Sweet as Cherry Pie

No, not food this time.

Last week in Portland, I was fighting a migraine and dreading popping another $25 Imitrex, when I walked by Cherry Pie Beauty and Lifestyle Lounge on Middle Street. Yeah, I know, sounds more like a porn hall than a beauty salon and day spa, but the thought of getting a massage to ease the pain made me investigate. Glad I did.

Cool digs, nice space, big windows; complementary wine, tea, nibbles for customers; a computer available for guest use.

Now I live in in a relatively rural area, where I pay about $45 for an hour massage, $40 if I bring my own sheets (gotta love that!). So city prices usually are a deterrent, but Cherry Pie offered a half-hour massage for $40, and I knew a good massage could make the pain go away whereas that $25 pill would just mask it. Even my migraine-numbed brain realized that was the better value.

So I splurged, and I’m glad I did. Shout out to massage therapist Mark McVickar; he worked magic. The guy’s been at it for a long time, a real pro, and he’s very good. I’m now saving my pennies (I’m probably the only one in the world who still does that, but they do add up) for another, next time I’m in the Big City.

By the way: No current photos from my Portland swing or anything else until I get a new camera. sniffle, sniffle.

Great Chefs of Maine series

Portland isn’t the only place building events around Maine’s hot chefs. Muscling in on the action is The Balsams, a grand resort hotel snugged in Dixville Notch, way up at the tip of New Hampshire (and perhaps best known as being the first-in-the-nation voting site). This fall its Visiting Chef Series is highlighting the Great Chefs of Maine.

Each weekend includes opens with a Friday nights cocktail reception with the honored guest. Culinary demonstrations and wine tastings take place on Saturday, followed by a table d’hote menu prepared by the chef, who will circulate and answer questions throughout the dinner. It concludes Sunday with a jazz breakfast.

Featured Maine chefs are:

• Tom Gutow, Castine Inn, Oct. 24-26

• Rob Evans, Hugo’s, Oct. 31-Nov. 2

• Bryan Dame, The Inn at Ocean’s Edge, Nov. 14-16

• Gerry Bonsey, York Harbor Inn, Nov. 21-23

Other participating chefs are Jack Chiaro, associate culinary professor at Johnson and Wales, Nov. 7-9, and Ben Smith, executive chef and owner, Tsunami, Memphis, Tenn., Dec. 5-7.

Harvest on the Harbor: buy tix now or say good bye

Yes, I’ve posted about this previously, but if you’re considering attending any of the Harvest on the Harbor events, Oct. 23-25, stop jawing about it, get out the credit card and purchase the tix.

Already more than half of the 400 or so available to the Grand Tasting at the Gateway on Thursday evening have been sold (and the price rises from $50 to $60 pp after Oct. 9) for this showcase event highlighting Maine chefs and food producers.

Saturday’s Culinary Marketplace at the Gateway isn’t expected to sell out. Participants include more than 100 food producers, wine vendors, cookbook authors, and other culinary experts (and Bill Dodge auto group, go figure).

Other Harvest events include tastings, talks, demonstrations, and dinners, but tix for many of these are limited, so if you have your heart set on attending, get a move on. And again, prices on all tix increase on Oct. 9.

The weekend concludes with Gala by the Sea, a black-tie event at the Inn by the Sea. A five-course meal with wine pairings will be prepared by two James Beard award-winning guest chefs: David Pasternack, of Esca, in New York, and Sam Hayward, of Fore Street, working with Mitchell Kaldrovich, of the Inn by the Sea.

Also being presented at the gala are the Maine Culinary Awards, the first of what will be an annual recognition for “outstanding local accomplishments in supporting, promoting, and encouraging the culinary evolution of Maine.” This year’s honorees are Rod Browne Mitchell, of Browne Trading Co., and Hayward.

If you can’t cough up the $150 pp for gala tix, special Harvest Dining menus are being served at restaurants such as Hugo’s, Twenty Mill Street, the Inn on Peaks Island, and Eves at the Garden, and the prices are a bit easier on the budget.

Erebus?

During my Portland whirlwind, I made a passing reference to Erebus to someone, and the result was a blank stare. Anyone else remember Portland’s original hippie-dippie head shop, source of patchouli oil, incense sticks, candles, those groovy and gauzy India bedspreads, beaded curtains, and, of course, pipes, clips and bongs? Whenever I walk by that building, I shake my head and grin. It’s so proper looking, so restored, refined, upscale. Hah.

Maine icons

Grazing report: Portland

After walking Portland from Munjoy Hill through the West End and Congress down to Commercial, I’m convinced there’s truth to that oft-cited (but never substantiated) statistic that Portland has more restaurants per capita than any other city save that other one by the bay. Really, I swear I couldn’t walk more than 25 yards, if that, without passing yet another café, java joint, pastry shop, restaurant, convenience store, take-out, ethnic eatery, or other food palace. And even many of the seemingly run-of-the-mill spots had intriguing menu options. Portland is definitely not a city in which to be on a diet.

Here’s the report:

Hors d’oeuvres: Eve’s at the Portland Harbor Hotel. Sat at the bar and nibbled my way through a tasting of the fried oysters, kobe meatballs and a crabcake. My fave: the oysters, crisp, tender, flavorful, moist. Nice blend of texture and flavor. The renovation of Eve’s has made it a much nicer, more inviting, actually quite cozy space. Very easy to relax there and not want to continue out, but Back Bay Grill called (see earlier posting).

Breakfast: Mim’s, outside on the patio, which is a perfect place for people watching. I timed it just as the folks from the docked cruise ship were beginning to explore the town. Breakfast was good, it could (should) have been great. I ordered the pain perdu, a French toast made with brioche and served with local maple syrup. Two pieces arrived, one was perfect, the other was charred black and had that icky burned taste. The waitress brought a second piece to replace that one, but that piece, too, had bits of char on it and that off taste. No reason for that, someone just wasn’t paying attention.

Lunch: The Grill Room, on Exchange Street, one of the city’s newer spots and a sibling of The Front Room. Cobb Salad, unique presentation, with fried egg, chicken confit, blue cheese, served on fresh greens with vinaigrette dressing. Excellent. Nice mix of warm and cool. Refreshing take on a classic. My first time here, and I liked the restaurant’s vibe.

Dinner: Hugo’s. The redo, elegant yet casual, with a nice bar and lounge area open to the dining room, done in coppers and bronzes; soft, inviting, no longer any trace of stuffiness. Service remains professional, attentive yet friendly. And the menu is far more approachable. Sure, if you want to splurge on the five-course tasting menu, it still exists, but other far-more wallet-friendly choices are available, served in modest, tapas-style portions—perfect for smaller appetites.

The Arctic char proved why Chef Rob Evans is a master; it blended tastes and textures, color and temperatures on one small plate. The crisply skinned char topped a bed of seaweed slaw that had the flavors of a seaweed salad but was not as assertive. Paired with it were fingerling potatoes topped with smoked trout roe and horseradish, yum. Accompanying it all were a side of delicate biscuits served with a farm-fresh butter that was beyond delicious.

Dessert: Bresca. I walked in an snagged a counter seat and ordered a raspberry financiere and the Bresca blend tea. It’s my first time in Bresca, but it won’t be my last. This is one of, if not the best, desserts I’ve ever tasted. Oh my. The almond tart was made with raspberries and garnished with both fresh raspberries and sugar plums, then topped with a healthy dollop of crème fraiche gelato. I swear, if I hadn’t been in a public place, I would have liked the plate; it was that good. And the Bresca blend tea is fabulous as an after-dinner tea, and with its gentle vanilla overtones, it complemented the financiere.

Breakfast: The Porthole. After all these years, I still love this place. Sure, it’s been gussied up a bit (and the prices reflect the waterfront location), but that ole green vinyl still peeks through. I like that the waitresses greet the locals by name, but still make the occasional diner feel at home. I like that on a sunny day I can sit on the wharf, but on a chilly one, I can hope to snag a table by the gas fireplace. No, my French toast wasn’t as snazzy as that at Mim’s, (but it wasn’t burned), nor was the syrup the real deal or the OJ fresh squeezed, but everything was good and I left happy and full. Really, what more does one want from breakfast?

Lunch: Artemesia Cafe. This little spot on Pleasant Street is such a treat. Nothing too fancy, but really good salads and huge sandwiches. The atmosphere is city neighborhood cafe with a fresh, bright, welcoming feel. Comfy booths, a few tables, a bit of funk in the decor. It also serves breakfast, and has great baked goodies, and it knows how to present tea. A good loose tea served in a tea pot.

And for home: I picked up a sampling of goodies to cobble together for dinner at Black Tie Bistro, a bottle of wine at Micucci’s, and cookies (chocolate chip pecan and lemon shortbread) at Two Fat Cats. Tomorrow, back to reality.

Harboring secrets

I toured the new addition to the Portland Harbor Hotel yesterday with the general manager, and no question, this is a great addition for those with the bucks to splurge.

On the street level are two retail shops: one will be occupied by an Italian pasta maker, who is moving here from the old country to open a fresh pasta shop; the other will be a showroom for a furnishings company.

Above these on two floors are six suites with gas fireplaces (really cool ones, with the flames shooting through stones–sames as the one in Eve’s), large whirlpool tubs in the bathroom, with sliding panels opening through to the bedroom. One is a two-room suite, where the flat-panel TV swings out so it can be watched from the tub. Fanciest suite is the honeymoon suite, with crane-your-neck glimpses of the harbor.

Downstairs is a well-equipped fitness room as well as two spa rooms, with services to be provided by 9 Stones. Future plans call for a Jacuzzi to be installed in the patio area out the back door.

Finally, there’s a new meeting room on the first floor with easy access to the courtyard through a small lobby area. Really a nice set up for biz.

The new building is expected to open in about two weeks.

Back to the future

With all the hype about Portland’s foodie-fave restaurants, you know—555, Evangeline, Hugo’s, Fore Street, Cinque Terre, Bresca—sometimes out-of-sight/out-of-mind Back Bay Grill gets overlooked. It shouldn’t.

I dined there last night, and it continues to be one of the city’s top restaurants, with professional service and excellent fare. It’s been around far longer than most of the newbie hotspots, with a pedigree going back 20 years and a bevy of awards of its own. Chef Larry Matthews knows his way around the restaurant’s open kitchen.

My local tomato salad, with goat cheese from Heart Song Farm and drizzled with balsamic was divine. Fresh, luscious, plump tomatoes were at the peak of flavor. Heaven.

Now another foodie had told me to order the foie gras, because he said, no one does it better. I didn’t this time, but I will try it another. I did take his advice on my entree, though, ordering the sauteed duck breast, with duck confit, tallegio risotto and summer squash. When the plate first arrived, I said: too much, I’ll never finish it. Hah.

We finished up with the cheese plate for two, which contained La Peral, a Spanish blue, that was amazing for its depth of flavor.

The Back Bay Grill isn’t in any of the usual foodie neighborhoods, rather its near Back Bay (yeah, the name’s a hint), a few blocks over from the Post Office. And if you go, check out the mural in the dining room, then ask for the story. Oh, and do make reservations, it might be off the tourist radar screen, but locals know this gem.

Just a peep

Late fall foliage along the Airline (Route 9), October 2007.

Escape the leaf-peeping crowds

If I wanted to lose the tour buses, the vehicle parades, the lines and the masses, and I wanted to not only see the fall foliage show, but also the coast, I’d—sshhhh—return to the Blue Hill/Deer Isle Peninsula, and spend a weekend or longer.

Perhaps because there are no huge hotels or fancy-schmancy resorts here, the crowds and bus tours go elsewhere. Good. Now I’ve previously blogged about the Shore Oaks Inn on the grounds of the Oakland House Seaside Resort, and the Inn on the Harbor, in Stonington at the tip of Deer Isle. Besides these, favorites are the Pentagoet Inn, a butter-yellow Queen Anne in Castine, the land of white houses, and the Blue Hill Inn, an elegant oasis in downtown Blue Hill.

Thanks to the mapmaker-challenging coastline, you can watch the sun both rise and set over the ocean as you noodle the byways with a glimpse of water around nearly every bend. Spend an afternoon or longer exploring Castine’s rich history and viewing its architectural gems; mosey around Deer Isle, and if the weather’s fine, take the passenger ferry to Isle au Haut. Artists’ and artisans’ studios are plentiful, walking and hiking trails lace abundant preserves, and dining choices range from seafood shacks to elegant restaurants.

A grand time to visit is over Columbus Day weekend, when the annual Peninsula Potters Studio Tour and Sale occurs. And here’s a plus: renowned potter Mark Bell has a kiln opening on Oct. 11.