Month: September 2023

Peng’s Now Open

| Posted in Openings

Peng’s Pizza Pies (website, instagram) opened for business in Biddeford Wednesday. It is located at 128 Main Street in the storefront adjacent to Sweetcream Dairy.  There was a strong interest in the new pizzeria and they sold out within 90 minutes of opening their doors.

Peng’s is serving crispy thin-crust pies made with naturally leavened dough which stylistically owner Chris Daniels describes as New York meets New Haven. The opening day menu (see below) included six signature pizzas along with a Caesar salad and Basque cheesecake.

Primarily a takeout business, Peng’s also has 8 seats for indoor dining. You can order online.

Daniels has been a professional baker since 2008—in Maine he’s worked at Tandem Bakery, at Belleville and at Rover Bagel. The restaurant is named for Daniels’ father Bill whose nickname was Peng.

Peng’s will be open Wednesday through Sunday, 4 – 9 pm.

Midcoast Openings: Yonder & Alsace

| Posted in Openings, Maine

A pair of new restaurants opened this past week in the Midcoast.

Yonder (website, instagram) opened Wednesday in Wiscasset. The sandwich shop is located  just across Middle Street from Treats. The menu includes a selection of sandwiches as well as daily soup and salad specials. The sandwiches are available in three sizes (small/large/big) and served on focaccia bread.

Yonder is owned by Kelsey and Jonathan Turcotte. They’re open Wednesday through Sunday, 11 am – 4 pm.

Alsace (website, facebook, instagram) opened Wednesday night in Union. As the name suggests the menu features dishes from the Alsace region of France like choucoute garnie and tarte flambé. They also serve some traditional German dishes like jaeger schnitzel and ones whose origins are closer to home like the seafood chowder and grilled lobster. The wine list is weighted to Old World wines with most originating from France.

Chef Fabrice Roux (linkedin) and sommelier Jennifer Roux are new to Maine but not to the industry. They previously operated three restaurants in the Monterey region of California.

Alsace is open for dinner Wednesday/Thursday, 4:30 – 8 pm, Friday 4:30 – 9 pm and Saturday/Sunday 10 am – 2 pm.

Tinder Hearth & Monte’s

| Posted in Reviews

The New York Times has included Tinder Hearth in Brooksville in their 2023 list of the 50 restaurants they’re “most excited about right now.”

They bake only 150 pizzas a night, in a wood-burning brick oven, and only four nights a week. And what pizzas they are, built on thin but sturdy 17-inch crusts that have been leavened with wild yeast. The thrill comes from a rotating cast of toppings that might include pork meatballs, chile and garden mint, or confit cherry tomatoes, caramelized onion and ricotta with pops of fresh green coriander and honey.

And, as the Press Herald reports, a recent positive review by Dave Portnoy from Bar Stool Sports has spiked demand for the pizza at Monte’s.

“We’ve been turning away so much business the last few days. We could have doubled or tripled our sales if we had the capacity to keep up with demand,” Quattrucci said, noting that his team has since found ways to boost production.

Wander at Longwoods

| Posted in Profiles

The Forecaster has published an article about Wander at Longwoods, the new restaurant that opened in August.

He couldn’t pass up the opportunity to partner with Atwood on Wander, the new farm-to-table restaurant that opened this summer on the 55-acre LongWoods Preserve in Cumberland. Its neighbors are nature trails, gardens, fields, woods and a farm and the pair wanted to make sure the restaurant honored its location.

Back Cove BBQ & Pizzeria

| Posted in Openings

Back Cove BBQ & Pizzeria reopened this spring. Owner Dan Rubinoff relaunched his one-man operation at 89 Ocean Avenue and is open Tuesday through Friday, 11 – 2, 5 – 7 or other times by chance. The menu is also available for delivery via 2DineIn.com.

The menu of comfort food dishes includes applewood slow smoked pulled pork sandwiches, gyros, sweet Italian sausages with sauteed onions and peppers (shown above), burgers, pizza and much more. See below for full menu.

Rubinoff has been in the food industry over four decades, starting with food cart called One Potato Two that launched in 1980. The cart was located next to the mushroom-shaped pay phone station in Monument Square.

Upcoming Events

| Posted in General

Monday – an all-star line-up of female chefs from Maine are collaborating on a multi-course Fabulous Femmes dinner to benefit MOFGA and to highlight Maine women in farming. Chefs Ashleigh Shanti from Good Hot Fish in Ashville and Jordan Rubin from Mr. Tuna are collaborating on a 6-course dinner at Bar Futo. Little Brother is serving a pop-up dinner at Hunt & Alpine. Nina June is serving a (sold out) dinner at the Wolfe’s Neck Center in Freeport.

Wednesday – Peng’s Pizza Pies (website, instagram) is opening for business. See this article for more information on Peng’s.

Friday-Sunday – The Common Ground Country Fair is taking place in Unity.

Saturday – the Latino Food Festival is taking place.

Sunday – The Saltyard is holding a cocktail brunch at Wolfe’s Neck Center in Freeport.

September 24-30 – Maine Lobster Week is taking place.

September 30 – Tender Table is holding their 3rd annual food and art fair in Congress Square Park, and Biddeford is holding an Oktoberfest celebration. The Maine Needham Festival is taking place in Wiscasset.

October 4 – MOFGA is holding an apple tasting at the Maine Heritage Orchard in Unity.

October 5 – Inside Wayside, a fundraising food event for the Wayside Food Programs is taking place.

October 7 – Oxbow is holding their annual Goods from the Woods event in Newcastle.

October 8 – Dandelion Spring Farms is holding a Harvest Dinner, and Maine Open Creamery Day is taking place.

October 15 – Twelve is holding a Harvest Party. Tickets go on sale on September 15th.

October 20 – Evo is serving a dinner at the Wolfe’s Neck Center in Freeport.

October 25-28 – Harvest on the Harbor is taking place.

November 5 – Chaval is holding a late harvest dinner at Wolfe’s Neck Center in Freeport.

December 7 – Secret Supper is holding a (sold out) holiday dinner in the Portland area.

June 26 – Secret Supper (instagram) is holding a dinner in the Portland area.

Matcha Mood Opened

| Posted in Openings

A new cafe and retail shop called Matcha Mood (website, instagram) opened today. The 640 sq ft 3-seat shop is located at 654 Congress Street in the same building as Blue, The Jewel Box and Sagamore Hill.

Matcha Mood is being launched by sisters Sarochinee, Veya, and Phuntira Tiparos. Their menu (see below) includes a variety of matcha-based drinks made using ceremonial grade matcha (shown above is a matcha latte). Their line of house-made matcha-based baked goods are expected to be available at some point this week.

Matcha Mood will be open 9 am – 4 pm, seven days a week.