Trader Joe's Commentary

| Posted in Under Construction

Friday’s Portland Daily Sun includes an update on Trader Joe’s new store—the latest word is their aiming for a November 1 opening. The newspaper’s editor also looks at how Trader Joe’s fits with a Buy Local philosophy.

Heaven knows I’ll be there, no doubt fighting for a parking spot. But I’ll take some comfort in an interview we did a while back with Doug Fuss, the Bull Feeney’s operator who served on the city’s Task Force on Business Diversity … that’s the anti-chain gang.

I asked “does embracing “Trader’s” make us traitors to our buy-local, down-with-chains creed?

“The quick answer is ‘yes,'” responded Fuss, “but the longer answer is ‘no.'”

Trader Joe’s Commentary

| Posted in Under Construction

Friday’s Portland Daily Sun includes an update on Trader Joe’s new store—the latest word is their aiming for a November 1 opening. The newspaper’s editor also looks at how Trader Joe’s fits with a Buy Local philosophy.

Heaven knows I’ll be there, no doubt fighting for a parking spot. But I’ll take some comfort in an interview we did a while back with Doug Fuss, the Bull Feeney’s operator who served on the city’s Task Force on Business Diversity … that’s the anti-chain gang.

I asked “does embracing “Trader’s” make us traitors to our buy-local, down-with-chains creed?

“The quick answer is ‘yes,'” responded Fuss, “but the longer answer is ‘no.'”

Food Writing Talent

| Posted in People

Portland Phoenix restaurant critic Brian Duff recently met with some aspiring writers at the Telling Room’s Young Author camp.

I don’t know about them, but I learned some things. For example, if someone speaks past your snack time you can simply slump off your chair and lie listlessly on the floor and they will stop. I told them that the best way to write about food was to frame each review in some pseudo-profound malarkey that is both ridiculous and quite possibly true. They wanted to know if I had tried things they had tried. Mostly I had.

Gordo's Lobster Cakes & Halloween Ale

| Posted in Reviews, Beer

Gordo’s Lobster Cakes received 3½ stars from the Eat & Run review in today’s Press Herald.

If you’re looking for a different way to eat lobster, this cake is lighter and less messy than other alternatives. It’s a good to-go food. I can see it becoming a novelty item for tourists. I’m not so sure how well locals will take to it.

The only other sandwich the cart sells is a lobster roll ($10), which I heartily enjoyed. It was held together with a little mayo, and contained some chopped celery and fresh basil. Carolyn Smith says she doesn’t measure the amount of lobster meat she puts in the roll, but she tries to be generous.

Also in Thursday’s paper is a What Ales You column on Gritty’s 2010 Halloween Ale.

“This is the 21st year of Halloween Ale, and we start on Friday the 13th,” Ed Stebbins, Gritty’s brew master, said last week. “We always brew the first batch on a full moon or Friday the 13th.”

Halloween Ale is an extra-special bitter with 6 percent alcohol, and Stebbins promises “no pumpkins were harmed in the brewing of this beer. I promised my mother I would never put spices or fruit in any of our beer.”

Gordo’s Lobster Cakes & Halloween Ale

| Posted in Reviews, Beer

Gordo’s Lobster Cakes received 3½ stars from the Eat & Run review in today’s Press Herald.

If you’re looking for a different way to eat lobster, this cake is lighter and less messy than other alternatives. It’s a good to-go food. I can see it becoming a novelty item for tourists. I’m not so sure how well locals will take to it.

The only other sandwich the cart sells is a lobster roll ($10), which I heartily enjoyed. It was held together with a little mayo, and contained some chopped celery and fresh basil. Carolyn Smith says she doesn’t measure the amount of lobster meat she puts in the roll, but she tries to be generous.

Also in Thursday’s paper is a What Ales You column on Gritty’s 2010 Halloween Ale.

“This is the 21st year of Halloween Ale, and we start on Friday the 13th,” Ed Stebbins, Gritty’s brew master, said last week. “We always brew the first batch on a full moon or Friday the 13th.”

Halloween Ale is an extra-special bitter with 6 percent alcohol, and Stebbins promises “no pumpkins were harmed in the brewing of this beer. I promised my mother I would never put spices or fruit in any of our beer.”

Backyard Locavore Tour and More Smiling Hill Tomatoes

| Posted in General News, Events

Today’s Press Herald includes an article on the Backyard Locavore Tour taking place this weekend,

After more than 300 people bought tickets to last year’s inaugural Backyard Locavore Tour, the organizers are getting ready for another oversized crowd when the edible garden excursion returns this Saturday. Unlike more typical garden tours, this event highlights plots growing vegetables, fruits and herbs, with a few offering a glimpse of small livestock husbandry and beekeeping.

and additional reporting on Smiling Hill Farm’s plans to get into the greenhouse tomato business.

Knight, whose farm now produces a variety of dairy products, said the greenhouse could create about 100 jobs. It’s also projected to yield 12 million to 14 million pounds of tomatoes each year, said Larry Gianatti Sr., president of Quality Sales Inc., a produce distributor in Hartford, Conn.

Baja Dogs and Grace made cameo appearances in an article about hot dog vendors in Maine.

Grill Room Review

| Posted in Reviews

From Away has published a review of The Grill Room.

Certainly there were other items that intrigued. The warm ricotta appetizer and bacon and egg salad could be worth revisiting. It was with a sad sigh I exited, stuffed and unsatisfied. It wasn’t cheap either. Two rounds of cocktails did augment the bill, but still. I must say, I was disappointed. The chef, Harding Lee Smith, seems very pleased with himself, plastered all over his restaurants websites. I hope last night’s dinner would not be considered up to his standards, as our group concensus was that our experience at The Grill Room deserved a solid 7.