2026 Beard Award Nominees

| Posted in Reviews

The 2026 list of nominees for the James Beard Awards has been released. Congratulations to our Maine nominees:

The list of semifinalists was released back in January with seven from Maine this year. Elsewhere in New England there were 2 nominees from Rhode Island, 1 from Vermont, 3 from Connecticut and 2 from New Hampshire.

The awards ceremony will take place on June 15th in Chicago. This year is the 25th anniversary of the first Beard Award won by a Maine establishment—an America’s Classics award for Waterman’s Beach Lobster in 2001. Hopefully this year’s ceremony reveals additional award winners for Maine to continue the legacy.

For your reference:

Upcoming Food & Dining Events

| Posted in Events

Tuesday – K-Pop Kimbap is holding a pop-up at Luncheonette.

Thursday – A Pulutan pop-up is taking place at Onggi.

April 10 – The Pierogi Prince (instagram) will be popping up at the Local 188 event space.

April 11 – New England Iron Pollo is holding a pop-up at Lambs. It’s the last day of the indoor Winter Farmers’ Market.

April 17-18 – The 2nd Annual Organic Grain & Seed Summit is taking place.

April 18 – It’s the first day of the outdoor Portland Farmers’ Market in Deering Oaks Park.

April 24 – May 3 – Maine Seaweed Week is taking place.

May 2 – SeaFest is taking place.

May 3 – CiderFeast is taking place.

May 9 – The premiere screening of the movie Lunchroom Revolution is taking place.

May 9-10 – The 2026 A Taste of Nations Food Festival is taking place at Mayo Street Arts.

May 16 – The Maine Wine Wine Fest (tickets) is taking place in Freeport.

May 17 – Cafe Mugen is holding a pop-up at at Izakaya Minato.

July 24-26 – The Kneading Conference is taking place in Skowhegan.

September 25-27 – The Common Ground Fair is taking place in Unity.

Planning a wedding, holding a business event, or hosting visitors from away? Our printed guides are a great resource to help your guests explore the Maine restaurant scene.

The Portland and Midcoast pocket guides are now for sale in packs of 25 on our online store.

Maine Food & Dining News: Deer Isle, Swanville, Freedom, Cape Elizabeth, Oxford, Belgrade, Scarborough, Bar Harbor, Yarmouth, Camden, Owls Head, Van Buren, Chebeague

| Posted in Maine

New food and dining developments are taking place all across Maine. Here are some recent updates to keep you in the know:

  • Several of Maine’s seasonal destination restaurants are now taking reservations for 2026: Aragosta on Deer Isle has begun taking reservations and opens for the season on May 7th, Circumstance in Swanville is now taking reservations and launches their season on April 24th, The Lost Kitchen in Freedom has begun gathering postcards for their reservation lottery, and The Well at Jordan’s Farm in Cape Elizabeth is taking reservations and opens for the season on June 10th.
  • Chef Jordan DiDonato is launching a food cart called Beef Haus (instagram) in Oxford. He plans to serve a menu of meatball sub variations and a set of hot dog sandwiches like the House Dog topped with mustard, grilled onions, sauerkraut and celery salt. DiDonato hopes to launch by the beginning of June.
  • The Cork & Cow (website, instagram) has launched their new wine bar. Located on the second floor of their shop at 47 Main Street in Belgrade, it is open Friday through Sunday, 3 – 9 pm. The menu includes a selection of white, rose and red wines by the glass, draft beer and some bar snacks.
  • Taste Me (website, instagram) has opened for business in Scarborough. The Asian fusion sandwich shop serves a menu that includes baked goods, rice bowls, ramen, banh mi, breakfast sandwiches, standards like BLTs and a set of house specials like an orange chicken sandwich served on a brioche bun. They’re located at 680 US Route One and are open Wednesday through Monday, 7 am – 3 pm.
  • Siren & Sailor (website, facebook, instagram), a new Bar Harbor cocktail bar and restaurant from the owners of The Travelin Lobster, is scheduled to open on April 9th, 3:30 – 8:30 pm. You can see their full food menu and drink list on their website.
  • Me Lon Togo is holding a pop-up Gather in Yarmouth on April 12th serving a 4-course dinner.
  • The Midcoast Villager reports that the Megunticook Market in Camden is under new ownership “Megunticook Market and Catering on Gould Street will be undergoing a “facelift” and offering a new expanded selection including Asian cuisine items, the new owner has announced.”
  • The Pen Bay Pilot has published an article about Nomad, the new cafe operating at the Knox County Airport in Owls Head.
  • The Bangor Daily News reports that Northern Maine Kolache in Van Buren will be opening their new shop early next month. “Ayotte plans a grand opening at the new spot, located on 46 Main St., from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 4. The new store will maintain the business’s regular hours of 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. on all weekdays except Wednesday, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Sunday.”
  • The Press Herald reports that Doughty’s Island Market on Chebeague Island is closing after 65 years in business.

For a statewide guide to eating and drinking see the Maine Food Map—a growing list of coffee shops, bars, restaurants, bakeries, cafes, plus other food and dining businesses in all of Maine’s 16 counties.

Mourning Cloak and Sweetfern Geometer

| Posted in Under Construction

Restauranteur William Justice has leased 122 Washington Ave where he plans to operate a bakery cafe by day and a farm-to-table restaurant at night. Justice shared,

I want to create a world where daily life brings us close to the bounty in the field and forest, the length of sunlight, the wealth in the ocean, and all those who labor there. My work is to create a community of care, pleasure, and nourishment that uplifts all who touch it, whether they simply enjoy a wild blueberry scone on an autumn morning or rise bewildered and giddy from an unforgettable mid-winter feast.

Justice hopes to launch his counter service coffee shop and bakery by the end of April. At Mourning Cloak (instagram) he plans to serve a globally-inspired selection of morning pastries like pao de queijo, cardamom buns, and scones as well as a biscuit-based breakfast sandwiches. The lunch menu will feature grab-and-go options like grain bowls, salads, soups, and flatbreads. Customers will enter Mourning Cloak via the storefront between 122 Washington and Portland Pottery (see above).

Phase two will see the launch of the Sweetfern Geometer (instagram) restaurant. The dining room is being renovated to include a 20-seat bar with an overall seating capacity for 80 guests. The restaurant will offer some a la carte options, however, the central offering will be meals utilizing seasonal ingredients and guided by dinner guest preferences (vegetarian, seafood, etc). Stay tuned for more detail on Sweetfern which Justice hopes to launch by the end of May.

Justice began his career in hospitality running an underground catering operation in California as an offshoot of his work in the publishing industry. The side venture to provide food for book events eventually became center stage in his career. He went on to launch a farm-to-table restaurant and bookstore/coffee shop in Kansas, before moving to NYC where he was the chef and co-owner Tannat Wine & Cheese.

The businesses are named after the Mourning Cloak butterfly and the Sweetfern Geometer moth, both of which can be found in Maine.

See the Under Construction page for a full list of restaurants under development in Portland.

4 Star Review of Luncheonette

| Posted in Reviews

The Maine Sunday Telegram has published a 4 star review of Luncheonette.

…Among the best are roasted sweet potato salad with North African seasoning, cabbage “Caesar” with creamy tahini dressing and puffed rye berry furikake, and potato salad with French fines herbes and Japanese Kewpie mayo. LeBlanc’s sublime milk bread puts the tofu katsu sando over the top, and the dough also serves double duty in one of the best cinnamon rolls around. Get there early before the cinnamon rolls and first-rate roasted pork with mustard and apple gastrique sell out…

Owners Alex LeBlanc and Angela Lee launched Luncheonette last June. The pocket-sized eatery is located at 147 Cumberland Ave in the space formerly occupied by Union Bagel Company. Eater included Luncheonette in their list of the Best New Restaurants in America in 2025.

Upcoming Food & Dining Events

| Posted in Events

Monday – Supperclub is hosting Rockey’s Liqueur from Brooklyn in collaboration with Hardshore Distilling.

Tuesday – Jordan Brocklesby from Plates of Portland will be the guest speaker at a Maine Voices Live event at One Longfellow Square. Chef Colin Myers will be holding a ramen pop-up at the Local 188 event space. Rockey’s Liqueur will be at a second local event taking place at The Marquis.

Wednesday – Ironside Whiskey Bar is hosting a conversation and whiskey tasting with Aaron Wood. Vinnie Cimino is the guest chef at this week’s Tuna & Friends dinner series. Hospitality Maine is holding their Expo 2026 at the Cross Insurance Arena in Portland.

Friday – Bread & Friends is holding a 5-course beer dinner in celebration of the 5th anniversary of Belleflower Brewing. The Sinful Kitchen is holding a Filipino boodle fight dinner.

Sunday – Blue House Bagels (instagram) is holding a breakfast sandwich pop-up at Twin Swirls.

March 31 – K-Pop Kimbap is holding a pop-up at Luncheonette.

April 8 – The Maine Menu is teaching a class for hospitality industry professionals on how to work with social media influencers and creators.

April 10 – The Pierogi Prince (instagram) will be popping up at the Local 188 event space.

April 17-18 – The 2nd Annual Organic Grain & Seed Summit is taking place.

April 24 – May 3 – Maine Seaweed Week is taking place.

May 2 – SeaFest is taking place.

May 3 – CiderFeast is taking place.

May 9-10 – The 2026 A Taste of Nations Food Festival is taking place at Mayo Street Arts.

May 16 – The Maine Wine Wine Fest (tickets) is taking place in Freeport.

July 24-26 – The Kneading Conference is taking place in Skowhegan.

September 25-27 – The Common Ground Fair is taking place in Unity.

Planning a wedding, holding a business event, or hosting visitors from away? Our printed guides are a great resource to help your guests explore the Maine restaurant scene.

The Portland and Midcoast pocket guides are now for sale in packs of 25 on our online store.