorning goes a long way.

Bon Appetit will release their Top 10 list next week.

Maine Heirloom Apple Guide

| Posted in Farming, Cider

September has arrived and with it the leading edge of the Maine apple season. Take a look at the updated Maine Heirloom Apple Guide for detailed information on where and when to find dozens of heirloom apple varieties grown at sixteen outstanding Maine orchards.

The orchard guide is a coproduction of Portland Food Map and the intrepid apple expert Sean Turley at The Righteous Russet (instagram). We hope this provides you with all the information you need to go out for a self-directed exploration of Maine orchards and the many heirloom apples they offer. Use it throughout the fall to go exploring so you can take advantage of the entire season.

For those of you who like to consume Maine apples in liquid form also check out our Guide to Maine Cider Producers—a list of the 26 cideries in Maine. Many have a tasting room that you might visit after a day of apple picking.