Category: Openings

A local chapter of the national organization Frontline Foods (website, facebook, instagram, twitter) has been established in Maine. The organization raises money that is used to pay restaurants to produce meals that are delivered to healthcare workers at hospitals. Frontline Foods is operating in 44 locations across the country.

The local chapter has been set-up by Portland area natives Christopher Curran and musician Lyle Divinsky. Allagash Brewing and Peak Organic are both making donations to Frontline Foods Maine, and the organization is partnering with chefs from Chaval, Duckfat, Evo Kitchen + Bar, Knotted Apron, Luke’s Lobster, and the Foreside Tavern to produce meals that will be provided to medical staff at Mercy Hospital. In addition to the work to organize the local chapter, Curran is donating all profits in April and May from his winery, Strider Wines to support the initiative.

Frontline Foods is working with World Central Kitchen, the nonprofit established by chef José Andrés, which is functioning as Frontline Foods’ 501(c)(3) partner.

For more information, you can read about Frontline Foods in the Time magazine. To make a donation to the Maine chapter visit their website: frontlinefoods.org/maine.

Ramona’s (website, instagram) a Philly-inspired hoagie shop created by Chad Conley and Josh Sobel, will be opening as a takeout service at 98 Washington Ave this Friday, April 17th. Pre-order your sandwiches online at ramonas.me/takeout.

Conley is well known as the co-owner of Palace Diner and founder of Rose Foods. Sobel hails from Philadelphia. He is a member of the Rose Foods staff, and has worked in NYC at Mile End, Diner, Marlow & Sons, and Court Street Grocers; he was also a co-owner of Southside Coffee. Grub Street put Southside at the top of their list of NYC’s best breakfast sandwiches back in 2016.

A new organization called Cooking for Community (website, facebook, instagram) is working with restaurants to buy local food from farms and fisheries to provide meals to those in need. So far Cooking for Community has raised $55,000 dollars. A pilot project will launch  Monday with the kitchens of Chaval and Little Giant preparing 450 cooked meals for Catholic Charities of Maine, Wayside Food Programs, Amistad and Preble Street.

Cooking for Community will enable production and delivery of hundreds of locally sourced, warm, fresh meals during its first week. At the same time, it will create and revise the structure and best practices for its expanding program model. Ultimately, the volunteer-run group hopes to expand to involve many more local restaurants, local food providers and donors to feed hundreds, possibly thousands of underserved, unemployed, elderly, and homeless people each day.

The Cooking for Community program “reinforces a positive feedback loop: restaurants can pay employees, leveraging payroll funding from the Cares Act federal stimulus package. Producers, farmers and individuals in the fishing industries, a big part of this loop, will receive financial support. The model also uses donations of perishable food goods that would otherwise go to waste.”

The organizers “hope is to inject essential nourishment, resources and hope back into thousands of Mainers’ lives. Anyone in need will know where and when they can depend on a free meal, cooked with love from all of us in Maine.”

For more information watch this interview with organizer Ellie Linen Low and Little Giant owner Ian Malin on Youtube.

Also pay a visit the Cooking for Community website, where you can also make a donation to support their ongoing efforts.

Solo Cucina Market (website, facebook, instagram) is planning to go ahead and open this Wednesday. Their hours will be 11 am to 4 pm.

The market is a collaboration between the owners of The Farm Stand in South Portland and Solo Italiano. The market will feature a bakery and Solo Cucina will sell fresh pasta and sauces prepared foods to go in addition to the meats, dairy, wine, beer and produce that The Farm Stand has become known for.

At this time of restaurant closings it’s so encouraging to see a new business taking the leap and opening for the first time.

Jake and Raquel Stevens will be opening their new restaurant Leeward (website, instagram) today at 5 pm. The 54-seat restaurant and bar is located in a newly built out space at 85 Free Street.

The Italian-inspired menu has a strong focus on house-made pasta such as Taglierini Nero with Rhode Island squid, pork brodo, chili, breadcrumbs, or the Bucatini with cured pork belly, tomato, chili, pecorino. Appetizers range from Braised Leeks with smoked burrata and Night Moves bread to Bangs Island mussels prepared with saffron cream, fennel and herbsaint. Desserts are the creation of pastry chef Kate Fisher Hamm.

Before moving to Portland in 2018 the Stevens lived and worked in restaurants on the West Coast where Jake Stevens was the former Chef de Cuisine at Beast in Portland, Oregon.

A & C Grocery is opening a second location today at 81 Clark Street. Their hours on opening day will be noon to 4 pm or sellout, which ever comes first.

The West End Location will launch serving their Famous Original “Real” Italian, pastrami on rye and “a few items exclusive to the the West End location”. The primary focus of the West End A & C will be “deli style sandwiches and regional favorites” and they eventually plan to open earlier in the morning, serving coffee and breakfast sandwiches.

Fournier shared that “Our mission, always, is to serve the community we’re in. So A&C West will evolve and adapt to the needs of the neighborhood just like we have done on Munjoy Hill.”

The opening of the West End location will not be resulting in any changes at the Washington Ave A & C. The kitchen on Washington Ave will be producing the cured and smoked meats as well as pickles and homemade sauces for both locations.

A&C West initially be open 11 am to 4 pm, Monday thru Saturday.

A new Mexican/Salvadoran restaurant called Dos Naciones (facebook) opened on Saturday. Dos Naciones is located at 649 Congress Street in the location formally occupied by Local Sprouts.

Dos Naciones serves breakfast, lunch and dinner opening at 7 am. The menu includes breakfast specials like huevos rancheros and breakfast burritos. The lunch and dinner options include fried whole fish, grilled chicken, pupusas, tamales, burritos, and much more.

Ishi Ishi Ramen (instagram) is scheduled to open for business on Friday, 11 am to 9 pm. The 9-seat ramen bar is located on Washington Ave in The Black Box space that became available when The Cheese Shop moved to larger quarters. Ishi Ishi is looking to fill the gap in the East End line-up of restaurants left when Ramen Suzukiya closed in 2018.

Owners Matthew De Fio and Andrew Doolittle are planning for the shop to be a cellphone-free zone.

De Fio spent 3 years working at Ramen Tatsu-ya in Austin Texas, and has worked in Maine at Enoteca Athena and Vessel and Vine in Brunswick as well as operated his own fresh pasta enterprise Il Dono. Doolittle is the owner of Pot and Pan Kitchen.

Maine Street Steak & Oyster (website, instagram) is slated to open this Thursday, January 30th.

The restaurant is a collaboration between the owners of Yobo—Kim Lully and chef Sunny Chung—with Sarah Gabrielson and chef Tony Pastor.

The 38-seat restaurant will be located at 148 Main Street in Brunswick. You can see their full menu on their website.