Category: Under Construction

Il Leone chef/owner Ben Wexler-Waite has announced he’ll be opening a brick and mortar pizzeria in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn this fall.

The Brooklyn space will have an open kitchen and a large backyard and feature the same naturally leavened pies we have been serving the last 5 summers out of our trailer on Peaks Island. Our produce will continue to be sourced from small organic farms and farmers markets and we will continue to source the best quality Maine frutti di mare for our beloved Isola lobster pizza.

Wexler-Waite confirmed that the original Peaks Island Il Leone will be reopening for the season next summer. “For all who have asked/are wondering, we will indeed be returning to Peaks Island on a continued seasonal basis.”

Il Leone launched on Peaks in the summer of 2021. This year they’ll be open through August 25th.

The NYC outpost will be located at 158 7th Avenue, Brooklyn in the space formerly occupied by Bar Vinazo.

A Filipino restaurant called Barkada (instagram) will be moving into the Paper Tiger space with the hope to launch in the summer of 2026.

Chefs Nicole and Ben Bowers and business partners Margaret and Luka Dow launched the Barkada food truck this summer serving a menu of tofu, pork and beef bowls served over garlic rice or greens. Shown above is the Lechon rice bowl with cherry tomatoes, cucumber salad, pickled onions and a grilled pepper from the food truck’s opening day.

The food truck has given them a chance to get feedback from the Portland community. The restaurant menu will include the dishes they’re serving at the food truck with a wider selection of proteins, other toppings and side dishes. They’re also planning to have desserts like ube flavored whoopie pies and brookies. A selection of Filipino soft drinks with flavors like calamansi and fruit juices will be part of the drinks offered.

Nicole and Ben Bowers will be the chefs for Barkada. Nicole Bowers is originally from the Philippines. She and Ben Bowers met while attending the Institute of Culinary Education in NY. They’ve worked in Michelin-starred restaurants including for Daniel Boulud. Prior to moving to Maine they worked as private chefs in Florida. The Dows also have a background in the hospitality industry including operating a cafe in Boston and in food distribution.

When we first reported on their restaurant plans the team was looking to open at 25 Pearl Street but had since been exploring other opportunities in the Old Port.

Paper Tiger announced earlier today that they’ll be closing. August 31st will be their last day in business.

A new cafe called Henny’s (instagram) is under development in the West End at 87 Brackett Street in the space formerly occupied by OhNo Cafe. The breakfast and lunch spot is being launched by Heidi and Kenny Chestnut.

The menu at Henny’s will include breakfast standards like pancakes, egg dishes, breakfast sandwiches, and waffles. For lunch Henny’s will offer a range of sandwiches including a samosa grilled cheese—a nod to the Chestnuts time working together on the Ghee food truck. Weekly specials will augment the regular menu, and grab-and-go sandwiches, salads and cut fruit for customers will also be available. Henny’s will be sourcing bread from Big Sky and coffee from Carrabassett.

Heidi Chestnut grew up in Farmingdale and Kenny hails from North Carolina. The couple moved to Portland from North Carolina in 2012 where Heidi was the kitchen manager at The Boundary House in Calabash, North Carolina. In Maine, Kenny has spent the last few years in Portland working at the Hilltop Superette.

The Chestnuts hope to launch the 30-seat Henny’s in early September. They plan to be open daily 6 am – 4 pm. This winter watch for details on dinners they plan to hold in collaboration with local food trucks.

A wine bar and pasta restaurant called Abbiocco (website, instagram) is under development in Woodfords Corner in the space that had previously been occupied by Sissle & Daughters.

Chef/owner Cole Curcio plans to serve a menu of fresh pasta dishes complemented by an extensive wine list with primarily Italian wines. Curcio shared that he’ll use pasta as a medium to explore the flavors of local Maine ingredients. One fall dish he’s developing is a pot roast raviolo made with braised beef, charred fingerlings and carrot oil. 

Curcio grew up in New Hampshire and his family summers in Poland, Maine. He initially moved to Texas to attend culinary school and afterwards stayed in Austin where he worked at several restaurants including as the sous chef at L’Oca d’Oro. Since moving to Maine, Curcio has worked at Twelve and is now on staff at Benny’s.

While there isn’t a direct translation of “abbiocco”, it’s generally understood to mean a pleasant and contented drowsiness that comes from a good meal. Curcio is making light renovations to the space and hopes to launch Abbiocco by the end of September.

The new Dry Dock (website, instagram) restaurant is scheduled to open for business next Saturday, July 26th.

A fixture on the Portland waterfront since it first launched in 1983, the restaurant had remained dormant since 2018. A new team comprised of Luke Holden, Ben Conniff, Bryan Holden—co-owners of Luke’s Lobster—leased the building last fall and with general manager Matt Ginn have renovated and expanded the restaurant to ready it to reopen to the public.

An addition was added to the building to house a new kitchen and the outdoor decks were expanded and can now seat 155. The move of the kitchen from the main building has opened up the two-story dining room which can now seat 145 people with bars on both floors.

Billed as a seafood tavern, the menu (see their website for the full menu) will include classic Maine coast dishes like broiled haddock, chowder, a lobster dinner, crab and lobster rolls and steamed clams. Raw bar options will include oysters, lobster tails, crab, ceviche and tuna crudo.

The kitchen is being led by chef Mike Carney who joins the Dry Dock team from Evo where he and Ginn previously worked together. Ginn was longtime executive chef of the Prentice Hospitality Group before taking the opportunity to lead the relaunch of the Dry Dock as its general manager.

Dry Dock is located at 84 Commercial Street. It will be open 11 am – 10 pm daily and initially operate on a walk-in only basis.

Michael and Siobhán Sindoni, the owners of Wayside Tavern, along with chef Rian Wyllie have leased the former Bao Bao space at 133 Spring Street where they plan to open Gill’s Bar (instagram).

Their vision for Gill’s is as a neighborhood bar serving classic cocktails, a mix of local and European beers, and wine with a food menu of “updated bar classics” like patty melts, stuffed clams and chopped Italian subs.

Renovations of the 2,002 sq ft are underway. The overall layout of the room will stay the same with a bar along the right-hand side of the room. Gill’s is expected to seat ~45 wit a mix of booth and high top tables filling in the remainder of the dining room. The team is working with Molly Miller from Meter Haus on the design of Gill’s. Miller was also the designer of Wayside Tavern.

Lynn Stout, who had previously worked at Wayside, will be the front of house manager at Gill’s.

Rian Wyllie has been a chef and restaurateur in Maine and Massachusetts. Most recently he was  the chef and a cofounder of Lenora.

The team hopes to open Gill’s in late August or mid September, and when they do the hours will be Thursday through Monday opening at 4 pm. The bar is named after Gill’s Handy Store which operated at 133 Spring Street in the mid 20th century.

Chayuda Yeamsiriwut has leased the former BenReuben’s space at 145 Ocean Street in Knightville where she plans to launch The Streetwich (instagram), a breakfast and lunch spot serving sandwiches, boba tea, light snacks and some sweet treats.

The Streetwich started as a small dream rooted in my love for casual street food and cozy cafés. I wanted to create a space that feels warm, a bit playful, and welcoming — the kind of place where you might pop in for a quick bite, but end up coming back just because it feels good to be there.

The menu is still under development but is expected to include options like a spicy krapow basil chicken sandwich, bánh mì, as well as some classic breakfast options. Yeamsiriwut shared that the menu will draw from Thai flavors and street food energy that are reimagined in “a more playful, approachable way”.

While primarily serving food to-go, The Streetwich will have a couple table to enjoy food and drink on-site. Yeamsiriwut hopes to launch The Streetwich later this summer.

Follow The Streetwich instagram account to stay up to date on their progress towards an opening day.

A new business called Bub’s Home Kitchen (website, instagram) has leased space on the second floor of the Public Market House. Owner James Shaffer plans to be open for lunch serving Sicilian-style pizza by the slice, soups, and salads. He will also be selling take-and-bake meals like baked rigatoni, mushroom Stroganoff, shepherd’s pie, and pot roast as well as soups, broths, fruit spreads and marinara sauce for customers to enjoy at home.

Shaffer wants his customers to feel like they’re getting a home cooked meal which seems appropriate with many of the dishes being based on family recipes like his father’s recipe for pot roast or his wife’s family recipe for the Stroganoff. Before moving to Portland in 2019, he and his father operated a cafe in Baltimore.

Shaffer hopes to launch Bub’s at the Public Market House in August. It will initially be open Wednesday through Friday, 11 am – 4 pm (serving lunch until 2) with plans to expand days and hours to meet demand. In addition, Bub’s will continue to participate in the South Portland’s Farmers’ Market on Sundays, and Fork Food Lab’s market on Thursdays to reach customers who might not live or work in downtown Portland.

LB Kitchen is growing their Mini-Mart business. The first location of their grab and go market and coffee bar opened this past March at the Rock Row Health Campus (right photo).

Owners Bryna Gootkind and chef Lee Farrington are now working to open a second location at 235 Vaughan (left photo). It’s under construction in the 620 sq ft space that most recently was the West End location of Other Side Deli and previously had been the longtime home of Vaughan Street Variety. When it launches this fall it will sell salads, sandwiches, snacks, wellness items, wine, beer, and non-alcoholic beverages. There will also be a coffee bar that serves espresso-based drinks as well as LB’s lattes, bone broth, smoothies and slushies.

As share in today’s press release,

“We’re thrilled to bring LB. MINI-MART to more corners of Portland,” said LB. Co-founder and Chef Lee Farrington. “These new locations are a reflection of the growing demand for healthy, accessible food and the continued evolution of our mission to support everyday wellness in our community. We think of ourselves as the new corner store or gas station convenience store – when you want something quick, but at LB. MINI-MART we can satisfy the convenience without sacrificing delicious, more intentional choices.”

In mid 2026 Farrington and Gootkind also plan to expand into the space adjacent to their flagship cafe on Congress Street. They’ll relocate their in-store market into the new storefront which will make way for additional customer seating in their popular daytime cafe.

The original LB Kitchen opened in 2017 and moved to the corner of Smith and Congress Streets in 2023.