August 2015

In the pantheon of Portland’s lunch and brunch jungle Sur-Lie is the sleeper in the group.  In fact it receives so little attention when it should be a bold-face contender.  They ‘ve already established their might at dinner, but I urge all you foraging diners to take a turn down Free Street for innovative food from their lunch and Sunday brunch menus.

The dining room is flooded in sunlight at lunch and brunch

The dining room is flooded in sunlight at lunch and brunch

Chef Emil Rivera’s particular sense of taste delivers some of the best cooking in town. At lunch, for instance, the prix fixe $15 4-course menu packs quite a wallop of flavor and value; I love the idea that you can walk out with a dessert packet to take back to your office or nibble on as you walk down the street.  See the menu below.

The lunch menu served Tuesday to Saturday; the dining bar

The lunch menu served Tuesday to Saturday; the dining bar

On Sunday, however, I had the chance to experience their food when I stopped in for a late brunch around 2:00 PM.  My original plan was to visit the new OCHO—Otto Pizza’s food iteration to launch burrito mania only to see a sign on the door saying in part, “Closed…to collect ourselves, regain our bearings and figure out how to better serve you.”

The 5 by 10 service counter at OCHO

The 5 by 10 service counter at OCHO

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Deep down in its warped well of vocabulary wisdom the Urban Dictionary defines foodie as “a douchebag who likes food.”  If that’s the case then Portland’s streets are teeming with them, and the general wisdom is for us locals to stay away from our most formidable dining haunts until the turistas all leave in the next 30 to 60 days.  In fact, one local savant confided that he won’t step foot into a place like the revered Central Provisions until the masses go home. Indeed, it may be that of all the new restaurants in our dining world, the one that lives up so supremely to its accolades is the venerable Central Provisions.

The serious look of diners at Central Provisions seated at the dining bar facing the open kitchen; lower right, chef Chris Gould

   The serious look of diners at Central Provisions seated at the dining bar facing the open kitchen; lower right, chef                                                                                                                        Chris Gould

I wasn’t planning to visit there until the fall, but destiny prevailed as a parking spot opened up a few doors away while cruising down Fore Street during the lunch hour earlier this week. I took this as my cue to enter this bastion of gastronomy for a bite of lunch.

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The repertoire of seasonal soups is vast, and for Maine cooks it beckons as soon as the first spears of asparagus appear in our farmers’ markets.  Next in the lineup is shell peas, which can become the base for another wonderfully elegant puree.  Of course there are other spring and summer vegetables that afford great soup-making, too.

Tomatoes at market are at their peak; an easily made cream of tomato soup, served hot or cold

            Tomatoes at market are at their peak; an easily made cream of tomato soup, served hot or cold

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We all have our favorite clam shacks and lobster pounds but one that sets itself apart is the Slipway in Thomaston.  The sum of its parts is so much more complex than the typical fried food havens with their waterfront settings. We set out for it on Saturday morning, leaving behind a sunny Portland only to arrive in Thomaston where the storm clouds hung heavily in the sky emitting a fine mist throughout the day.

On a misty, cloudy Saturday, the Slipway dock is closed

                                                                        On a misty, cloudy Saturday, the Slipway dock is closed

Because of the weather the dining dock, which spans 120 feet into the mouth of the Saint George Giver, was closed.  In good weather during lunch or dinner you sit at any of the umbrella picnic tables; though the choice spots are at the end of the dock where several round tables are set up next to the wet bar. You feel as though you’re about ready to set sail.

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Of all the new restaurants that have opened in Portland in the last several years what niche markets haven’t been filled  beyond the surfeit of small plates, new American bistro, southern BBQ, Asian, European and ethnic?

So I ask this: Is the turn for nostalgic dining the next wave? To wit: a soda fountain on Congress Street is in the works but no torqued up venue for middling country club fare has shown itself even among our toniest private clubs. Are we ready, though, for the return of mixologist hoopla from the 1950s?

The bar at Crooner's and Cocktails

                                                                                The bar at Crooner’s and Cocktails

That’s where Crooners and Cocktails has tread  with an attempt at decanting the  supper clubs of the past, from the Eisenhower and Kennedy eras where stylish diners would ascend into an upscale version of something slightly off beat.

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Blackberries are probably the most perishable and mysterious of our summer berry crop.  Their season is even shorter than raspberries and once picked, their shelf life is fleeting.  But while they’re at the markets it’s a good idea to stock up on them now.  They freeze beautifully and you can use them throughout the year in pastries, over ice cream, for jam or added to the juicer.

Blackberries lightly washed and strained in a colander

Not many farmers at Portland’s market have blackberries.  Right now, Thirty Acre Farm and Goranson have a small stash of berries, which grow wild on their land.  Uncle’s Farm Stand tends to have berries too.

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Grazing is a great way to experience several restaurants in one fell swoop, torching your testbeds into fiery submission as you go from one to the other for splendid dining.   This was the course I followed starting on Friday evening. What ensued was the progression of  two dining establishments to create  the evening meal in which the new world met the old and a weekend to follow with multiple ports of call in the offing.

Sur-Lie presents an inventive but very approachable modern-day menu of small plates done with utter creativity and style.  The second stop was Back Bay Grill, where more traditional techniques and fare—done superbly—offered great counterpoint.

The respective bar rooms for dining at Sur Lie and Back Bay Grill

The respective bar rooms for dining at Sur Lie and Back Bay Grill

First order of business was to order a drink made by Sur-Lie’s great bartender, Sam Babcock.  I proceeded to have my favorite dish at Sur Lie– the sweet pea hummus.  It’s presented in a big white bowl that contains the brightest puree, almost blindingly green from the freshness of the peas rendered into a luxuriously silken dip.  Chef Emil Rivera—whose cooking gets better and better to be, at times, absolutely wonderful– floats the flavors of lemon and mint that capture the sublime texture and flavor of the sabayon, which tops the hummus like  whipped cream on a sundae.

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If you haven’t been to Terlingua yet–the neighborhood restaurant that is  the new anchor along a burgeoning restaurant strip in this desultory part of town–it’s time to join the crowds who already favor it as a congenial haunt for barbecue.

Along Washington Avenue, the Nissen  building across the street will be housing a new restaurant; outdoor dining at Terlingua

Along Washington Avenue, the Nissen building across the street will be housing a new restaurant; outdoor dining at Terlingua

I first wrote about it in June when it opened.  I had the pork belly and shell-on shrimp and liked both.  The pork was cooked just right with its fatty layer of skin rendered crisp and sweet with honey. And the guajillo chili sauce that cloaked the shrimp had a nice winey favor typical of the guajillo.  The shrimp were good, though most likely flash frozen and thawed.  It’s nearly impossible to get fresh caught Gulf shrimp in Maine.

Pork belly and head-on shrimp

Pork belly and head-on shrimp

Terlingua is essentially barbecue but not the usual kind in which northern cooks try to mimic Down South pit masters.  The food has also been described as Latin.  But the closest it gets to it is more Tex-Mex border food.

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Sometimes it’s the side dishes that are the most interesting as the sensual sidekicks to the main course. At this time of year tomatoes and corn are center stage and can be a great duo when served together as a side-dish pairing.

Baked summer pudding

Baked summer tomato  pudding

Two of my favorites are a baked tomato casserole and a corn dish. The tomatoes are baked with good crusty bread, akin to a tomato pudding.  And the corn is an interesting devise in which you cook fresh kernels off the cob in some butter and cream to soften then add steamed or boiled summer squash that’s mashed and added to the corn mixture to cook for a while longer until the two become even richer.  The corn helps to thicken the stew, something like an embellished creamed corn dish, with the squash added for texture and sweetness.

Velvet corn and squash

Velvet corn and squash

I made these two dishes last night while the evening was still steeped in a chilly rain.  The main course was pork chops served with an accompaniment of beets and carrots.  The meal offers a lot of vegetables, but at this time of year everything is at its prime.

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After a scintillating dinner at Tempo Dulu Saturday night, one of nearly bacchanalian proportions, everywhere else I ate last week was so tame (though pretty good) by comparison. (Shown on the intro page is mixologist’s Trevin Hutchins Wayang Cocktail)

A trio of desserts at Tempo Dulu

A trio of desserts at Tempo Dulu

Last night’s options, however, were a mixed bag of where to eat since many favorite places are closed on Sundays, a mistake perhaps if restaurateurs are looking for the big dollars from the brigade of tourists now everywhere in Portland.

I considered going to Sur-Lie, but they close down for Sunday dinner after serving their very popular brunch earlier in the day.

Chef Matt Ginn's terrific lamp preparation at Evo enjoyed on earlier occasionis

Chef Matt Ginn’s terrific lamp preparation at Evo enjoyed on earlier occasionis

Ebb and Flow, on teeming Commercial Street, is also closed on Sundays and I haven’t been there in a long while.  Same for Tiqa.  Keeping with the growing Mediterranean theme gaining popularity, I considered stopping at Evo but parking anywhere in the congested Old Port that night was difficult.

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