Category: General

Wow India (website, instagram) opened for business today. The new Indian restaurant is located at 649 Congress Street in the Arts District.

The kitchen is headed up by owner Prakash Jayavelu Singh and chef Pardeep Prasana. Singh started his career in India. For nearly a decade he was a chef at Tulsi in Kittery where he and Prasana crossed paths.

The menu includes a wide selection of Indian dishes and some that are at the crossroads of different culinary influences like the dish of mussels shown above which is prepared with a cilantro-kokum coconut broth. The bar menu has local draft beer from Allagash, Lone Pine, Maine Beer Company and Batson River along with Indian beers, wines by the glass and bottle, mocktails, and a selection of house cocktails that tap into Indian ingredients and flavors like a tamarind margarita and a lassi cocktail made with mango lassi, rum, Cointreau, coconut milk and Cardamon.

Wow India will be open Monday through Thursday, 11 am – 2:30 pm, 4 – 10 pm, Friday/Saturday, 11 am – 2:30 pm, 4 – 11 pm, and Sunday, 11 am – 2:30 pm, 4 – 9:30 pm.

Lady Shuckers (website, instagram) has leased the snack shack at Willard Beach where owner Libby Davis will be serving a menu (see below) that includes lobster rolls, sandwiches, curly fries, ice cream, sides and, of course, oysters. The surfside Lady Shuckers will have a soft opening on May 31st and June 1st and will be in full operation June 5th.

This summer you can also find Lady Shuckers at Thompson’s Point during their events and Summer Sunsets series, and at Hearts of Pine home games where they’re serving oysters on the half shell to fans  like Patrick Dempsey.

Room for Improvement has been recognized for the excellence of their Old Port bar by the 50 Best Discovery organization.

With Room For Improvement, proprietors Arvid Brown (of Baharat and Crispy Gai) and Nick Coffin set out to change the perception of the bar scene on Wharf Street in Portland’s Old Port, the city’s notorious tourists-only corridor. A dialed-back menu of “hot and tasty” hot dogs and other bar snacks keep the wolf from the door and, if you’re feeling particularly adventurous, you could order a $28 Flaming Scorpion Bowl that’s full of a carcophany of drinks that embrace irreverence. Think mind erasers, picklebacks, cheap beers and playful updates on an array of classic cocktails…

50 Best Discovery is an offshoot of the organization to publishes the annual World’s 50 Best Restaurants list. Bars selected for 50 Best Discovery recognition have received a “significant number of votes” from the organizations 50 Best Bars Academy which is comprised of “more than 680 international drinks experts, including bar owners and bartenders, drinks writers and cocktail aficionados.”

Room for Improvement was launched by Arvid Brown and Nick Coffin in 2023. The 36-seat bar and is located at 41 Wharf Street. It is open daily 5 pm to 1 am. Coffin, Brown and some additional business partners will be launching a new all-day bar called Cuties later this year.

The Press Herald has announced that their food reporter Tim Cebula will be serving as the paper’s restaurant critic moving forward. Cebula replaces Andrew Ross who left the position earlier this year after eight years on the job.

The announcement also shares that reviews will be published every other week and they will now wait two months rather than three before reviewing a restaurant.

Tuesday – Via Vecchia is holding a Feast of the Seven Fishes dinner. Regards is holding a Feast of the Seven Fishes dinner.

Friday – Taco Trio will be holding a Mexican Spirits Tasting.

Saturday – Browne Trading is holding their annual free champagne and caviar tasting.

December 31 – We’ll be building a list of NYE special dinners and food/drink events. Send us a message if you know of one we may have missed.

• Apres is holding a Gatsby-themed New Year’s Eve celebration.
• Bao Bao (Brunswick) is serving a 4-course prix fixe menu as well as a some items from their regular menu that include vegetarian and vegan options.
• Bar Futo is serving a NYE embellished version of their regular menu.
• Barncastle (Bluehill) is serving a 4-couse dinner; $95 per person.
• Coastal Alchemist (Ogunquit) is serving a 6-course wine dinner; $155 per person.
• Crispy Gai is serving a New Year’s menu that will include champagne, hot dogs, caviar and chicken nuggets.
• Elk’s Lodge 188 is holding a Vegas-themed party; $80 per person.
• Evo is serving a 6-course dinner.
• Isa is serving a prix fixe dinner; $115 per person.
• Izakaya Minato is serving some options from their regular menu and featuring a $65 omakase option.
• Knotted Apron is serving a 5-course dinner; $140 per person.
• Lucky Cheetah is serving a 7-course dinner; $150 per person.
• Magnus on Water (Biddeford) is serving a 4-course dinner; $85 per person.
• Maine Street Bistro (Brunswick) is serving a 5-course dinner.
• Mountain Social (Bethel) is serving 7-course prix fixe dinner; $140 per person.
• Mr. Tuna is serving an omakase dinner; $195 per person.
• Nina June (Rockport) is serving a prix fixe for $120 per person.
• Oak & Ember (Buxton) is serving a 4-course dinner; $75 per person.
• Pacifico (Saco) is serving a 3-course NYE dinner in addition to their regular menu.
• Portage Tap House (Oquossoc) is serving some NYE specials in addition to their regular menus.
• Provender Kitchen (Ellsworth) is serving a 4-course dinner; $99 per person.
• Roma is serving some special dishes in addition to their regular menu.
• Twelve is serving a 5-course dinner; $195 per person.
• The Canopy Hotel will be serving a special menu as well as live music and a DJ at their rooftop bar.
• The Hartstone Inn (Camden) is serving a 7-course dinner; $175 per person.
• Top of the East is holding a New Year’s Eve party.
• Woodford F & B is serving a NYE embellished version of their regular menu.

January 1 – Woodford F & B is serving an island vibed New Year’s Day brunch, and Chaval is bringing back their well-loved brunch menu for New Year’s Day.

January 11 – Good Medicine Collective is hosting a dinner in collaboration with chef Felicia Dumont.

January 30 – Community Plate will be holding a potluck dinner at Maine Mechanics Hall.

February 1 – Portland on Tap is taking place.

February 2 – Rafael Zimmerman from Magnus on Water⁠ will be the guest chef at a 2025 Flanagan’s Farm Supper Club dinner.

February 8 – Adrian Arvizu from Big Tree Hospitality⁠ will be the guest chef at a 2025 Flanagan’s Farm Supper Club dinner.

February 13 – Devin Finigan from Aragosta⁠ will be the guest chef at a 2025 Flanagan’s Farm Supper Club dinner.

March 2 – Sara Jenkins, Dustin Martin, and Lauren Radel from Nina June will be the guest chefs at a 2025 Flanagan’s Farm Supper Club dinner.

May 17 – The Maine Wild Wine Fest is taking place in Freeport.

May 30 – June 1 – The Maine Fungi Fest is taking place.

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. 25-packs of the Portland and Midcoast pocket guides are now available on our online store.

Saturday – It’s the first day of the indoor Portland Farmers’ Market. It will once again be located at 631 Stevens Ave, and will run from Dec 7th through Apr 12, 2025. Leisure Time Cocktail is hosting a pop-up with Slab Pizza and the Sauce & Destroy pasta sauce company. As you may recall Slab closed their Preble Street restaurant in early October.

December 13 – Hanukkah Mexicana is taking place in Bath. The event will include food inspired by the Mexican Jewish cookbook, Sabor Judio, and a talk by authors Ilan Stavans and Margaret Boyle.

December 14 – Natalie’s at the Camden Harbor Inn will be holding a Feast of the Seven Fishes dinner  in collaboration with Browne Trading Company and Barton Seaver.

December 15 – A gingerbread house decoration event is taking place at the Hilton Garden Inn. The event is a fundraiser for Portland Firefighters Children’s Burn Foundation.

December 16 – Bissell Brothers will be holding a (sold out) Feast of the Seven Fishes.

December 18 – Sacred Profane will be holding a Feast of the Seven Fishes at their location in Biddeford.

December 24 – Via Vecchia is holding a Feast of the Seven Fishes dinner.

December 31 – It’s New Year’s Eve. We’ll be building a list of NYE special dinners and food/drink events here.

• Elk’s Lodge 188 is holding a Vegas-themed New Year’s Eve party; $80 per person.
• Nina June (Camden) is serving a prix fixe for $120 per person.

February 2 – Rafael Zimmerman from Magnus on Water⁠ will be the guest chef at a 2025 Flanagan’s Farm Supper Club dinner.

February 8 – Adrian Arvizu from Big Tree Hospitality⁠ will be the guest chef at a 2025 Flanagan’s Farm Supper Club dinner.

February 13 – Devin Finigan from Aragosta⁠ will be the guest chef at a 2025 Flanagan’s Farm Supper Club dinner.

March 2 – Sara Jenkins, Dustin Martin, and Lauren Radel from Nina June will be the guest chefs at a 2025 Flanagan’s Farm Supper Club dinner.

May 17 – The Maine Wild Wine Fest is taking place in Freeport.

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. 25-packs of the Portland and Midcoast pocket guides are now available on our online store.

The 4th Biennial Maine Apple Camp is taking place Labor Day weekend in Hope, Maine.

Experts from across the country will deliver presentations and participate panel discussions about orcharding, cidermaking, foraging, and apple breeding and genetics. Maine Apple Camp will also have arts and crafts, outdoor activities, and communal meals and cider shares and tastings.

The 3-day event is open to everyone “from the apple-curious to the pome-obsessed.” Maine Apple Camp is being organized by the Maine Heritage Orchard and the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association. It will be taking place at Camp Bishopswood in Hope, Maine August 30 and 31 and September 1st.

More information and the full schedule are available on the MOFGA site, and you can register for Maine Apple Camp online.