Category: Pocket Brunch

Pocket Brunch and Family Feast collaborated to produce a Maine game dinner last night in collaboration with the Maine Brewers Guild and Down East. 6 courses, or perhaps 8 depending on how you count, utilizing more than a dozen different game meats. The game bird ragu served with spelt/rye bucatini, the hare pie, and the panacotta with autumn olive sorbet were my favorites from the menu. There was a standing ovation at the end of the dinner for the kitchen crew.

 

After nearly a year and a half hiatus, Pocket Brunch came back into action Sunday with one of their signature multi-course brunches. The Dirigo brunch took place at Novare Res and featured beers from Marshall Wharf and In’finiti Fermentation. As a special treat the meal ended with a taste of an Amaro that In’finiti has under development.

The June edition of Pocket Brunch took place today at Bresca and the Honey Bee in New Gloucester. Krista Kern Desjarlais and Erik Desjarlais were guest chefs for the picnic themed meal.

• Premeal – financier with plum and goat ricotta, and bacon-wrapped Deuben-dog in a blanket of deviled eggs accompanied by cucumber, dry gin and Aperol cooler
• Snack Board – Hahn’s End Blue, York Hill Capriano, Fermin Salchichon Iberico, Wild Boar cacciatorini, Fermin Chorizo Iberico accompanied by UFF’s Buchanan Hard Cider
• Lunch Basket – buttermilk fried chicken, fennel slaw, black Sabbathday potato salad, pickled watermellon accompanied by Oxbow Farmhouse Pale Ale
• Sweet Basket – blueberry crumb pie with lemon buttermilk sherbert, and strawberry shortcake with basil ice cream accompanied by Twin Vines Vinho Verde

Tandem Coffee was also on-hand with pour overs and their wonderful malt ice coffee.

The May edition of Pocket Brunch took place Sunday afternoon at Caswell Farm in Gray. Oaxacan guest chef Max Mejia and the Pocket Brunch crew put together an 8-course Cinco de Mayo backyard fair. As usual, the Bearded Lady and Tandem Coffee were providing cocktails and coffee for the event.

Here’s the menu:

• Shrimp – pickled shrimp with Mexican cocktail sauce and crispy ramps
• Ceviche – weakfish, tomato, jalepeno, cilantro and onion.
• Sopes – sopes, pork belly, quesa seco and peanuts
• Gazpacho – pineapple, mango, orange, jicama and habenero ice
• Esquite – corn, lime mayo, cheese, fried corn silk
• Chilaquiles – tortilla, chorizo, potato, sour cream, chile sauce and fried egg (shown below)
• Carmes – a choice of chicken confit and mole sauce or pork country ribs and pumpkin seed sauce
• Dessert – arroz con leche with blood orange sorbet and saffron salt

David Zwickerhill has published a set of photos from the event.

The March edition of Pocket Brunch took place today at Novare Res. Tandem Coffee and the Bearded Lady provided libations to go with a meal of German food prepared by guest chefs Brad Messier and Nolan Stewart.

• Premeal – apple and pear strudel with bauchspeck and Han’s End blue cheese
• Soup – 2010 Rodenbach smoky meat broth, Orval chive pancake, calf’s liver and foie gras dumpling
• Salad – white asparagus, beef tongue, fried onions with a pairing of Freigeist Abraxas
• Egg – boar sausage, egg yolk, “tea” egg, rye toast paired with a pairing of Oxbow Freestyle 30
• Meat – Caldwell Farm beef saurbraten, potato, celeriac, bacon with a pairing of Oxbow Oxtoberfest
• Dessert – Black Forest chocolate sausage, chocolate kirsch cherry terrine, Riesling gelee, cherry glazed bacon

 

The February edition of Pocket Brunch took place today. The event kicked off at a private home for cocktails, coffee and apps before a jazz band led the assembled guest for a New Orleans style parade down the street to Bubba’s Sulky Lounge for the main portion of the meal was served.

Eric Simeon (who you may remember was the original chef at Grace) and Rhonda Crosson were the guest chefs alongside Josh Potocki and Joel Beauchamp. This was one of my favorite of the Pocket Brunch series so far.

• Premeal – praline pig, bruleed grapefruit, banana foster bostock, suzette scones
• Soup – Gumbo Z’herbes with greens and black-eyed peas
• Salad – endive, chared okra, marinated oysters, blood orange and broiled oysters on half shell
• Egg – artichoke hearts, white asparagus, stock-poached egg, creamed cress, parmesan hollandaise and country ham
• Meat – local beef debris, grits 2 ways, crispy sweetbreads, green tomato pickle
• Dessert – king cake

The meal was accompanied by cocktails by Nan’l Meiklejohn and coffee from Tandem Coffee Roasters.

Check out this big set of images from Zwickerhill Photography for more images from the event, as well as this post from Delicious Musings.

On a related note, yesterday Food Coma published a write-up of last month’s Pocket Brunch with Rob Evans.