Smoked Portland opened Monday on Forest Avenue, in the space of the former Maelily & Ryleigh’s brunch restaurant.

The 3,000-square-foot venue seats about 65 inside, with more seating outdoors. Smoked Portland is owned by Michael Harris, who also owns Smoked Windham.

Harris said he announced the launch with a post on Facebook Monday, aiming to make it a soft opening so his staff would have a chance to get up to speed.

“We were trying to keep it kind of quiet,” Harris said. “We wanted to make sure the staff was fully trained, but people have been waiting for this location to open for a while. We wound up with a full house and a line out the door for most of the day, and it went great.”

Like at the Windham location, Smoked Portland’s menu features house-smoked meats, pasta dishes, wraps, sliders, burgers, tacos, salads and sandwiches, along with wings and an assortment of pub-fare starters.

Harris said the restaurant will start to offer takeout and delivery in the near future once staffers have their dine-in routines down. “We just don’t want to overwhelm the staff,” he said. “If we push it too hard, we won’t be able to give the customers the quality we’re hoping to.”

Smoked Portland is open seven days from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.

SOUTHERN-STYLE EATERY IN CAMDEN NEARS OPENING DATE

An Atlanta chef and restaurateur aims to launch Buttermilk Kitchen at Marriner’s by the end of April in the space of the former Marriner’s Restaurant in Camden.

Suzanne Vizethann, chef-owner of Buttermilk Kitchen in Atlanta’s upscale Buckhead neighborhood, bought the 82-year-old restaurant from Dan and Becki Gabriele last December. The Gabrieles had owned Marriner’s for 41 years.

The 1,400-square foot venue can seat 54 customers inside, with another 12-15 outside in warm weather. Vizethann added a nine-seat breakfast counter with an espresso bar.

Vizethann said new menu items include a fried chicken biscuit, featuring sweet tea-brined fried chicken with house-made red pepper jelly. The menu will also include hot chicken and grits, and biscuits and pork gravy made with Maine sausage.

Lunch items will include fried haddock sandwiches on potato buns, lobster rolls, BLTs, seasonal soups and chowder. Both breakfast and lunch menus will be offered all day, with entree prices ranging from $13-$18.

“People seem very excited about grits,” Vizethann said. “Probably the number one question I get asked is if we’ll have biscuits and gravy. They seem very excited about Southern food, and something new and different.”

Buttermilk Kitchen at Marriner’s will be open weekdays except Tuesdays from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

BUZZ COFFEE GETS NEW OWNERS

The owners of Coastal Creamery have purchased Old Port’s Buzz Coffee, and plan to relaunch the venue this spring.

Original owner Corey Koch first opened Buzz Coffee on Exchange Street in late 2021, and closed the small 900-square-foot-cafe last December. Coastal Creamery co-owner Kevin Ward said he expects to reopen the venue mid-May.

“We love what Corey started with at Buzz, so everything is going to stay kind of the same,” Ward said, noting that the new iteration of Buzz will introduce some breakfast sandwich menu items and expand operating hours to seven days a week.

The cozy cafe seats about eight customers now. Ward said they may add a couple of seats, along with some more counterspace for customers to use.

Kevin and Hayley Ward opened Coastal Creamery on Commercial Street last spring. “We just think this is a good opportunity for us to expand our presence throughout the city,” Ward said.

KNIGHTVILLE’S FOULMOUTHED BREWING CLOSING

Foulmouthed Brewing in South Portland is to close at the end of the month. An as-yet-unnamed brewery has bought the business and will take over Foulmouthed’s Knightville home.

A post on social media described the buyer as a “new, independent brewery with plenty of experience working within the industry here in Maine.”

“We faced the challenges every business has since the pandemic,” said co-owner Julia Dilger, reached on phone last Friday. “It’s just been hard. Staffing coming back from the pandemic has always been hard, and (customers) have been tentative to come back in the winter, understandably. Everyone’s still a little cautious, health-wise.

“Someone was interested in buying the place and we made the decision that, yes, it feels like the right time,” Dilger added.

Julia and Craig Dilger, who started off as enthusiastic home brewers, opened Foulmouthed in 2016 in a former auto garage on Ocean Street not far from the Casco Bay Bridge. On social media, the couple wrote that they were proud of transforming “a dilapidated old building into the thriving business and brand that we created together with the help of our staff, friends, and customers.”

The brewpub’s last day of service will be on April 28.

Alongside its frequently changing beer choices and beer cocktails, Foulmouthed has offered a menu of well-made burgers, sandwiches and other pub food like poutine, wings and soft pretzels. In the years that the brewpub has been open, the neighborhood has changed considerably, and become something of a foodie destination. The nearby Judy Gibson restaurant and Solo Cucina market, though, both closed recently as well.

“We’re really excited for who’s coming in,” said Dilger, adding that she expects the new owners will announce their plans after the May sale closing. “We think they’re going to do a great job and be an awesome asset to the Knightville neighborhood.”

TRUDY BIRD’S TO CLOSE IN NORTH YARMOUTH

After just 16 months in business, Scandinavian-style restaurant and bar Trudy Bird’s Ølbar in North Yarmouth announced recently on social media that it would be closing.

“In an effort to try and provide the best dining experience in an updated, refined setting we ran into cost and time overruns that have proven to be too difficult to overcome,” owners and twin brothers Jonathan and Alan Hines wrote in posts last week on Instagram and Facebook.

The owners did not say exactly when the restaurant will close. “As of right now, the future of Trudy Birds is unclear but we will continue to operate as normal and keep making memories until the sale of the building,” the post stated.

The Hines brothers launched Trudy Bird’s in December 2022 in the former Stones Cafe property at 424 Walnut Hill Road. They said a two-week 2017 trip to Scandinavia inspired them to open the restaurant.

The restaurant specializes in Danish open-faced sandwiches, or smørrebrød, while the bar features 20 beers on draft, several ciders and seven types of the Scandinavian spirit aquavit, including house-made versions. Trudy Bird’s aimed to use smørrebrød to also feature local Maine ingredients and Americana fusions.

The owners could not be reached for additional details.

YARMOUTH FARMERS MARKET KICKS OFF IN MAY

The Yarmouth Farmers Market returns for the 2024 season on May 2.

The market will be held from 3 to 6 p.m. at the Bickford Pavilion at 1 Railroad Square, and run weekly on Thursdays through October. This year’s market features 15 seasonal vendors: Alchimia, Andrews Farm, Artascope, Bread & Blossom, Chef Paul, ChiGoBee Farm, Counterpoint Bread, Empanada Club, Liberation Farms, The Milk Bottle, Mindful Folk Farm, Niyat Catering, Noisy Acres Farm, Still Brook Acres and Tender Soles Farm.

Magno Terra will sell hot paninis throughout the season, while the market’s rotating roster of food trucks includes Bowlicious, Snöbirds Shave Ice and Snowology 207. Teaching artists, students and community members from 317 Main Community Music Center are slated to perform for marketgoers every week from 4-5 p.m.

Food vouchers worth $25 are available at the information booth to Yarmouth residents experiencing food insecurity, and the market is also accepting vouchers from the Maine Federation of Farmers’ Markets’ Bumper Crop Program.

COFFEE PRODUCERS TO DISCUSS SUSTAINABILITY AND JUSTICE

Coffee By Design is hosting a panel discussion Wednesday evening, featuring African coffee producers, who will talk about economic justice and sustainability in their industry.

The panelists are Kenneth Barigye of Mountain Harvest Limited, based in Uganda; Nico Herr, also from Mountain Harvest; Heleanna Georgalis of Moplaco Trading in Ethiopia; and Alexandre Mugisha of Kalico Coffee in Burundi. Kathleen Pierce, director of member experience for HospitalityMaine, will moderate the discussion.

“Sustainability is not just about climate change, it is about economic justice,” Mary Allen Lindemann, Coffee By Design’s owner and chief creative director said in a release. “If we want to continue to drink quality coffee, we have to be willing to pay a fair price. For the many people who drink coffee daily, this is a unique opportunity to learn more about where that money goes, and the impact it has on communities all the way across the globe.”

The event is free and open to the public and will be held in Coffee By Design’s roastery at 1 Diamond St. from 5-6:30 p.m., with the discussion starting at 5:30 p.m.

FISHERMEN’S ASSOCIATION SECURES $750,000 FUNDING

The Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association charitable meal program, Fishermen Feeding Mainers, will receive $750,000 in federal funding to bolster their efforts over the coming year.

The program began in October 2020 in response to the collapse of local markets and rising food insecurity in Maine. The association purchases fish directly from Maine fishermen, which is then processed locally, donated to the Good Shepherd Food Bank, and distributed to food pantries, meal sites, schools and other community organizations.

This spring, Fishermen Feeding Mainers celebrated a milestone of having provided over 1 million meals to more than 250 food pantries and 30 school districts from Kittery to Fort Kent.

“The Fishermen Feeding Mainers program supports fishermen by helping them supply food banks with locally caught seafood,” Sen. Susan Collins was quoted as saying in a news release. She submitted the appropriations request, along with Sen. Angus King. “This funding will assist the Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association and their partners in their efforts to support Maine’s fishermen, working waterfronts, and blue economy while supplying fresh, healthy seafood to those in need.”

BLACK POINT INN NAMES NEW CHEF

A chef with experience at Michelin-starred restaurants is taking over as executive chef at Scarborough’s Black Point Inn in May.

Michael Bergin will debut his new menu for the inn’s restaurant, The Chart Room, on May 10, according to a release from the inn.

“I am thrilled to have found a home at Black Point Inn and to have the opportunity to cook for my Scarborough neighbors and visitors to the inn,” Bergin said. “Drawing inspiration from my Italian roots and culinary experiences, I look forward to creating memorable dining experiences that celebrate the flavors of Maine.”

A Massachusetts native who has lived in Maine since 2020, Bergin worked as sous chef in two former Michelin-starred restaurant in New York City, A Voce and Del Posto. He also worked at multiple acclaimed Boston restaurants, including Ken Oringer and Jamie Bissonnette’s Coppa, The Fat Hen and The Salty Pig.

TEN TO COMPETE IN WESTBROOK-GORHAM PIZZA COOK-OFF 

The second annual Westbrook-Gorham Rotary Club Pizza Challenge is set for Thursday at the Westbrook Community Center gym.

Ten local pizzerias will be competing for awards in categories including Best Overall Pizza, Most Creative Pizza, and the People’s Choice Award. The judging panel includes Cumberland County Sheriff Kevin Joyce, along with representatives from Maine media outlets.

The event is scheduled from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m., with award winners announced at 6:30, along with a raffle drawing for two JetBlue round-trip tickets to any of the airline’s destinations. Tickets are $12 for adults, $5 for children under 12, and kids 5 and under are free.

Ticket holders can eat their fill of pizza at the event, plus available desserts, while other attractions include music from a DJ, mini-massages, face-painting, cornhole, caricatures and other games for kids. Event proceeds will help fund the Westbrook-Gorham Rotary Club’s charitable programs, including literacy, homelessness, and food-insecurity community initiatives, as well as youth scholarships.

Editor Peggy Grodinsky contributed to this story.

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