Fork Food Lab Merges with Brooklyn Peer (Updated)

| Posted in General News

Fork Food Lab has announced their merger with Foodworks, a Brooklyn-based food business incubator.

“We are very excited to partner with a company that shares in our vision for a more robust local food system where entrepreneurs with creative recipes can strategically grow,” said Spillane, who will stay on as General Manager of Fork Food Lab. “This merger will allow Fork Food Lab companies to expand distribution into the large New York market and leverage supplier discounts that are available to current Foodworks producers.”

Here’s the full text of the press release.

Update: Maine Start-up Insider and the Press Herald have published articles about the merger.

This Week’s Events: Louie’s at Tipo

| Posted in Events

Wednesday – Old Port Wine Merchants will have a Burgundy tasting, and the Monument Square Farmers’ Market is taking place.

Thursday – The Great Lost Bear will be showcasing beer from Rising Tide.

Friday – there will be a wine tasting at Rosemont on Commercial Street, and Louie’s from Portsmouth, New Hampshire will be serving a pop-up dinner at Tipo.

Saturday – Foulmouthed Brewing is celebrating their 1-year anniversary, and the Deering Oaks Farmers’ Market is taking place.

For more information on these and other upcoming food happenings in the area, visit the event calendar.

If you are holding a food event this week that’s not listed above, publicize it by adding it as a comment to this post.

Reviews: Top of the East, Tipo, Isa, BRGR Bar, El Corazon

| Posted in Reviews

The Maine Sunday Telegram has reviewed Top of the East,

It’s almost as if there’s a conspiracy afoot to encourage patrons to look out the windows and ignore what’s inside Top of the East: décor, service and much of the menu. That stratagem works when it’s nice outside, but what happens when the weather does not cooperate? The solid cocktails are a good place to start, but it’s clear that stronger cooking is where the restaurant’s next evolution needs to be.

Down East has reviewed Tipo,

While many of the dishes listed on the menu sound like red-sauce-joint staples, their flavors are far more complex and intriguing than that. Gould’s meatballs, for instance, are a blend of pork and beef seasoned with North African spices and served in a harissa-spiked tomato sauce. They come with a creamy, cooling dollop of ricotta blended with lemon zest and chives. His version of cacio e pepe is a fresh black-pepper tagliatelle tossed with a rich brodo and a mountain of umami-laden Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Steffy Amondi has reviewed Isa,

ISA is a place of contrast. With an upscale ambiance, but very simple menu. The food felt like what you would find at your company CEO’s chef-enabled home for dinner. Sticking with the basics and authenticity of recipes, there is nothing pretentious about the food, yet worth the price tag. Service at Isa is just right as well. Making you feel comfortable while still maintaining the air of class. A quiet place that can get a bit loud later into the night as drinks take effect on larger groups. Recommended for a dinner party, date-night or even dinner with the kids when you can’t find a sitter.

Portland Press Herald has reviewed BRGR Bar, and

When said burger was delivered I shot my dining companions a look that said, “Don’t talk to me for the next 12 minutes, I’m about to enter the Devour Zone.” And, I must say, said look was warranted, as this burger was a righteous feast of multiple flavors cooked to perfection and good to the last morsel, because I, of course, ate the entire thing, which was no small feat. The fries were only so-so, but that hardly mattered, I wasn’t there for the fries.

The Golden Dish has reviewed El Corazon.

So far there’s a disconnect between food truck and restaurant at El Corazon. It didn’t happen with other successful trucks turning restaurant pro like Baharat, East Ender and Mami. Admittedly my meal at the restaurant was a one-shot deal–but judging a restaurant by its signature dish is meaningful. Yet, at this point I don’t feel like going back and leave it up to you to tell me if I should.

One Millions Pounds of Maine Grain (Updated)

| Posted in Beer, Farming

Rob Tod has committed Allagash to buy one million pounds of Maine grains per year by 2021. That’s more than an eight-fold increase.

In the brewing business, buying locally often isn’t feasible. In Maine, the climate has always been right for growing grain, but the infrastructure just hasn’t been sufficient to meet our needs. Much to our delight, we’ve recently seen a steady and substantial increase in the amount Maine-grown and malted grains. That’s why we’re making the pledge that by 2021, Allagash will be buying one million pounds of Maine-grown grain per year.

Update: Mainebiz has published about Allagash’s commitment to buy more grain from Maine.

Smokin’ Sausage Showdown

| Posted in General News

The Bollard has released the results of their 5th Smokin’ Sausage Showdown.

Welcome, backyard carnivores, to another action-packed edition of The Bollard’s Smokin’ Sausage Showdown! This is the fifth Showdown we’ve staged in the past 10 years, and the competition has never been stronger. We long ago weeded out the weaker links available at supermarket chains like Hannaford, Shaw’s and Whole Foods, and once-promising rookies from several local butcher shops have undergone this trial by (lack of) fire and failed to make the cut.

Under Construction: Maiz Colombian Street Food

| Posted in Under Construction

A new food vendor called Maiz Colombian Street Food (facebook) is under construction in the Public Market House. Maiz will serve “modern twists on the traditional Colombian” arepas. In the morning they will also have on the menu a “pan-de-bono, a savory cheese bread made with yucca flour”. Maiz will also serve Colombian coffee and lemonades in fruit and coconut flavors.

Owners Martha Leonard and Niky Walter met in Colombia where Walter was born and raised. They plan to launch Maiz on July 1st.

Blyth and Burrows Opens Today

| Posted in Openings

Blyth & Burrows (website, facebook, instagram, twitter), a multifaceted cocktail bar located at 26 Exchange Street, is scheduled to open today at 4pm. The bar is owned by Josh Miranda.

Blyth & Burrows held a media preview earlier this week. You can more about the bar, its menu and the layout of its space in articles by The Blueberry Files, Peter Peter Portland Eater, and Urban Eye.

Here’s an excerpt from TBF’s article,

When you first enter off Exchange St., you’re in the showiest part of the space, complete with a library ladder to access top shelf bottles. The bar staff is made up of Sur Lie and EVO alums, so expect a similar style bar menu, with specialty cocktails involving lesser known ingredients like Carpano Antica and housemade ingredients like a spruce tip cordial.

The name is a reference to Captain Samuel Blyth from the HMS Boxer and Lieutenant William Burrows of the USS Enterprise who were buried in the Eastern Cemetery and died during an naval battle between their ships in Casco Bay in 1813.

Coffee Me Up

| Posted in People, Profiles

The Portland Phoenix has published an article about Coffee Me Up and its owners Alba Zakja and Mateo Hodo.

What sets this gem apart are three things: First, the owners, Alba Zakja and Mateo Hodo are two of the most beautiful humans I have encountered. Their smiles are warm, welcoming and real. Second, their pastry offerings are homemade and Albanian; Albania is their birthplace, although they have both become American citizens. Two of their pastries are especially delicious: Byrek is a traditional phyllo savory pastry. It’s light, unlike anything you’ll find anywhere else in Portland, and you can rely on seeing it at Coffee ME Up seven days a week. The other is Alba’s mother Simina’s Baklava.