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

• Joshua and Dakota’s Cantina (website, facebook) recently opened for business in Belfast Park.  Joshua Kumrits and Dakota Danner are serving a menu of empanadas, sopas, bacalaitos and more. They plan to be open Tuesday through Saturday 11 am – 3 pm.
• The Fifth Pillar Tea House (instagram) has opened for business. It’s located in a 2,000 sq ft space at 191 Lisbon Street in downtown Lewiston. Owner Meg Giossi and her team are serving menu of herbal and traditional teas as well as tea lattes and a selection of light snacks. Shown above is a pot of Gut Instinct herbal tea (anise, fennel, licorice, dandelion root, ginger) and a lemon basil cookie from Cozy Fox Bakery. Giossi’s goal is to create a place for people who want to get into tea that “feels accessible and natural” and also be a space for members of the community to meet and connect. Fifth Pillar has a variety of comfy lounge and table seating as well as a space with a low table and floor cushions. They will be open Wednesday through Saturday 11 am – 7 pm.
• The Picnic Basket (instagram) held their grand opening this past Saturday in Thomaston. The specialty food and gifts market is located at 185 Main Street on the same side of the road as Crooked Spoon and Flipside Coffee. They’re open Tuesday through Saturday 10 am – 6 pm, and Sunday 10 am – 3 pm.
• Acadia Flatbread Brazilian Soul (facebook, instagram) recently opened in Ellsworth.  They’re located justo off Route One at 56 Washington Street. The Bangor Daily News reports that Raquel de Assis and Jesrael Melo will be serving ‘the Brazilian rendition of the traditional Middle Eastern esfiha. Introduced to Brazil by Lebanese and Syrian immigrants in the late 19th century, and colloquially termed the “Arab empanada,” the dish has become a staple in Brazilian bakeries.’
• The Midcoast Villager reports that Tender Nettle Herb Company (instagram), a “herb shop and tea counter” has opened in Belfast in the space formerly occupied by Daily Soup at 118 High Street. They’re open Wednesday through Saturday 11 am – 7 pm, and Sunday 11 am – 4 pm. “[Gabrielle] Aydnwylde, an herbalist, will make custom blends of herbs and preparations for customers and sell brewed teas and a range of salts. Some of the herbs the store stocks have culinary uses, such as grains of paradise and chunks of turmeric root.”
• Former X Vault Pub and Provisions chef Alex White along with Anastasia Creaser have announced the launch of Pine + Plate (facebook, instagram) which will be a “multi faceted project for everyone” that will providing catering, private chef services, hold dinners, and operate a mobile bar called The Draught Horse. X Vault closed in South Paris earlier this month.
• A new ice cream and candy shop called Wilsun’s (instagram) is under construction at 23 Walker St in Kittery. Owners Molly and Chris Jacobson hope to open in August serving locally made ice cream and a variety of candy options.
• A new food truck called Kassa Cafe (instagram) will be launching on Friday July 3rd in Westbrook. Owner Iman Enan aims to bring “Middle Eastern inspired flavors and drinks into the menu”.
• Mainebiz reports that Cafe Luna will be moving their Scarborough location to The Downs. The new location is expected to open in Spring 2027.
• The Barkery, an indoor dog park and eatery in South Portland, has gone out of business. Their last day was June 22nd. The statement from owners Nate and Haley Viens reads in part “This is not the ending we hoped for, and it is not a decision we made lightly. It took nearly two years to bring The Barkery to life, and saying goodbye to this dream is deeply painful. Thank you to every guest who came through our doors, brought your dogs to play, shared a meal with us, joined us for trivia, attended a fundraiser, celebrated with us, told a friend about us, or simply believed in what we were trying to build.”
• The Saco Bay News reports that New Morning Natural Foods in Biddeford is under new ownership and is being renamed to Cousin’s Natural Foods. The article includes the history of the market which has been in business since 1976.
• Eating Through the Seacoast has published a field report from Good Wolf in Northeast Harbor on MDI.
• The USM Free Press has published an article about Vertical Harvest in Westbrook.
• Elise Schloff (instagram) and Meera Chauhan held their event Refectory (see photos below) on the 20th. The “monastic-inspired artist’s meal” featuring a multi-course vegetarian menu served in the church yard of the South Solon Meeting House in Somerset County.
• Down East magazine has published an article about Lee Frank’s in South Berwick. “The menu divides into burgers, chili burgers, hot dogs, sides, and drinks, categories Frank borrowed from Carney’s, another of his favorite LA haunts. A note at the bottom of the board invites customers to make any dish “dirty” with the addition of grilled onions and a house-made Thousand Island–style sauce, a twist on In-N-Out’s “animal-style” offerings. I opted for the chili cheeseburger, which seemed dirty enough with its standard mustard, tomato, raw onion, dill pickle, and chili toppings.”
• As previously reported, The Lost Kitchen has begun serving their summertime counter service lunch, Little Lost Kitchen.
• As previously reported, Sai Guntaka has launched Cobblestone Coffee & Company in South Portland.
• As previously reported, Jeremy and Marina Kratzer have launched their new Italian restaurant Paolo’s in Brunswick.

The Lost Kitchen (website, facebook, instagram) now offers a regular counter service lunch Tuesday through Saturday. Dubbed the Little Lost Kitchen it operates out of a seaparate cafe space at the restaurant’s renovated mill building in Freedom. Lunch is available on a walk-in basis—no reservations needed or available.

Chef/owner Erin French and her team are serving a menu of baked goods like coffee cake, scones, chocolate coconut rose macaroons with beer wine, ice tea, shrubs, cold brew, and soft drinks. The daily lunch menu includes snacks like snap peas dusted with citrus salt, oysters and olives along with dishes like the cornflake fried chicken, salad, carrot and corriander soup, French ham and butter sandwiches and strawberry shortcake shown in this set of images from today.

The lunch menu is available 11 am – 2:30 pm, with baked good, sandwiches, wine and beer available until 4 pm. Our best advice is to get there early—today’s lunch line started to form up at 10:30 am. There are a few tables indoors but most of the seating is on a patio overlooking the picturesque mill pond.

The Lost Kitchen is located at 22 Mill Street, Freedom, Maine (map) which Google Maps says is a 90+ minute drive from Portland. Parking is just across the bridge from the mill building.