Under Construction: Crown Jewel

| Posted in Under Construction

Alex Wight, manager of the much loved Flanagan’s Table series in Buxton, has purchased the General Store on Great Diamond Island where she plans to open a restaurant called Crown Jewel.

Crown Jewel will be open seasonally starting Memorial Day 2018 through Columbus Day. Rocky Hunter has joined the team as the chef for the restaurant. Hunter was formerly the Vegetarian Chef de Cusine at David’s Opus Ten.

Wight plans to share more detailed information later this month but has hinted that there will “undoubtedly be elements of Flanagan’s Table incorporated into Crown Jewel” so we can hope the guest chef series will be starting back up on the island.

 

Apple Map and Calendar

| Posted in General News

As part of their seasonal Apple series, the Press Herald has published a map of orchards that stock heritage apple varieties, a guide to when various apple varieties are in season and a new article by Sean Turley about heritage apples.

At the same time average apple consumers are strolling through orchards, there’s a manic search under way by apple obsessives on the hunt for unconventional and heirloom varietals that grow in small quantities across the state. Whereas most orchards in Maine grow only McIntosh, Cortland and, occasionally, Macoun, there are other orchards that provide a dizzyingly diverse array of varieties, from the latest creations provided by university agricultural experiment stations to apples that have been grown continuously in New England since the colonial era.

Bruno’s Pasta Co.

| Posted in Openings

MaineBiz has published an article about Bruno’s Pasta Company.

Napolitano, the general manager of Bruno’s Restaurant and Tavern, bought the extruder — a machine that makes rounded and hollow pasta — for a few hundred dollars. That purchase spurred the idea and now new state-of-the-art equipment imported from Italy is making ravioli by the batch in the Bruno Pasta Co.’s new commercial kitchen on Read Street in Portland.

Vogue: A Perfect Weekend Away

| Posted in Reviews

Vogue has published an article on where to eat, shop and stay in Southern Maine.

Portland was once thought to simply be a small, weather-worn coastal city playing second fiddle to big shots like Boston, but this has thankfully changed. This gem of a city is now a major destination for those looking for incredible food, small-batch breweries with cult followings, and amazing independent shops that will tempt you to blow your weekend budget in a ten-minute period. And if Portland isn’t enough, the rest of southern Maine presents ample attractions like cute coastal towns and hikes offering vistas that make breaking a sweat very worthwhile.

The article mentions Central Provisions, Little Giant Market, Fore Street, Drifters Wife, Urban Farm Fermentory, and Allagash, Foundation, and Austin Street breweries.

New Maine Apple Column

| Posted in General News

The first of this Fall’s weekly apple column was published today in the Press Herald.

Heirloom apples, though, are another matter. They are beguiling subjects of intense adoration for many people because they have so much more to say. Each one offers insights into our region’s history, its values, its sense of community and the interplay between the landscape that surrounds us and the terroir of the food we consume. Oh, and they often taste great, too.

You can follow columnist Sean Ryan Turley on instagram at The Righteous Russet.

Under Construction: Elda

| Posted in Under Construction

A new restaurant called Elda (instagram) is under construction in the space formerly occupied by Custom Deluxe in Biddeford. Chef/owner Bowman Brown has also leased the adjacent storefront and is in the process of renovating and connecting the two spaces. Overall Elda will seat 32 including an 8-seat bar in the addition, and four seats at chef’s counter looking into the open kitchen.

Brown has moved to Maine from Salt Lake City where he was the co-owner and chef of Forage (instagram). He and co-founding chef Viet Pham were recognized as part of the 2011 class of Best New Chefs by Food & Wine. Additionally, Brown has been a Beard semifinalists in the Best Chef: Southwest category for six years running from 2011 to 2016.

At Elda Brown plans to serve a menu “driven by seafood and vegetables with a focus on seasonality and New England ingredients”.  Diners will be able to choose from a 10-12 dishes or go with a set nightly 4-course menu. The bar program will include “a small selection of rotating seasonal cocktails based around house infusions, tinctures, bitters, and shrubs as well as a vibrant food-focused wine, beer, and cider” options.

The name Elda is a reference to the Icelandic word meaning ‘to cook’ as well as the name of Brown’s great grandmother. Chef Brown plans to open Elda by the end of October.

Jeremiah Tower: The Last Magnificent

| Posted in Events

The Portland Museum of Art is screening Jeremiah Tower: The Last Magnificent this Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Jeremiah Tower: The Last Magnificent explores the remarkable life of Jeremiah Tower, one of the most controversial and influential figures in the history of American gastronomy. Tower began his career at the renowned Chez Panisse in Berkeley in 1972, becoming a pioneering figure in the emerging California cuisine movement. After leaving Chez Panisse, due in part to a famously contentious relationship with founder Alice Waters, Tower went on to launch his own legendary Stars Restaurant in San Francisco. Stars was an overnight sensation and soon became one of America’s top-grossing U.S. restaurants. After several years, Tower mysteriously walked away from Stars and then disappeared from the scene for nearly two decades, only to resurface in the most unlikely of places: New York City’s fabled but troubled Tavern on the Green. There, he launched a journey of self-discovery familiar to anyone who has ever imagined themselves to be an artist. Featuring interviews by Mario Batali, Anthony Bourdain, Ruth Reichl and Martha Stewart, this delicious documentary tells the story of the rise and fall of America’s first celebrity chef, whose brash personality and culinary genius has made him a living legend.

Under Construction: Uncle Billy’s

| Posted in Under Construction

The Forecaster has published an article about the new Uncle Billy’s under construction at 166 Cumberland Ave.

Uncle Billy’s returns to a burgeoning food platescape with barbecue firmly entrenched in the city and South Portland. This time, he will serve more of a Texas style, headlined by beef brisket.

“I have also become fascinated with pork belly,” St. Laurent said. “I’m going to put pork belly on everything, baby.”

You can follow the progress of Uncle Billy’s Bar-B-Que on their website, and on facebook and twitter.

This Week’s Events

| Posted in Events

Monday – it’s Labor Day, and the 6th Annual Summer Ender Bender is taking place at the Inn on Peaks Island.

Wednesday – the Monument Square Farmers’ Market is taking place.

Friday – there will be a wine tasting at Rosemont on Munjoy Hill.

Saturday – there will be a wine tasting at LeRoux Kitchen, and the Deering Oaks Farmers’ Market is taking place.

For more information on these and other upcoming food happenings in the area, visit the event calendar.

If you are holding a food event this week that’s not listed above, please provide details as a comment to this post.