September 2022

The price of butter is out of whack.  Some brands cost over $7 per pound, which is 50 percent  more than last year when the average price was about $3.50 per pound at our area supermarkets like Hannaford’s,  Shaw’s, Whole Foods (for store brand) and Market Basket, the latter offering the best price deals for these sticks of gold.  Incidentally Shaw’s is one of the most expensive sources for butter, just under the average  whopping price at Whole Food’s butter aisle.  For example, Vermont Creamery butter half-pound package costs over $6  at Whole Foods whereas Walmart sells it for $2.98 for  8 ounces,   and picking it up at Shaw’s would set you back $3.99. Hannaford and Market Basket don’t carry Vermont Creamery butter.

 

Cabot butter at Market Basket, a relative

Currently Cabot Butter and Land O Lakes are well over $5 per pound, about $2 more than  six months ago, Cabot is generally less expensive than LOL.  The reason for butter price bloat manufacturers claim is that milk production is more costly than ever,  and labor shortages are to blame too.  I don’t necessarily buy this excuse. Still, I guess it’s a fact of life.  Why, for example, is Kate’s Butter, which is made locally from their own cows who graze on Maine’s farm fields,  way above its price from a year ago?

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And by that I don’t mean the venerable food shop, Rosemont Market, which has anchored this neighborhood for years with its array of mostly locally sourced foods. But rather it’s across the road on Woodford Street.  In my one and only visit thus far to The Knotted Apron several weeks ago we thoroughly enjoyed our dinner because the food was so thoughtfully and artfully prepared and served in a true neighborhood bistro setting.  Think of it  being like a counterpart to the West End’s Chaval, a mainstay of the West End or The Blue Spoon on Munjoy Hill.  That every neighborhood in Portland or neighborhoods in general from York Village to Union Village should have such a locally inspirational place.

The Knotted has been around since the the Pandemic and while many newish restaurants in Portland tend to have a sameness about them, The  Knotted Apron remains clearly identifiable and has avoided the predictability of  being throttled by the so-called New American dining category.  Instead think of it as savvy neighborhood place serving delicious food.

One of the prettiest outdoor dining patios in Portland

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