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Queenie’s Castle

Queenie’s Castle opened in July 2022.

Deering Oaks, Portland, ME, USA

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About Portland Food Map

Portland Food Map launched in 2007 as a directory of the local food community. Other features have been added over the years including food event listings, the Under Construction page, guides to Maine apples and cider producers, the restaurant real estate listings, Year in Review reports, and the My Kitchen Their Table chef interview series.

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Welcome to the June edition of the Portland Food M

Welcome to the June edition of the Portland Food Map “Date Night” raffle sponsored by Evergreen Credit Union (@evergreen_credit_union). The winner will receive a $125 Visa gift card for use at Cong Tu Bot (@cong.tu.bot) and either two tickets to a Portland Sea Dogs (@portland_seadogs) home baseball game OR two tickets to the Portland Museum of Art (@portlandmuseum). Simply comment on this Instagram image and tag a friend (or, two, or three...), and you’re entered to win.
To whet your appetite, here are some photos taken at Cong Tu Bot: Lo Mein Sandwich (special on Mondays), Shaken Lamb, Caramel Braised Salmon, Congee and Toasted Rice Cracker, Chè Pavlova, Twice Fried Squid, Bun Cha (returning to the menu starting this week on Sundays and Mondays). Cong Tu Bot is open Thursday through Monday, 5-9 pm. #portlandmaine #datenight #mainefood #evergreeneverywhere
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. 1 winner will be chosen at random and will receive either 2 tickets to a Portland Sea Dogs home game OR 2 guest Admission Tickets to the Portland Museum of Art. Date of Portland Sea Dogs game to be determined with the winner. Meal for two at Cong Tu Bot is good for up to $125 in the form of a VISA gift card; any additional costs will be the responsibility of the winner. The winner will be chosen on June 6, 2023, and will be notified via Instagram direct message. Winner will connect with Evergreen Credit Union to receive their prize package.
Per Instagram rules, this promotion is in no way sponsored, administered, or associated with Instagram, Inc. By entering, entrants confirm that they are 13+ years of age, release Instagram of responsibility, and agree to Instagram’s terms of use. This contest is in no way sponsored or administered by the Portland Sea Dogs. By entering, entrants confirm that they release the Portland Sea Dogs of responsibility. This contest is in no way sponsored or administered by the Portland Museum of Art. By entering, entrants confirm that they release the Portland Museum of Art of responsibility.

@empirechinesekitchen has reopened for indoor dini

@empirechinesekitchen has reopened for indoor dining. Their hours are Wednesday through Monday, 11:30 – 9 (open until 10 on Saturdays. The menu (see second photo) has all the old favorites and they’re scaling up a reworked cocktail program. Shown here is a Trader Vic style Mai Tai made with Appleton rum and a house made orgeat. Empire has relaunched with a mixed service model: full service at the bar and counter area with a hybrid counter service approach in the main dining room. Empire is located at 575 Congress Street at the intersection with Forest Ave. #empirechinesekitchen #maitaicocktail

Oxbow Brewing (@oxbowbrewingcompany) and Hardshore

Oxbow Brewing (@oxbowbrewingcompany) and Hardshore Distilling (@hardshoredistilling) have leased the former Maine Mead Works space on Washington Ave. The move provides both with an opportunity to expand their production capacity and rework their tasting rooms (see 4th image for the floor plan).
Hardshore will be moving their bar into the new space and expanding seating in their current service area. Similarly, Oxbow is moving their tasting room to their section of the former meadery with the current Oxbow tasting room will be available for events and for overflow capacity. Construction of the new Oxbow and Hardshore tasting rooms are already underway and both business hope to open later this summer.
Seasonal outdoor seating will be available at the front of the building along Washington Ave with a food truck from Eaux (@eauxportland) center stage in the new development. Owner Evan Richardson will be serving Eaux’s famed chicken and waffles along with a vegetarian Hen of the Woods mushroom and waffles option and other dishes from the former Eaux menu. The food truck will be launching in early June and will be open Thursday though Monday, 4 – 9ish. #chickenandwaffles #henofthewoodsmushrooms #innerwashingtonave

A new Cambodian restaurant called Khmer Kitchen is

A new Cambodian restaurant called Khmer Kitchen is under construction on the second floor of the Public Market House. Khmer Kitchen is moving into the two spaces that were formerly occupied by Dila’s Kitchen and Pho Huong.
Owner Khanya Mimande plan to serve “a variety of authentic Cambodian/Khmer food, fresh, delicious, flavorful meals, appetizers, and drinks.” The draft menu includes a wide variety of rice dishes like Cha Kroeung (stir fry lemongrass with red and green peppers, onion and Thai basil), rice noodle based soups, wings, ribs, and Khmer egg rolls.
Mimande is in the final stages of launching Khmer Kitchen, and also plans to open a Laotian restaurant. #khmerkitchen #mainefood

The beer bar and restaurant we know today as The G

The beer bar and restaurant we know today as The Great Lost Bear (@greatlostbear) was founded in 1979 by Dave Evans, Weslie Evans and Chip MacConnell. Now after more than four decades in business, ownership of The Bear is being handed off to the next generation. Longtime managers Michael Dickson, Mary Dickson and Andrew Pillsbury signed paperwork Monday and became the new owners of the iconic Forest Ave establishment.
The Great Lost Bear launched in the pre-craft beer era in Maine. Geary’s was Maine’s first modern craft brewery and it sold its first beer in 1986. Gritty’s opened in 1988, and Shipyard and Allagash didn’t launch until the middle of the next decade.Now clocking in at ~70 taps of craft beer, the original Great Lost Bear draft line consisted of just four taps.
As the local brewing industry has developed, The Great Lost Bear has been a witness and essential supporter of the Maine craft beer industry. Here are some thoughts from Allagash founder Rob Tod,
“The folks at the Great Lost Bear were the first to take a chance and put my beer, Allagash White, on tap. And since then, they’ve been institutional in supporting and expanding the popularity of the beer scene here in Maine. I’m glad to see that I’ll be able to enjoy a pint at the Bear for many years to come.”
Weslie and Dave Evans moved to Portland from North Conway where they worked in the restaurant industry—Dave as a cook and Weslie in the front of house. When they decided to launch their own business they moved to Portland and eventually found a location on Forest Ave in what had been the Bottoms Up rock club. The Evans’s and MacConnell leased their half of the building for $800/month.
An interesting side note is that The Grizzly Bear which was the original name of the business. It was changed, after a legal challenge from an pre-existing West coast operation called Grizzly Bear Pizza in 1981 to the new (and much better) moniker we use today. Flip through the photos in this post to see cover art from early menus and vintage photos from the early days. #mainebeer #mainefood

Melissa Lombardi, the owner of the Twist (@portlan

Melissa Lombardi, the owner of the Twist (@portlandtwist) ice cream food truck, has leased a first floor space at the Public Market House. The new location will be the home of a year-round business named Twirl.
Twirl will offer an expanded menu of shakes, cakes, pints, and other grab and go treats such as ice cream sandwiches in addition to the made-to-order ice cream creations that have been available from the food truck since it launched in 2019.
Lombardi hopes to have Twirl open in time for Father’s Day on June 18th. #portlandmaine #maineicecream

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