Category: Reviews

Congratulations to Drifters Wife on being named to the Bon Appétit list of the Top 10 Best New Restaurants of 2018.

The Portland Phoenix has reviewed Lio,

Not to be missed at Lio, either, are the house-made pastas and thoughtfully constructed desserts. A dish of pappardelle with duck confit, artichoke, tarragon, Kalamata panko and lemon would make an excellent solo dinner. Follow it up with a dessert of Moscato Zabaglione — an Italian take on the French sabayon with poached peach, blueberry basil sorbet and elderflower — and you’ll be hard-pressed to find something to complain about.

Peter Peter Portland Eater has reviewed Solo Italiano, and

I was quite impressed every step of the way. You can’t go wrong with the pesto, so I highly recommend that, but I enjoyed everything we ordered. Solo Italiano is definitely worthy of a visit and I recommend trying as many items as you can handle, or maybe even more.

The Golden Dish has reviewed Drifters Wife.

We snacked on a bowl of pickles, which was the best dish; but I like anything sweet, and these pickles would win first prize at a county fair. Another dish of mushrooms was splendid as was an entrée of scallops in a tomato broth and a half chicken with buttery braised cabbage and plums. The leg and breast were so big it might have come from a condor. But it was earthy and tasty, a bit dry perhaps and the plums should have added more sweetness.

Andrew Knowlton from Bon Appétit has named Portland the 2018 Restaurant City of the Year,

For starters, it’s the sheer number of outstanding openings—from a tiny pastry shop that serves knockout Roman pizza to a Jewish-style deli that ranks up there with New York and L.A.’s best. And while you can still get an Instagram-worthy lobster roll and a dozen local oysters, you’re missing out if you skip the killer pho spot or the guy selling hand rolls out of a Yeti cooler.

Little Giant and Drifters Wife are both mentioned in a recent GQ article about the new generation in American bars that have,

updated the nostalgic references from Prohibition times to the louche playfulness of the ’70s and ’80s. (Think midcentury leather benches, overgrown plants, tons of neon, and rococo garnishes.) Formats are changing, too: Whole concepts are built around one kind of liquor or fermented beverage, meaning you can get an accessible, intoxicating crash course on rum in a single night. But the best part is the less uptight attitude. The expectation that you’ve memorized your periodic table of mixology is totally gone. Bartenders are eager to share their specialized knowledge. Curiosity is all you need. (That and a well-established tolerance.) Plus, bar food is better than it’s ever been. So why even bother with dinner? Pick a spot on this list and spend your entire evening there.

Bon Appétit has included Rose Foods and the new Drifters Wife among the 50 nominees for their America’s Best New Restaurants 2018 list.

BA will publish their final list of the Hot 10 on August 14th.

The Press Herald has reviewed Lio,

The kind of cocktail you’d expect to find in an upscale cocktail bar, not in a bar known for wine, it blew me away with its burst of expertly blended flavors, a sensation that lasted until the final sip. As my sorority sisters know, I’ve enjoyed a lot of cocktails over the course of my travels, and this one was in the top five. It was thus no surprise when I learned that the bartender, Liz, used to be at Central Provisions. Frankly, you should probably stop reading this review right now and go straight to Lio to try one.

Food & Wine has included Noble Barbecue in their list of the Best BBQ in Every State.

There’s an infectious enthusiasm twin brothers Ryan and Richard Carey bring to the table at Portland’s Noble Barbecue, but people aren’t showing up at this one-time taco shop for the good vibes alone—that’s just a happy add-on to a menu of some of the best smoked meat this town has most likely ever seen.

Bill Addison, Eater‘s national roving restaurant critic, has included Elda in his list of the 18 Best New Restaurants in America,

Biddeford has one of the country’s most lovable diners, one of the nation’s great food-focused bookstores, and now it has Elda. Chef-owner Bowman Brown uprooted himself from his award-winning restaurant, Salt Lake City’s Forage, to return to New England, where he began his career. His approach is a paradigm of current modern American cooking: a short menu revealing Brown’s restless creativity; an exquisite sense of place with seafood and vegetables; and a style that doesn’t land on any one cuisine but shows off all kinds of imagination and chops.

The Maine Sunday Telegram has reviewed Maine Lobster Shack,

[The owner] originally planned to open the restaurant as part of a California-based chain, and while Maine Lobster Shack came to life as a stand-alone business, its roots as a corporate entity persist. They send up occasional shoots and stems into the menu, which features classic “shacky food” that varies from decent to unacceptable. Deep-fried seafood is breaded with a coarse-cornmeal-heavy dredge, a formulation that works well only for very moist shellfish like oysters ($16), and lobster rolls made from pre-picked meat that are prepared haphazardly and don’t seem to be tasted before service.

The Golden Dish has reviewed Lio,

Well prepared dishes but nothing innovative; taste level is high but you’ve had it before

Peter Peter Portland Eater has reviewed Lio,

We considered ending our meal once we finished what we had, but couldn’t turn down Plum and Raspberry Bavarian Cake – almond, beach rose sherbet ($10). What appeared to be the most exciting dessert item displayed a virtual rainbow of colors, incorporating fruit, candies, and flowers into its presentation. The cake was light as was the sherbet. The fruit flavors were perfect for the season and I appreciated that it wasn’t too sugary.

As The Lobster Rolls has reviewed The Inn on Peaks Island, and

The only one tiny little bright spot in this experience was the taste of that tiny blob of lobster. It was lightly dressed with an herbed mayo and the meat tasted fresh and tender. It had real potential. The meat is half the battle – once you’ve perfected that, the rest is gravy.

The Blueberry Files has reviewed Chebeague Island Inn.

A. ordered the pan-seared chicken breast with potato salad, cippolini onions, and a blueberry glaze ($27). I had a small bite and found the chicken was perfectly cooked, with a nice sweetness from the blueberry sauce. The sauce erred on the side of savory, which I appreciated.