Old Port Latin-American cocktail bar and restaurant Cabana is closing at the end of this month, the owner citing “unforeseen family health issues.”

“Words are not enough to express how sad we feel to inform that Cabana will be closing its doors this December 31st of 2023,” reads Cabana’s Instagram post from Dec. 19.  “The reason behind our closure is due to unforeseen family health issues. As you all know family will always comes first and be our priority. Therefore, the founder and creator of Cabana, René (Emilio Peña) has decided to step down and take over his family business and responsibilities. So, he will be passing his ownership to somebody else.”

Peña could not immediately be reached for more information, including whether a new owner might take over the business. He launched Cabana in August 2022 at 11 Middle St., a space formerly occupied by Piccolo.

The Cabana menu featured items like queso fundido, pork and beef albondigas, ceviche, seasonal tostones and Cubano sliders. The food, cocktails and vibrant atmosphere at Cabana earned the venue a strong review in the Portland Press Herald last fall.

SWISS PASTRY SHOP COMING TO BIDDEFORD

A pair of local confectioners aim to open a Swiss-style pastry shop in downtown Biddeford next month.

Co-owner Alex Weissenfluh said he expects Edelweiss Pastry Shop to open in early to mid-January at 5 Alfred St., former home of The Donut Shop. Weissenfluh and his wife, Valentina Correa Weissenfluh – who met in culinary school in Switzerland – have operated the Biddeford-based Edelweiss Confections for the past three years.

Weissenfluh said Edelweiss Pastry Shop will offer a selection of croissants, sweet breakfast breads like Swiss weggli, petit gateaus, tartlets, Swiss cookies, individual quiches, 9-inch tarts, traditional Swiss cakes and bircher muesli made from soaked oats, yogurt and fruit, along with homemade jams and hazelnut creams. Most pastries will run around $4 each, Weissenfluh said, adding that they hope to add lunch dishes to the menu later in 2024.

Edelweiss will also serve drip coffee from Time & Tide Coffee in Biddeford.

Weissenfluh said the new shop will allow him and his wife to expand their line of Edelweiss confections, adding more truffles and chocolate bars. He said boxes of confections will run up to about $18.

The 1,300-square-foot space will have room for 10-12 seats, Weissenfluh said. Edelweiss will be open Wednesday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

SACRED PROFANE COMES TO THOMPSON’S POINT

Biddeford’s buzzy Czech-style lager brewery, Sacred Profane, is launching a second location, this one on Thompson’s Point in Portland, in early 2024.

Sacred Profane will go into the 5,100-square-foot space at 4 Thompson’s Point formerly used by Stroudwater Distillery. “It was not necessarily our ambition to open another retail outlet,” Sacred Profane Director of Operations Michael Fava said. “But given the location of it, it’d be silly not to have a second public space.”

Fava said when Sacred Profane was being built in Biddeford in 2022, the team chose to max out the brewery’s square footage with brewing equipment. This didn’t leave much space for storage, so they’ve known for some time they’d need warehouse space.

Fava said most of the Thompson’s Point space will be used to store packaging material like printed cans, which they need to purchase in bulk by the tractor-trailer-full. They can also store bulk-purchased grains, hops, glassware and more packaging material at Thompson’s Point.

Sacred Profane will not produce beer at Thompson’s Point, but will have tanks there to store beer they make in Biddeford. The extra tanks will free up production flow in Biddeford and effectively allow the brewery to double its beer-making capacity.

The Portland Sacred Profane venue will also have a tasting room and a “modest” food program, Fava said. Because they won’t be installing a hood ventilation system in the kitchen, they’ll be limited to serving snacks and simple lunches like soups, salads and sandwiches, along with pierogies and some Eastern European stews, and pop-up raw bars on weekends.

Sacred Profane aims to open the new location by open mid-February. Fava said he is undaunted by the timeline.

“A wise person told me that to get anything done, you have to start before you’re ready,” he said.

ANOTHER BAR FOR THOMPSON’S POINT

A small-batch craft cocktail company aims to open a new bar on Thompson’s Point in space formerly occupied by Rwanda Bean.

Co-owner Kai Parrott-Wolfe said the new bar, Leisure Time Cocktail Company, will be located at 290 Thompson’s Point in a roughly 2,000-square-foot space that seats about 50. The venue features a 41-foot granite bar leftover from when Cellardoor winery occupied the space.

Parrott-Wolfe said Rwanda Bean has shrunk its operation to roasting coffee in the back corner of the space, which will be separated by a dividing wall from Leisure Time.

Leisure Time will offer 8-10 draft cocktails and a variety of freezer cocktails. Parrott-Wolfe explained that the hard chill makes the freezer drinks more viscous, creating a “velvety mouthfeel.”

“It kind of pours like syrup because it’s that much denser at that chilled temperature,” he said.

Leisure Time will have lunch and dinner service, with dishes including pierogies and hand-cased sausages from Chef Emma Reed. “Pierogies and dumplings in general are such good bar food,” Parrott-Wolfe said. “Going from a snack to making that a full meal is pretty easy.”

Parrott-Wolfe said he expects “realistically” for Leisure Time to open by April. He added that he hopes later in 2024, Leisure Time will be in a position to add a distillery and production facility, possibly at a location in Biddeford.

BARD EXPANDING

Bard Coffee is set to nearly double its square footage next year by expanding into an adjacent space on Middle Street in Portland.

Bard General Manager Kevin Gaspardi said the coffee shop has leased the space next door at 185 Middle St., which formerly housed the electronics repair shop, IFix Here. Bard currently has a 1,900-square-foot shop, and the new room would add about 1,600 square feet.

Gaspardi said Bard can now seat about 26 customers, estimating that the added space will allow room for up to 30 percent more seating. The expansion will also allow Bard to add pour-over coffees to its repertoire, and to create teaching areas for coffee-making workshops.

The Bard team hopes to open the expanded shop by Memorial Day. “We’re hoping not to have to close (because of construction), but if we do, we have a Bard trailer,” Gaspardi said. “Maybe the city will let us put it out front while we’re shut down to keep our people working. We’ve already promised our people that if we closed, they wouldn’t be out of work, we would still pay them.”

BOARD GAME BAR OPENING NEXT SUMMER

Another Round, a bar and cafe specializing in board games, plans to launch on Congress Street in Portland next summer.

“Another Round is going to be Portland Maine’s first and – hopefully for a little while – only board game bar and cafe,” owner Harry Sultan said. He noted that the board game bar concept has been popular in other markets, like New York City where Hex & Company and The Uncommons have proven successful. Portland is also home to Arcadia on Congress Street, a bar featuring arcade games and pinball along with board games.

“We’ll be open five days a week to entertain people who want to play board games at any hour of the day. But if you are interested in a specialty crafted cup of coffee or sampling some of Maine’s incredible beer scene, everyone will find something for them at Another Round,” Sultan said.

Another Round will have as many as 300 board games in its library, ranging from familiar ones like chess, checkers and Monopoly to “more crunchy, new-age, European-style games” like Wingspan and Ticket to Ride, Sultan said.

The 1,400-square-foot space at 549 Congress St. where Another Round is to open has room for about 40 seats. The venue had previously been office space for Portland Downtown.

“We’re pretty much gutting it and starting from scratch to make a place that is able to fit a bar and couches and tables, three different gender-neutral bathrooms and some back-of-house space as well,” Sultan said.

Another Round will offer six to eight rotating beers on tap, along with various canned and bottled beers, wine and a couple of house specialty cocktails. The cafe menu will feature coffee sourced from local roasters as well as from Coffee Project New York, an independent, women-owned wholesale group.

Sultan said he hopes to partner with local eateries so Another Round can offer a menu of baked goods and sandwiches, along with artisanal grilled cheese sandwiches made in-house on a panini press. He said he aims to open by June.

“Already we’ve seen a pretty nice reaction,” Sultan said. “I think a place like this is something that Portland certainly needs. A place where people can come together over an activity as fun and easy and approachable as a board game.”

MORE AWARDS FOR CHOCOLATS PASSION

Esteemed Portland chocolatiers Chocolats Passion recently won six medals from the Academy of Chocolate in London, the world’s top international annual competition.

Chocolats Passion won a gold medal for their Yuzu Nougat, the first gold the store has ever received in the academy competition. They also pulled in four silver medals for Blueberry Corn, Passion Fruit Vanilla, Prickly Pear Mango and Peppermint Crunch, along with a bronze medal for Lime Habanero Cashew.

Chocolats Passion was one of just six U.S.-based chocolatiers to win medals from the academy this month. And in the 2022 Academy of Chocolate awards, of 10 awards given to American chocolatiers, Chocolats Passion won five: two silver medals and three bronze.

With the latest medals, Chocolats Passion has racked up almost 20 awards in both U.S.-based and international competitions over the last four years. The shop moved at the start of December from Brackett Street to its new home at 175 Spring St., in the former Mercy Hospital building.

LAST-MINUTE HOLIDAY GIFTS

A few places to grab gifts for your favorite foodies:

Maine-made tea towels from Eat, Drink, Lucky have again been touted by former Gourmet magazine editor Ruth Reichl in her holiday gift guide. The towel-of-the-month subscription features towels designed by 11 Maine-based female artists. Available online in full-year or quarterly subscriptions, $98-$317.

Masala chai spiced nuts from Pastry Chef Georgia Macon and her team at Twelve in Portland (a 16-ounce jar of spiced almonds, pecans, cashews and hazelnuts for $27). Order online and pickup Dec. 22 and 23.

Chocolate subscriptions from Dean’s Sweets. Dean’s offers three-, six-, and 12-month subscriptions ($135-$495). To celebrate their coming 20th anniversary in 2024, Dean’s subscription boxes will each contain some brand-new chocolate flavors and styles. Dean’s is also offering four seasonal subscription boxes for $245. Order online.

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