Category: People

The Bollard has published an article on the passing and contributions of Steve Harris, the proprietor of both Ruski’s and Rosie’s:

Steve and his wonderful wife, Rose — who survives him, as do a son, a daughter, and a large extended family — owned and operated Ruski’s in the West End from 1985 until 2005, when they passed it on to Josh Whaley, a regular who they knew would keep its spirit alive (he has). Rosie’s recently celebrated its 20^th anniversary as the only neighborhood pub in the Old Port, and it continues under Rose’s guidance with the help of a staff who, for all intents and purposes, are part of the Harris family.

The Maine Switch polled 11 local chefs about where they like to eat out. Tu Casa is Abby Harmon’s (Caiola’s) go to spot for cheap eats. Rob Evans (Hugo’s), Steve Corry (555) and Trap Landry (Blackpoint Inn, Scarborough) all cited Miyake as one of their favorites. Guy Hernandez (Bar Lola) and Rob Evans both like to hang out at Novare Res. See the article for the full list on each chef.

Rob Evans and Ben Hasty’s cooking class earlier this week at Stonewall Kitchen was written up in both the Portsmouth Herald

Evans explained just how much American cuisine has changed since his days at the legendary French Laundry Restaurant in Napa Valley. “Everyone’s awareness of food is elevated. We have local farmers and artisan food producers bringing us ingredients. The American chefs coming up, they don’t want to wear a suit or tie. And even American service has changed, it’s casual, fun.”

and by the blog Soooo.. You Really Like Cats, Don’t You

When asked his favorite late-night snack, Evans explained, “By the time I remember to eat after service, the kitchen’s already been cleaned up and it’s 2AM. And I keep in mind that I don’t like cooking at home. So, sometimes I’ll just head down to Cumberland Farms, get a Red Baron Pizza to pop into the microwave – sprinkle some Malden salt and give me a glass of wine and I’d be set.”

Wayne Tuohey from CUE Culture was interviewed for the ShopTalk column in today’s Press Herald.

The initial stuff I made at home, since the early ’90s, was the Apricot Habenero Rum barbecue sauce. I used to make it for the family. For Christmas every year they’d get a Tupperware full of frozen pulled pork and a Mason jar of sauce. So when I thought about doing Cue Culture, I thought, ‘My family likes it, but I don’t really know if it’s any good.’ I took some to a restaurant in Portland, and some people I knew, and my parents knew. They’d moved to Florida, and my father took some barbecuing classes at the local community college.

The Maine Mouth has published a profile of Bob Garver. In addition to running Wicked Joe Coffee and being an co-owner of Bard Coffee, Garver is also a World Barista Championship sensory judge and was recently in Atlanta for the 2009 competition that saw Michael Phillips from the US place third behind competitors from the UK and Canada.

“What we’re primarily concerned about is the taste of the coffee,” says Garver. “What notes are in the coffee? Does the barista understand the coffee? How do they present it? Professionalism, passion, dedication…their overall attention to detail. All of those things are part of what we’re evaluating, but what matters most are taste scores.”

The Press Herald has published a Shop Talk interview with Gene DiMillo. DiMillo is co-owner of G & R DiMillo’s, a sports bar and restaurant.

When we opened up I really thought the demographic would be ages 25 to 40. We had the menu of basically pub food, pizza and burgers. And we did some Italian dishes as well. And slowly it started morphing into the family restaurant idea, as we were getting people who used to go the Village. The age range now runs 25 to 80. It’s unbelievable how it’s changed, and we’ve revised the menu two or three times for that reason, different items that appeal to an older clientele.