Bar Reviews: Timber & Buck’s

| Posted in Reviews

Drink Up and Get Happy has reviewed Timber,

Timber has a great happy hour and can’t wait to go back and try more of the menu. We  look forward to taking advantage of the specials to explore their wine list further as well! As fall approaches, they do have a beautifully decorated interior to sip those wines in as well.

and Future Fun Stuff has reviewed Buck’s Naked BBQ.

The consensus on Buck’s is that it has a damn good Happy Hour. It lasts a long time, the drinks deals are good (so good you might want to get several drinks and get nekkid…. woohoo!), and you can get a mountain of fried food for cheap.

Opening Soon: Sur Lie

| Posted in Under Construction

surlieSur Lie (facebook) is in the process of holding a some friends and family services prior to opening to the public “early next week”. I was fortunate enough to get invited to the dinner last night.

The main part of chef Emil Rivera’s small plate menu (here’s a photo of the one from last night) is divided into three categories: Crisp, Pleasant and Bold along with some cheeses, charcuterie and other smaller starters. Rivera moved to Maine from DC where he worked for several years as part of the ThinkFoodGroup—a family of 15 restaurants founded by chef/restaurateur Jose Andres.

My menu recommendation: when you go be sure not to miss the Creamed Corn with Pork Belly.

Sur Lie is located at 11 Free Street.

Review of Yosaku

| Posted in Reviews

The Golden Dish has reviewed Yosaku.

Ultimately, I can recommend Yosaku because of the genre it’s as good as we get in Portland.  The service is attentive, the wait staff is knowledgeable and the traditional choices well prepared.  The décor is pleasant and if my honest thoughts about this kind of cooking in general will make followers shake their heads, take it from whence it comes.   In the end, one should stick to what one knows!

Brewery Tasting Rooms

| Posted in Beer

The Brew Babe writes about the recent history of brewery tasting rooms and her top 5 reasons for visiting them.

2. Information straight from the source: Do you think an employee at Hannaford is going to crack open a beer and give me a taste to see if I like it before I bring home a six pack? Do you think that guy at the sketchy 7-11 (you know the one I’m talking about) knows what kinds of hops are in a beer?

Bar Reviews: Sonny’s & Old Port Sea Grill

| Posted in Reviews

Peter Peter Portland Eater has reviewed Sonny’s,

…The drinks were great and the fries were excellent except for the lack of crisp. In truth, I haven’t been there for dinner in a while as I’ve never been super impressed with their food, but Sonny’s has had some menu changes and it does look better. Maybe I’ll try it again in the future. For now, they get two thumbs up on their drinks.

and the Press Herald has reviewed the Old Port Sea Grill.

But if you can look beyond the somewhat characterless decor, past the blue hue of the tank’s chemical-treated water, and crack open a menu, you’ll likely discover a proper eatery, in line with Portland’s creative and culinary flair.

Now Open: Dean’s Sweets & Golden Lotus

| Posted in Openings

deanssweets

Dean’s Sweets is opening their new larger Fore Street location today. They’ll be having a “tastings of their signature truffles and caramels, hot chocolate and chocolate bars”. Dean’s new store is located at 475 Fore Street, they plan to open at 10 am.

goldenlotusGolden Lotus had their grand opening yesterday. Chef/owner Joe Tang has 30 years of restaurant experience, mostly in NH. For several years he was part of the staff at Wok Inn and most recently he worked at Empire Chinese Kitchen. Golden Lotus is located at 511 Congress Street.

Under Construction: Portland Co-op

| Posted in Under Construction

There’s an article on the new Portland Co-op in the Food & Dining section in today’s Press Herald.

Here’s the latest: All of the refrigeration, heating and cooling systems are in place. Floors have been polished. Soon interior painting will begin. Within the next two weeks, shelving, fixtures and checkout counters will begin arriving and workers will start building out the interior of the store at 290 Congress St. in Portland.

But Gadsby declines to reveal a target opening date, sticking to the script that it will be sometime in “mid-fall.”

Arcadia National Bar

| Posted in Profiles

The USM Free Press has published an article about Arcadia National Bar.

On a Monday night the place was packed with people all of whom said that they grew up playing with games Arcadia offered. According to Matt Grassi, a 24 year old Portland local, Arcadia is unlike any bar in Portland and it was inevitable for a place like it to spring up in town. For Grassi, the unique atmosphere lends itself to two things: a good variety of games and a bar free from awkward social expectations.