Instead of giving each other gifts for Valentine's this year, Otis and I decided to go out for a fancy dinner together, and when we received the flyer advertising a Shelton Brothers Beer Dinner at Hugo's, it was obvious we should sign up.

March 11 was an unseasonably warm day, especially coming on the heels of a wicked cold snap that was making me wicked cranky. And, since we anticipated drinking a fair amount of beer, and are responsible citizens who don't drink and drive, we walked from the West End to Hugo's, spending the twenty minutes or so anticipating our dinner, and pondering whether it would be a really reasonable way to spend 200+ dollars.

It turns out, it is possible to experience a meal as simultaneously incredibly expensive, and yet a good deal. This meal was advertised as a six-courser, with paired beers that would compliment the food. We ended up with nine courses, including intermezzos, and nine beers. Even better, one of the Shelton brothers, Will, was present to narrate and embellish on each of the incredible beers, most of which were so outside the mundane norm that I'm not really sure if I even have the vocabulary to describe them.

Luckily, Will had the vocab, plus a droll delivery that complemented his eccentric bald head and geekish obsession with the minutia of each beer's provenance and specifications. He was a charming guy with an obvious love for his work, and a great sense of humor. Interestingly, he is a vegan who couldn't eat any of the normal courses presented. Of course the Hugo's folks created special dishes for him, which he said were delicious. I do find it hard to believe they were as tasty as what we had, though. Since I'm being fairly long-winded I'm going to use the extended entry field, so click the link below to hear about the details of the meal.

It's hard to believe it now that it's grey and rainy again, but last Friday it was 97 degrees in Portland. In May. In Maine. I'm going to refrain from any discussion of climate change... but boy howdy, I can't say I've ever experienced that before!

After I met my dear friend Kirsten for a drink, Otis and I rendezvoused at Caiola's for our first night on their patio. Caiola's is a beautiful, calming oasis of yumminess on Pine Street, where you are pretty much always guaranteed a fabulous meal along with impeccable service.

Last Friday they had one of my favorite drinks on the menu: the lemon drop. When made correctly, these taste just like a tangy glass of lemonade...not too sweet, not too sour. These were perfect: full of fresh-squeezed lemon juice, and just enough vodka to make them effective.

Lemon Drops always make me think of my friend Sarah, with whom I've consumed many.

I highly recommend that you make a pitcher of these for your next barbecue. Your guests will thank you.

Lemon Drop

1 1/2 oz vodka (Citron if you have it, otherwise plain is OK)
1 t sugar
Juice of 1/2-1 lemon (depending on how juicy it is!)

Add all ingredients to shaker over cracked ice. Shake vigorously. Pour into chilled martini glass. You may garnish with a sugar rim and either a twist or a wedge of lemon.

(and my advice? drink it FAST.)

Last night Otis and I went out to celebrate his pre-birthday. It had been a hot-as-hell day, already cooling somewhat, as we walked over to Caiola's. We're awfully lucky to have such a stellar restaurant right around the corner, especially when you factor in the gorgeous patio.

We started with the most unusual appetizer-- a salad of figs, raspberries, gorgonzola, and fennel. All four ingredients have strong, even overwhelming flavors, but together they really harmonized. The plate was lovely as well:

After that, I had mushroom risotto with red wine reduction, and Otis had blackfish with clams in a nice brothy sauce (I think I would call it a brodo, but maybe I would be being pretentious) and barley and herbs.

On the way over we discussed the ridiculousness of the opening of Bonobo Pizza being delayed because the city decided at the last minute that they need an additional hand sink. Because if there are two people working there who dirty their hands at the same time, one certainly can't wait
five minutes for the first to finish washing. Ah, our tax dollars at work.

In other restaurant gossip, Local 188 is re-opening Wednesday! With Caiola's, Bobobo, OhNo, Aurora, Local, my goodness, it's really an embarrassment of riches over here.

Anyway. I wonder if mushroom risotto would be good for breakfast? I'm really hungry and Otis will probably be asleep for a while...

For Otis's birthday on Saturday we ended up going out for pizza to Flatbread. As usual, the pizza was delicious, but as usual, the service was hideous. It always makes me slightly tense to be there, partly because it reminds me of waitressing and how there was always one other waitress who just completely didn't get it. At Flatbread, the entire staff is utterly clueless. This is how I imagine their interview process:

Q. Are you a hippie?

Q. Do you seem somewhat stoned all the time?

Q. Do you promise to forget at least one person's drink, preferably the crying baby's milk, plus possibly the birthday celebrant's beer?

Q. Do you like to disappear partly through service?

Q. Are you physically incapable of hurrying or speaking quickly?

Congratulations! You are hired! Only people who answer yes to the previous five questions are incompetent enough to be hired in service roles at Flatbread!

The funny thing is, the people who actually make the pizza seem to be fairly together. Although in truth one of our four pies had to be remade because they dropped it, or burnt it, or something.

But they were all delicious!

We tried La Familia earlier this month (or is that last month?) with Ron and Diane... very disappointing, awfully overpriced. The little cups of chicken soup served as an appetizer tasted like Goya packets; my rice and peas was bland and also seemed packet-made; Otis's Cubano was pretty small. It also took a realllly loooong tiiiiiiime to get our food. Which was fine, since we were having a grand time chatting, but not what you look for in a family-style Latino restaurant.

Next up, we're going to check out Viet Bangkok, the new Vietnamese/Thai place on St. John. Not because we need another Thai place in this town (Pom's opening on Forest, I think there's another one opening on Congress), but because Pho is the food of the gods. I'll report back. (I loved the Pho at Bottomz Up and was heartbroken when it closed due to excessive violence. Of course the atmosphere wasn't great, but good soup will make me forgive much.)

Otherwise we really haven't been doing a whole heck of a lot of eating out; too many vegetables to be responsible for.

On Friday I went out for drinks after work with a couple of work friends to Local 188 on Congress Street. We had a grand time, sitting at the bar and chatting about life. I was drinking a lovely red wine, Perquita I think that's how you spell it), and we had a few tapas as well.

A note about Local. Prior to their move to their new location this summer, we went there very frequently, often for brunch on the weekends. Then, during their closure over the summer, we got out of the habit. And after the reopening, a few friends of ours had horrible experiences-- mostly in the service arena. I always loved the waitstaff at the old location. They were sometimes sort of out of it, but always really sweet and thoughtful. Unfortunately, our reporters (who shall remain anonymous for their own protection) told us that their experiences involved extreme bitchiness, long waits, and, on one occasion, complete lack of food. (Evidently the waitress never put in the order.) As a result of these stories, we've been a bit reluctant to dine at the new location. Then, we tried to go for dinner a couple of weeks ago, and it was closed for a private party.

I have been to the bar on a few occasions, through. It's a gorgeous space, and really lovely to sit in.

Anyway, the original plan for Friday was for me to have a few drinks with my friends, and then pick up some thai food on my way home for Otis. However, the Dreaded Lazy Wine Drunk&trade: struck and I found myself still at Local with Monique, still sitting at the bar, and still chatting. So instead of trying to get my shit together, I just called Otis and had him meet us at the restaurant.

I should interject here that our bartenders were absolutely lovely. The first one, a woman who looked awfully familiar (maybe she also/used to work at the White Heart?) was very attentive, and thoughtful-- when Monique said she was very hungry, even though the kitchen wasn't open yet, she scrounged up a dollop of olive tapenade and some bread. Later, our second bartender, a man with very impressive mustaches (think Daniel Day-Lewis in Gangs of New York), was also great.

Before Otis arrived we had some tapas. Did I mention that already? If this post seems disjointed, it's because the three glasses of wine I had really went to my head, so my memories of the evening are somewhat disjointed as well. The combination of the wine and not enough food turned out really badly for me.

So. Tapas. Shrimp in garlic, and chourico. Both dishes were delicious, although I would like to complain that the shrimp, instead of the lovely little sweet Maine shrimp we used to get at the old Local, were big 'ol prawns. Still delicious, but I think the little ones are superior for soaking up the buttery garlic sauce. The chourico was perfect. The bread and olive tapenade I mentioned earlier was tasty, although the bread was not as good as the pile of shredded bread they used to give you-- this had a much more tender crumb and less body.

Then for dinner, I made the cardinal sin of not ordering enough food. I got a spinach salad, which was delicious, with calabrese chese and nuts... but it wasn't enough to soak up the wine, and I woke up at 5 in the morning with a hideous headache.

Those who did order enough had a very tasty meal; Otis loved his penne with romesco sauce, and Monique's roast chicken with white beans looked and smelled divine. She loved it.

All in all, it was a fun evening, and I'm once again jazzed on Local. But next time: more food, l less wine.

Jeez louise, I have been the The Worst Blogger Ever™ lately. In my defense, there were a few family health issues (everyone is fine) and then , suddenly, it was the end of the semester. I try to avoid talking about Real Life in here, under the theory that nobody cares, but I am going to marshal the fact that I work full time and take 10 credits in law school as an excuse for poor blog maintenance. Happily, finals are over (pray for As, everyone!) and I have a little bit more time on my hands. Just a tiny bit, though, because I have to go to work today and then jet out to the Old Port to do some horrifically belated Christmas shopping-- I am leaving tomorrow morning for the holiday trip.

So, although I haven't been writing, I have certainly been eating. Here are a few short takes from the last month and a half.

Japanese Overview

Like Thai restaurants, Portland is 'blessed' with an overabundance of Japanese/sushi restaurants. (Note: these are not necessarily synonymous, although here they seem to be.) These include Miyake, Yosaku, Sapporo, Fuji, Benkay, King of the Roll, and Ginza Town. All of these places have specific strengths and weaknesses (with the exception of Fuji, which has only weaknesses), but for the freshest, most unique uses of 'special' fish, I consistently vote for Benkay. When Otis's parents were here in November, they took us out for a delicious dinner there. We had some incredible toro; delicious tuna; and a few really unusual fish I had never had before. I especially love the appetizer they make with their freshest fish and a soy/yuzu sauce. I've only had noodles from Miyake, once, and I wasn't that impressed, but I have been hearing lately that their sushi and sashimi is phenomenal. Evidently the chef came from Yosaku. Oh, Yosaku. It used to be fabulous but the horrible service and intermittently low quality of their fish (there's no excuse for mushy tuna) have made me resolve never to go there again. King of the Roll is fun-- don't go there for the best fish, but go for the deep-fried tempura-battered spicy tuna roll with wasabi sauce. Mmmm. Be prepared for incompetent waitservice, though, which can sometimes be amusing and sometimes make you want to pull your hair out. Ginza Town is 'eh.' If I were French I would shrug my shoulders eloquently. Sapporo is very good but I never feel thrilled with a meal I have there.

So, soon we'll be checking out Miyake. But in the meantime if I want great sashimi I'll go to Benkay and ask what's fresh.

The Eternal Dinner Made Short

Those of you who have been reading my blog for a while may remember the Eternal Dinner: a Puerto-Rican style chicken and rice dish Otis made from the New World Kitchen cookbook by Norman Van Aken, which took hours and hours to prepare. Well, I was craving those deliciously complex flavors, so I set out to simplify the dish. It came out incredibly well, and only took about an hour. Here you go:

Marya's Stewed Pork and Rice, Van Aken Style

Ingredients:
Pinch Saffron
About 6 Cups chicken stock (we use Imagine foods organic when we don't have homemade)
About 1 T each dried oregano, cumin
S&P
Annatto oil (if you have it. Since the eternal dinner, we usually do have some prepared.)
2 lbs pork chops, cut into large cubes
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 head garlic, chopped
1 bay leaf
2 cups white rice (long grain)
1 1/4 cups grated parmesan
1/2 large can chopped tomatoes (we use Muir Glen fire-roasted)
1/4 cup capers
1 cup green olives with pimentos, roughly chopped
1 small bag frozen peas

1. Heat the annatto oil on medium in a large Dutch oven, and add the garlic and onion, cumin, oregano, s&p, bay leaf. Saute for a bit, and add the pork. Get it brown on the outside.

2. Add the rice and mix well.

3. Add the saffron and chicken broth. Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to low.

4. Cook for about 10 minutes. Add more stock if it seems low.

5. Add the parmesan, tomatoes, capers, and olives. Stir well. Cook over low for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally and adding more stock if necessary, until rice is tender. (You'll want to make sure the pork is cooked through too, obviously.)

6. Add the peas, stir.

7. Serve, with an array of hot sauces. Cholula goes especially well.

That's it! Now, isn't that easy?

I hereby make a vow that I will be a better blogger in the future. We're going to Fore Street soon, so I will report back on that. And of course, the holiday meals...oysters rockefeller, baked bread, ham, pierogis, etc....I can't wait.

Since we weren't here over the weekend we ended up eating out a ton of meals this week. My friend Sarah was also here on Friday night, so we did a little wandering of the town.

Thanh Thanh 2
First, I should mention that I had lunch at Thanh Thanh 2 for the second time this week, and I continue to be favorably impressed. My first meal there was Bun-- thin rice noodles with grilled shrimp and fried spring rolls. It's served with nuoc cham, the fish-sauce based dipping sauce that's ubiquitous in Vietnamese cuisine. The rolls we crispy and delicious, and the meal was overall lovely. This past visit I had the mixed salad, which is a mix of shredded cabbage and onion, shredded chicken, and grilled shrimp, served with a few of those funny rice cracker things. This, too, was delicious-- light and zesty, with a lemony dressing. My friend Alysia (who I was lunching with) tells me it's her favorite.

Empire Dine + Dance

I really wanted to like Empire, but when Otis, Sarah, and I walked in on Friday night, something immediately felt off. The space feels cavernous, and there's no decor at all to soften the feel. The tables are widely spaced, and the chairs are uncomfortable wooden models you'd expect to see at someone's camp. When we sat down, we intended to have dinner, but a glance at the menu convinced us otherwise. It was an odd assortment of dishes-- quite a few burgers, but then everything else seemed sort of randomly thrown on there: tortellini, mango quesadillas, fried chicken wings... we decided to have a beer and assess further.

While we drank our beers (they do have a nice array of beers on tap-- nothing too unique but certainly a good selection) the people sitting next to us received their food. It looked unappetizing, honestly. I feel a bit bad saying this, especially because the owners were there and seemed like really nice guys, but unless they get their act together I don't have a good feeling about their long-term success. They need to find a theme for their food and stick with it-- especially because the prices were too high for strict bar fare.

Pom's Thai Taste
Pom's on the other hand, is ready to kick ass in the Thai restaurant wars brewing in Portland. We walked there after leaving Empire, and were immediately impressed with the space. It's very open and light feeling, with modernistic white tables, chairs, and light fixtures. As we were leaving, Pom, the owner, stopped by to ask how we enjoyed our meal, and she told us Ikea was her inspiration for the decor. You can tell, but it's not a bad thing-- it's actually a very comfortable.

The menus, on the other hand, were insane. If you've ever watched Gordon Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares you'll know that he's always obsessing about how too many restaurants have these excessively long menus. Well, Pom's takes the cake. Not only is the menu ridiculously long (which is par for the course for a lot of Thai places), but it's presented in a photo album style with photos of each dish-- the album is about 3 inches thick! It's a little much.

However, we soldiered through and ordered. We shared veggie dumplings to start-- these have chives inside them, and I didn't like them much. I wouldn't necessarily hold too much stock in that, however-- I've had them other places and didn't like them. I think the combination of pillowy dough and limp chives is just not my thing. I gave most of mine to Otis. For his entree, he got Pad See-Ew with duck. He said it was delicious, and he was especially favorably impressed with the amount of duck.

Sarah and I each got "kuay-teow", which is an al la carte noodle soup which was fantastic. You can choose a variety of rice noodle sizes, bean thread noodles (woon sen, my favorite, which is what I ordered), or rice; a variety of meats (I got ground chicken), seafoods, or tofu and veggies (that's what Sarah ordered); and a type of broth-- clear chicken, five-spice, veggie, or tom yum (both of us ordered Tom Yum. Yum.). Then, you may opt for the addition of ground peanuts, and choose how spicy your broth should be. The soup also comes with bean sprouts, lettuce, scallion, cilantro, and garlic oil.

This noodle dish was so damn incredibly tasty that I think I could literally eat it every day. The tom yum broth was perfectly balanced, and 4 stars (the spiciest on their scale) was actually perfectly spicy. I love bean thread noodles, which are actually made out of ground mung beans instead of flour, but rarely find that they are an option in soup. The ground chicken was perfect in the soup as well, although I was a little jealous of Sarah's array of veg, which included snow peas and bok choy.

Overall our experience at Pom's was outstanding. Pom herself was very friendly and seemed honestly interested in our feedback-- and I can see that there's a reason this is the third restaurant she's opened in the Portland area. (The other two are in South Portland, one on Cottage Road on the way to Cape Elizabeth, and the other by the mall.) She mentioned she's been busy for lunch but not as much during dinner. Hopefully she'll be successful and stay there for a long time, since I have the feeling that I'm going to be going there for a tom yum fix fairly frequently.

And, what's even better? Pom's delivers.

Otis and I took an extra day off MLK weekend and jetted off to San Francisco. It's was a fairly long trip for such a short visit, but due to our schedules (school started for me on Jan 22) it was really the only viable time we could go; plus, my mom was visiting at the same time, and it turned into a big family weekend.

My grandfather, Moe Haber, lives in SF, in the Jewish Home for the Aged. He just turned 93, and I hadn't seen him in 2 and a half years. (The actual birthdate is a matter of some internal family debate, since he always said his birthday was Dec 25. It now seems that was a dramatization, and his real birthday is Dec 29. Part of this also stemmed from the fact that his parents were named Mary and Josef. He is a character.)

So, we flew out of Boston early Friday morning (6:10) and had a whirlwind weekend visiting the city and my family. We had gorgeous, sunny weather, and had the chance to see my grandpa, my cousins Leila and Damon and their respective spouses and adorable children, my uncle Merrill and aunt Nancy, and my mom. We also got to visit Otis's old high school friend Seton, his wife Patty, and their adorable little toddler Eva.

Part of what makes spending time with my family amusing is the constant food-related talk. (Hey, I come by it honestly!!) This is a group of people who plan their dinner while eating breakfast. We basically arrived, went to visit my grandpa in the home, and then went out to dim sum, without a pause.

So, there was a lot of delicious food to report on:

- Friday dim sum at Mayflower Seafood
- Friday dinner at my cousin Leila's house, which featured a delicious warm shrimp salad which was prepared from a recipe Merrill and Nancy learned at a cooking school during their recent trip to Vietnam
- Irish breakfast at O'Reilly's in North Beach
- Burritos at a restaurant in Alameda with Seton (I forget the name of this one, I'll have to check with Otis!)
- Pastry and coffee at Caffe Trieste
- Sunday brunch with bagels, lox, some insanely cheesy hash brown casserole, and mimosas at Leila's house
- Dinner at Cafe de la Presse

I think that's it! A lot of food in one short weekend! It was a wonderful time, and if I have a chance I will post restaurant reviews. And, as a special treat, here is the warm salad recipe from Vietnam. The recipe calls for squid, but you can make it with anything, really.

Also, there are comments written on my copy by my uncle Merrill... but I can't read them, his handwriting is so bad. Hopefully there's nothing important! (This recipe is from the Red Bridge Cooking School in Hoi An, Vietnam. If you're ever there, it sounds like a fabulous day of cooking and eating!)

Warm Squid Salad in Half a Pineapple

100 grams sliced squid
2 t vegetable oil
1 t garlic, chopped
1 t ginger, chopped
1/2 t sugar
1 t light fish sauce
1 T tomato puree or tomato sauce
1 T sweet and sour chilli sauce (recipe below)
1/2 cup chopped hot pepper
1/2 cup chopped pineapple
1/2 cup chopped tomato
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 T water
Few pieces cilantro

Add vegetable oil to wok with ginger and garlic. Add squid, fish sauce, and sugar, and stirfry 1 min. Add vegetables and tomato puree, and stirfry 3 minutes. Add water. Serve in hollowed-out pineapple sauce and top with cilantro and hot pepper.

Sweet & Sour Chilli Sauce

1 T water
1/2 t sour chilli sauce (super sour sriracha is probably what they mean here)
1/2 t tomato puree
1/2 T finely chopped white onion
1/2 T finely chopped pineapple
1/2 T finely chopped tomato
1/2 t crushed ginger
1/2 t veg oil

Heat oil in wok and add all ingredients except water, sour chilli, and tomato puree. Fry for a few seconds, then add reserved ingredients. Bring to simmer, simmer until cooked.

On our last visit to Empire Dine + Dance, we were so squicked out by the odd atmosphere and random menu that we didn't even stay for a meal.

But last Friday in the midst of the sleet/rain/storm Spence and Shea called to invite us to join them, and adorable 2-year-old Sasha, for a meal. We intrepid travelers made the long trek 5 blocks down Congress st, figuring if a family with a toddler can make it out in such icky weather, so could we. (Plus, we were hungry and had just barely settled on ordering a pizza.)

Empire was surprisingly busy for such a stormy Friday. Spence and Shea and Sasha were tucked away on some couches around to the right, away from the main dining area. In general, the space at Empire does still feel a little 'off' to me-- but it's much nicer when it's filled up. There was an old-time/klezmer/bluegrass band playing, which also made the atmosphere feel a bit festive.

They've expanded the menu a bit, but it's still all over the place and a little overly ambitious. The portions are really mixed, too-- Spencer got the lasagna, which was an enormous slab of pasta and cheese, whereas my Jalapeño steak melt was a bit on the undersized side for $11. However, everything was fairly tasty-- the lasagna was basic but chock full of the things you want in lasagna (a.k.a. lots of cheese); Otis's blue cheese burger was pretty tasty if not especially juicy, even at medium rare; and my steak bomb had a nice spicy aioli and well-seasoned steak. I hated the roasted potatoes accompanying my sandwich (I had a choice of three sides, 2 involving potatoes, but not French fries, unfortunately)-- they were overwhelmingly covered with dried rosemary. However, both Otis and Sasha seemed to like them a lot. (I say 'seemed' because although Otis did say he liked them, Sasha just kept eating them without comment.)

All in all the food at Empire is fine. If you're out and about and want to grab a bite, you could find something pretty tasty at a pretty reasonable price. It's certainly nice to have more options on Congress, and I hear that the performance space upstairs is great (I missed a great show a couple of weeks ago-- Honey Clouds. Mea maxima culpa. I was asleep. This school-and-work thing is tiring.)

Next time: Marya and Otis venture into the wilds of Westbrook to drink smoked bloody marys and eat homemade donuts at the Frog and Turtle.

Evidently there's a whole subculture of people out there who love an early dinner. Now, I am not talking about people who have infants-- that's why we found ourselves at El Camino in Brunswick at 5:00-- we were meeting our friends who have a year-old baby. That makes sense-- the baby gets cranky after 6:30ish and it's time for her to go to bed, so of course our friends Cece and Jeff asked if we would mind an early meal.

No, I'm talking about the throngs of people who descended on El Camino at precisely the stroke of 5. We were there in the parking lot at about 5 minutes till, and were shocked hysterical by all of the people who showed up, waiting at the door for the restaurant to open. I have no idea why Otis and I both find this so funny.

Anyway, I realize this is beside the point when really you probably want to hear about the food, but it was seriously such a funny surprising thing I just can't get over it.

So, about El Camino.

The interior of the restaurant is really warm, painted southwestern colors with little colored lights everywhere. The tables are arrayed fairly close together, with booth seating on one side and chairs on the other. That was in our room, at least-- there were a few dining rooms in the sprawly-feeling space.

We started with drinks-- Otis enjoyed his margarita, I thought my 'limeade,' made with lime juice and coconut milk, was outstanding. It had just a touch of a salty flavor, and wasn't too sweet.

The food was quite tasty-- a reasonably delicious interpretation of Cali-Mex cuisine. Otis had tacos with chorizo and sweet potato; Cece had a salad with ancho-rubbed steak; I had a quesadilla with the same steak; and Jeff had the special enchiladas with chicken and a Mexi-BBQ sauce. (For those who are keeping track, Frieda, the baby, had beans and rice. She seemed to enjoy them.)

Everyone agreed that the food was good-- Jeff's enchilada, especially, was really yummy (he was nice enough to let me have a bite). My quesadilla was quite large, and nice and crispy on the outside without being greasy. The amount of cheese and meat was perfect, although the whole shebang was somewhat underseasoned. The most frustrating part of my meal, however, was that my dish came with literally a teaspoon each of crema and salsa. I would have asked for more, except the waitress never came back after she dropped our food, until it was time to clear our plates and give us the check.

This type of service is what I like to call hipster-indifferent. Like, "I am only working here because I am an artist, but really I am super duper hip, so if I feel like it I will be nice to you and maybe even get you stuff, but not because I'm obligated to you or anything." Seriously, if you're really to busy with the aforementioned throngs of early bird diners to stop for a split second and ask "how is everything?" you might want to consider a different line of work. The thing is, our waitress was friendly enough when she was around; she just didn't do her job.

I know I come off sounding fairly harsh about waitservice in a lot of my entries, but that's primarily because it was my business for quite a few years, and I've been there. I know what is required to serve a big section of hungry people who want, want, want. I know that sometimes you're just not in the mood, or you're hungover, or your mind is on how much you want to be somewhere--anywhere--else.

And you know what? I don't care. You don't have to be my best friend. You don't even have to smile. You just need to come by and ask my how my goddamned meal is and see if I want more salsa than the teaspoonful provided, or maybe another glass of limeade.

Whew! Now that I've gotten that off my chest, I feel much better.

Anyway, aside from the lame-ass service and slightly high prices (11 bucks for my quesadilla was a little bit on the high side, I thought), El Camino provided a delicious meal of a sort you really can't get anywhere else in Maine. I definitely recommend it. Just be prepared to leap out of your seat or trip the waitress or something if you want anything.

We had a wonderful weekend last weekend, as Otis's parents Jane and Walter came up for the Maine Boatbuilders Show, some delicious eating, and lovely conversation.

Friday night we went to Local 188 for fancy old-timey cocktails, and then headed over to Caiola's for dinner; as usual everything was delish (channeling Rachael Ray, sorry), especially our deep-fried sardine appetizer.

It's always nice to have Walter and Jane here, although they do tend to bring pretty crappy weather with them-- what's up with that?

Anyway, my fingers are sore from all the typing I've been doing on the big paper I have due Tuesday, so I hope everyone will forgive me for a short-but-sweet entry. Happy Easter!

There's nothing more pleasant than a leisurely summertime brunch outside, with a balmy breeze and good friends. That's why I was so excited that Caiola's opened for Sunday brunch beginning on May 11-- their patio, which is sheltered back behind their restaurant behind a high fence, is a wonderful oasis in the city.

Caiola's food is always creative and fun, and the Sunday brunch we enjoyed with friends Jenn, Matt, Trent and Rebecca was no exception. Jenn and Rebecca both had the special benedict, which had fresh English peas, fiddleheads, and crabmeat. Both of them came pretty close to clearing their plates, despite the quite large portions. Matt and Trent both were feeling burgerrific and had the cheeseburger, despite the fact that it was 9:00 a.m. I'm actually always extra happy when restaurants have lunch/dinner food available for breakfast. After all, the distinction is so completely arbitrary, there's really no reason not to have a burger for breakfast. Right?

Otis also had a lunchy meal-- an oyster po'boy sandwich, with homemade potato sticks (think French's) and cole slaw. He said it was delicious, despite (presumably) not being made with Wellfleet oysters.

I had the crispy tostada, which was delicious-- deep-fried corn tortillas smothered with a black bean/chorizo mixture and fried eggs, topped with pico de gallo and sour cream and with potatoes on the side. It was also served with a tomatillo relish that hit the spot. The flavor was delicious, and although it wasn't too spice the addition of some hot sauce fixed me right up. My only complaint was the minimal amount of chorizo-- I would have preferred either more pieces mixed in with my black beans, or even a nice link grilled up on the side. Nevertheless I loved it, and it probably didn't do me any harm to have a breakfast low in pork-fat content.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, all of my readers are saying... but what about the bloody mary??? It was quite tasty, with a nice flavor, although again it could have used a little more heat. Thanks be to hot sauce!

Edited to add the same info as I put in response to a comment below: Brunch is not too expensive, although not on the cheap end-- the entrees range from 8.95 on up. Our meal was $34, which included 2 bloody marys at about $8 per, one cup of coffee, and two entrees. The prices are about comparable to Local 188, Hot Suppa, or the Front Room, but less than Bintliffs and more than the Porthole.

Caiola's: 58 Pine Street, Portland ME. 207-772-1110.

Word is the folks behind the Foreside Tavern and Sidebar will be opening a new restaurant in the Chestnut Street Church. The plan is apparently to preserve the architectural features of the building, including the interior. I haven't heard whether there's a specific menu or culinary approach planned, but it seems the interior will feature an enormous bar. The restaurant will be called 'Grace.' Sounds like a really cool project. I love the fact that the owners realize that historical preservation and commerce can go hand in hand. Rock on Anne and Peter!

June 21 was our 5-year wedding anniversary, so we wanted to celebrate with a special dinner out. We'd been talking about checking out Bresca for a long time, because we had heard that it was fabulous-- but because it's so small, reservations are crucial, and planning ahead isn't always our forte.

Happily, we remembered to call and reserve about a month ahead of time. Even so, the only times available were 6:00 or 8:30. We opted for 6 under the theory that it would probably be a fairly leisurely meal and we could start with cocktails etc.

When we arrived, the space felt very inviting. It's tiny, true, but the decor is lovely and feels very homey. The staff is very friendly and welcoming. Otis had mentioned when he made the reservation that it was our anniversary, and so our server offered us complimentary sparkling wine, which was a nice touch.

After hearing about the specials we munched on some delicious crusty bread that we dipped in some fruity olive oil that was poured into our app plates. We opted for one of the special salads to start-- it had greens, speck, French beans, and asparagus spears in a light vinaigrette. It was absolutely delicious-- I consider it the high point of the meal.

For our entrees, we went in very different directions-- Otis went for the braised pig's feet, a dish which is an homage to Au Pied de Cochon, the famed Montreal restaurant. I opted for the fish special, salmon with citrus brown butter and lentils.

Both dishes were delicious, but perhaps a little overly rich. My salmon was perfectly cooked, with a tasty crispy skin and tender flesh, served on a bed of lentils. I didn't get a lot of citrus flavor from the brown butter, and overall the dish could really have used a little touch of acidity-- it had a slightly sweet undertone.

The braised pig's feet were delicious, but again, very rich and slightly sweet. As a first time pig's-foot-eater, Otis also felt a little frustrated at how little yield of meat there was on the plate.

Because of the richness and sweetness of the meal, neither one of us felt too much like dessert, which was too bad, since Bresca is renowned for its desserts.

Our meal at Bresca was, overall, quite delicious. If you detect a tone of disappointment in this entry, it's because it didn't quite live up to its reputation, I thought. We'll definitely give it another try some time-- everything really was quite delicious-- but Bresca won't be joining the frequent restaurant rotation.

We finally made it to the Green Elephant vegetarian restaurant on Congress Street last weekend-- and I wish we hadn't waited so long! It was an entirely pleasurable dining experience. The service was great, the ambiance lovely, and the food delicious. it definitely won't be long until we're back.

Because we were meeting friends, we planned on an early-ish dinner, and met at 6:30. After sitting down the waiter came over promptly and took our drink orders-- Otis and Andrew each had a beer from the fairly basic beer list, while Sara and I opted for glasses of pinot noir and riesling, respectively. The wine pours were quite generous, in lovely balloon glasses.

The waitstaff at Green Elephant write your order into palm pilot-type gadgets that wirelessly beam the info into the kitchen. I'm not sure if this is a huge time savings for them, but it sure is cool!

The menu was quite large, and we were all chatty and distracted, so we decided to order apps only first. Andrew and Sara are regulars, so they were able to recommend the Green Leaves Wrap with Mango and Herbs, which I would never in a million years have tried-- it's raw collard greens wrapped around raw herbs and mango. Although it sounds weird (raw collards??) it's actually very delicious. We also got Crispy Wontons, which were similar to a vegetarian version of crab rangoon, made vegan with soy cheese, and Deep Fried Vegetarian Spring Rolls, made with shiitake mushrooms. All of the apps were delicious, and despite being deep fried the latter two seemed very light and not greasy at all. The dipping sauces complemented the dishes perfectly, and the portions were quite generous.

We did eventually figure out what we wanted for our entrees, although it was difficult since everything sounded to tasty! I opted for the Hot & Sour Noodle soup, and Otis got the Far East Duck, which is actually "duck."

A word about the fake meats. Otis loves 'em. When he lived in Boston he was a regular at Buddha's Delight. They're not necessarily my favorite-- but I did try his "duck" and it was delicious. Happily for me, since I don't like duck, it didn't really taste like duck, and the sauce was wonderful. Similarly, my soup was great-- flavorful, spicy, and fully of great veggies.

So, if you haven't tried the Green Elephant yet, don't be like me and wait forever. Go!

608 Congress St. Portland, ME
207-347-3111