The latest edition of The Maine Switch includes articles about Cultivating Community “a Portland-based nonprofit that connects people to the earth, their food and one another through agriculture” and about Grown@Home which provides “weekly maintenance and new plantings throughout the growing season” for your home garden. There’s also an article by Harding Smith about barbecuing and additional piece about local barbecue sauce manufacturers. Especially interesting in this edition is a piece by Avery Yale Kamila as she tries to establish which watering hole is truly Portland’s oldest bar.
Category: People
Evans & Hasty
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.”
CUE Culture Interview
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.
Coffee Guru Bob Garver
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.”
Interview with Gene DiMillo
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.
Jennifer Flock, Sommelier
The Maine Switch has published a profile of Jennifer Flock and her ongoing effort to become a Master Sommelier.
Today, with all of her culinary knowledge and her experience in the service industry, you can imagine that Flock might be a rather intimidating dinner guest. “I have a friend who always says, ‘I have wine, but I don’t know if you want to drink it,’” Flock says with a laugh, but truly her friends needn’t worry. “I usually bring my own wine,” Flock explains, and probably that bottle is the first one drained.
Profile of Norm Sprague
The Portland Press Herald has published a profile of Norm Sprague. Sprague recently retired from a “30-year stint instructing culinary arts at Westbrook Regional Vocational Center.” He is now working as the daytime manager at the Miss Portland Diner.
MeRA Chef of the Year
Chef Christian Gordon from the The Inn on Peaks Island has been named 2009 Chef of the Year by the Maine Restaurant Association.
Pizza Villa Interview
Co-owner of Pizza Villa, Tony Regios, was interviewed for the ShopTalk column in today’s Press Herald. Regios along with his brothers Andy and Phil run the business that was started by their father.
Maine Food and Drink Ambassadors
This week’s edition of The Maine Switch includes an article on the Maine Food and Drink Ambassadors program recently launched by Margo Mallar.
When Margo Mallar volunteered at last fall’s Harvest on the Harbor festival, she realized Maine is filled with enthusiastic food lovers, but few have formal culinary training. So she’s decided to do something about it. The result is a brand new program called the Maine Food and Drink Ambassadors, which kicks off at the beginning of March with a series of classes exploring Maine-made cheeses.