Portland was included on the Zagat blog’s list of 20 Awesome Winter Foodie Destinations (slide 18).
Under Construction: The Return of Deux Cochon
Deux Cochon, the short lived (April 11-August 3, 2011) but very popular shop in the Public Market House, has announced that they’re making a comeback.
Starting early next year Adam Alfter and friends will be serving their brand of “Southern Food Hooliganism” from the back of a Portland food truck.
In celebration of Portland, ME finally allowing food trucks to grace the city’s streets, I’m picking up a sweet old truck next week in Brooklyn, so that a couple friends and I can play along. Chicken & waffles, poutine, biscuit waffles & gravy and various breakfast-like creations will be our focus, but blackboard randomness will also be offered to all ye late-night Old Port revelers. Will be rolling out in about a month, but will start posting photos in the meantime soon.
Pocket Brunch Field Report: Bienvenue
The Portland Phoenix has published a field report from the November edition of Pocket Brunch.
When greasy poutine with cranberry ketchup is the salad course, you know you’re in for a raucous meal. But Pocket Brunch pop-ups in secret locations around Portland only one Sunday a month, so it’s worth indulging. The hardest-to-come-by seat in town is the brainchild of Katie and Josh Schier-Potocki, co-owners of South Portland’s 158 Pickett Street Café. Last month, a select sixty-five sat at red gingham-clad tables, dining on five French-Canadian courses, served on paper plates. The “Bienvenue” fête filled an industrial space the couple, expanding their catering and bakery operations, now shares with their friends at the SoPo Wine Co.
Review of Otto Pizza
Dispatch has published a review of Otto Pizza from the perspective of their newly expanded space in the Arts District.
The new OTTO space definitely gets the Dispatch Stamp of Approval. And we recommend you head down there with some friends for a few drinks, maybe too many slices, and some good conversation. Furthermore, the Congress Street location offers fantastic people watching.
Under Construction: Salvage BBQ, Food Factory Miyake, Another Room
The Food & Dining section in today’s Press Herald includes a feature story on 3 new restaurants under construction in Portland: Salvage BBQ & Smokehouse being developed by Jay Villani of Local 188, the re-imagined Food Factory Miyake and Harding Lee Smith’s as yet unnamed fourth Room restaurant on Custom House Wharf.
Villani says he gets his kicks these days being the “executive producer” of a restaurant. A former sculptor, he likes trying to create energy and flow in a space. “I’m really into this part — building them out, the flow — the whole project from beginning to end,” he said. “At this point in my life, that really excites me.”
Villani and the other restaurateurs planning new businesses say that today it’s essential to have a niche to fill in the city. Villani thinks there’s room here for more barbecue, and his new place will be just a block and a half from the ballpark at Hadlock Field.
For a complete list of all new restaurants under development in Portland see the PFM Under Construction List.
Brunch Review of Vignola/Cinque Terre
Map & Menu has published a review of Vignola/Cinque Terre.
And on the other side of the spectrum, I couldn’t have been happier with my oh-so-savory poached eggs with grilled house ham, tomato conserva, foccacia toast, and a herb hollandaise. Both meals were prepared with an attention to detail that can sometimes be overlooked when it comes to brunch comfort foods, and saying that we left that day with a smile on our faces is somewhat of an understatement…
Five Guys Hot Potato
According to a report in the Press Herald, Maine’s congressional representatives are asking Five Guys to use Maine potatoes.
Sen. Olympia Snowe and and Maine Reps. Chellie Pingree and Mike Michaud have written to the owners of Five Guys Burgers and Fries franchises in New England, asking them to use Maine potatoes in their Maine restaurants.
Under Construction: Bueno Loco
According to the Forecaster, a new Mexican restaurant called Bueno Loco Mexican Restaurante is under construction in Falmouth.
Bueno Loco will serve Mexican with a Mayan twist, which Starks said is different from the traditional Tex-Mex many restaurants serve. She says it will be a “healthier Mexican,” and Opalnyk will use a lot of local ingredients.
Three Buoys Now Open
Three Buoys Seafood Shanty & Grille is now open. They’re located at the corner of Cumberland and Washington Avenues in the old Wings-N-Things space.
Maine Shrimp Season
Regulators have set an abbreviated 2013 Maine Shrimp season.
Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, which met Monday, said the total catch limit was set at 1.38 million pounds, down from 5.3 million pounds caught last year. That compared to the catch of 2011, when 13.3 million pounds of shrimp were harvested.
The season will begin on January 22 for trawling fishermen, who can harvest on Mondays and Wednesdays. For fishermen who use traps, the season will start on February 5, with a limit of 800 pounds per day per boat.
For additional reporting read this article in the Bangor Daily News.