Pepper Club Moving

| Posted in Under Construction

Pepperclub has lost there lease and is searching for a new space to relocate to, according to a report from Maine a la Carte.

The Pepperclub/Good Egg Cafe on Middle Street has lost its lease and will be moving to a new location by September.

Mary Ledue Paine, a fixture at the Pepperclub for the last 25 years, and at the original Good Egg before that, says increased competition, rising food costs and high overhead – the restaurant can seat 100 people – have all led to this sad but inevitable conclusion.

For more information see this article from the Bangor Daily News.

Shift Drinks: Damian Sansonetti

| Posted in People

Shift Drinks has posted an interview with Damian Sansonetti, chef and co-owner of Piccolo.

That is an excellent motivator.
You don’t really feel like you are going to work. Now it’s even more rewarding because it is our place. It is a smaller place too and so we get to see our customers and so it is easier. When you see a guest and they are happy, that’s the ultimate reward. When they tell you that what you made with all of your crew took them back to their childhood, or to a food memory, and it transported them in some way big or small, that is really rewarding.

MECA’s Culinary Arts Program

| Posted in Events

The Bangor Daily News has published an article on MECA’s new Culinary Arts program.

Portland’s growing restaurant and brewery scene has been receiving national acclaim for at least five years. So it seemed only a matter of time before someone stepped forward to launch a culinary arts program in the downtown.

Last week, Maine College of Art announced it would do so.

For more details see this post on PFM.

Foundation Brewing

| Posted in Beer

The Beer Babe has published a report on Foundation Brewing.

On one of the many nights that a blizzard covered Portland with snow, I slowly maneuvered my car – down a mostly unplowed road – to Foundation Brewing Company on Industrial Way. I saw a bright glow from the door to the brewery as I slid into what would have been a parking spot if the lines were visible. Inside, I found Joel Mahaffey, brewer and co-owner, taking some gravity measurements.

Serious Eats: Pai Men Miyake

| Posted in Reviews

Serious Eats has posted a single dish review of the Chirashi at Pai Men Miyake.

No surprise, the chirashi at Pai Men Miyake is particularly nice—and, frankly, well portioned for the price. The deep bowl is well padded with rice, on top of which sits a trio of sashimi: salmon, tuna, and bronzini, all impeccably fresh. The bronzini might be some of the best I’ve had—delicately sweet, rich, and clean.

Vena’s Fizz House

| Posted in Profiles

The Portland Daily Sun has published an articl about Vena’s Fizz House.

Vena’s Fizz House offers a whole lotta buzz in a variety of non-alcoholic drinks. Mixing natural sodas at their Fore Street bar and mixology shop, Steve and Johanna Corman say the decision to fill a niche in the Portland drink scene was one brought about by a confluence of events — the desire to add a mainland connection to their Cliff Island market, Steve’s job loss, and Johanna’s habitual brainstorming. “It just came to me,” she said of the idea for a soda bar.