Portland Phoenix has reviewed Piccolo.
Chef Samsionetti cooked French at Bar Boulud in New York, and with Piccolo returns to the cuisine of his childhood. The little child we all adore most is the inner child we never quite mastered. Piccolo comforts and indulges that child, but not too much. Thanks to a restrained approach, smallish portions, elegant wine, and subtleties of flavor, Piccolo asks us to grow up a bit.
Gear Patrol has included Eventide in their list of the 25 Best Restaurants in America.
New England oyster bar with picnic table seating and 1,200-pound slab of granite filled with ice and a few dozen oysters ranging from ultra briny Wild Belons to bright and creamy Blue Pools. You could be content (and perhaps a little fuzzed) throwing back a few dozen with a pair of dirty martinis, but it’d be a shame to miss out on a fried oyster bun and a bowl of porky New England clam chowder.
The Press Herald has reviewed the bar at Five Fifty-Five.
If you’re looking for a different place to have a drink in Portland, and maybe you’re looking to treat yourself to a more high-end atmosphere, try Five Fifty-Five. Fancy with a laid-back mood, it would be acceptable to arrive in jeans and a nice shirt for a cocktail or a glass of wine at the bar.
Booze, Fish and Coffee has reviewed Eventide Oyster Company.
This dynamite seafood spot in the heart of Portland is perfect for lunch these days: not too crowded, serving up delicious oysters, lobster rolls, and other excellent stuff, at prices that won’t break the bank. Eat where the locals eat, and get to Eventide.
The episode also includes recommendations for feeding your extended family after they arrive but prior to Thanksgiving, thoughts on Bunker Brewing’s Hombre and shopping advice at Veranda Asian Market.
Peter Peter Portland Eater has reviewed The Front Room.
Altogether with drinks, the meal was around $80 before tip. It was worth it as we were well-fed and our thirst was quenched. The Front Room is a serious place for people who like to eat. With great takes on traditional fare and reasonable prices, it’s pretty obvious why they stay so busy. Plus, the service is excellent. The Front Room continues to be great option if you want to eat a wicked good meal in Maine. Stop by and tell ‘em Peterpeterportlandeater sent ya.
The Maine Sunday Telegram has reviewed Oscar’s New American.
Now that we’ve become thoroughly versed in the exigencies of new American cuisine, consider this recent contender – Oscar’s New American. It opened in late September in the space formerly occupied by the Sea Grass café, a favorite dining spot and watering hole in Yarmouth. That it also operates in a small strip mall along the town’s Route 1 retail corridor augurs this stark fact – parking is easy.
After several visits, I’m convinced this establishment will flourish in the fluid style of the new American cuisine genre.
The Portland Phoenix has reviewed of Hunt & Alpine,
There are plenty of stiff drinks served in lowballs. We liked the Toronto, blending spicy rye whiskey with several bitters, which was all hot-heat and sharp flavor. Other drinks mellow and tug the liquors with fresh juices — like the Ward Eight, which dissipated the whiskey heat with the sweetness of orange and a kick of sharp lemon, or an Italian Greyhound that tasted like a grapefruit sprinkled with salt and sugar.
and Feed the Monster has reviewed The Porthole and Fore Street,
There is a reason Fore Street is perennially one of the hardest reservations in town. Because they take the best ingredients and let them shine in winning presentations without huge pretension or unnecessary accompaniments.
and The Golden Dish has reviewed Petite Jacqueline where he tried some of the dishes being introduced onto the menu by the new chef, Frederic Eliot.
We then enjoyed two first-course dishes–sweetbreads and a luxurioiusly silken carrot soup. The sweetbreads were coated in flour, deep fried and served with clams in a composed pan sauce of clam liquor, capers, butter and shallots. The sweetbreads were stunningly velvety within under a crackling outer skin and accompanied by clams in the shell and that delicious sauce.
Map & Menu has shared their 10 favorite Portland brunch dishes.
What we came up with is 10 great brunches to start any lazy Sunday in Portland or the first brunch dishes to try when you’re visiting town. These dishes are standards at each of the restaurants, and are almost always available.
Photo Credit: Map & Menu
The Press Herald has published a bar review of The Inn on Peaks Island.
It’s not yet 5 o’clock and the bar seats are filled with regulars. Some cradle a heavy clay mug in one hand, others nurse pints of beers or house cocktails. Plates of food – haddock sandwiches, burgers, bowls of chili – faithfully make their way out of the kitchen. The space is cozy and familiar and the servers know almost everyone by name.
Tandem Coffee is a finalist in the 2014 Good Food Awards competition for their Aylele Yirgacheffe coffee.
Coffee finalists were selected because they had,
…exemplary flavor – sweet, clean, well developed body, balanced acidity and phenomenal aromatics. To qualify for entry, roasters and coffee farmers must emphasize fairness and transparency from seed to cup. This year’s entry criteria seeks to accommodate the enormous cultural diversity of coffee production…
The final awards be announced on January 16th.