johnnyd

What a saga! An epic foodblog to say the least. Congrats (and gold medals) to all

Pictures! We had some nice eG representation in Athens - where are the Turino reporters? Mr Nielsen? Anyone?

Perhaps the PPM assumed upon completion that the surrounding blocks would be gentrified faster. The plans for the Westin place don't seem to take into account any area market like PPM nearby. If I could re-design things in the Old Port, I'd turn the Flatbread Pizza/RiRa building into a combination fresh produce/Restaurant/Fish Market. A logical stop for island commuters since it's next to the ferry, and fishermen could off-load their catch on the dock below Flatbread's deck. Keep the rira restaurant upstairs so tourists can see the action on the water. Ever since visiting Portland in the eighties I've not understood the lack of oceanfront restaurants in the old port - all those piers and all we have is Dimillos, Porthole and J's oyster. Add a market to the waterfront and you get a mini Seattle.

esme, FYI the foundation is not for sale, just a few of their properties of which PPM is one. My hope is that the bunch who purchases it sells/leases the PPM to a group who develops it into a successfull market and, yeah, not condos. There has to be a model out there somewhere that will work for that wonderful space. My wife remarked on the hopelessness at the mirador during one lunchtime. They had one or two people on the line so when the rush came they were overwhelmed at three or four orders - something about making guacamole to order?!?! It's mexican food for pete's sake! Apparently everyone spent their whole lunch waiting for meals at the PPM so why go?

The Portland Public Market is owned by the Libra Foundation, who own several downtown properties. They are offering all of them up for sale in one package, including the market, for $65million which, if successfully sold as such would be Portland's biggest Commercial real estate transaction to date. Story in MAINETODAY.COM A visit to the Portland Public Market during johnnyd's foodblog "Dining Downeast", August 2005 Noted: Maurice the sausage guy closed up his operation end of December. I went to pick up some chorizo and last month and there was no sign of him.

Well, what do you know! I just happened to have Sam Hayward's secret recipes!!! Now where did they come from?!

Now we're talking. Think of the funds devoted to suppressing said large scale study results too!

Ran into a gentleman a couple nights ago that used to throw around a lot of money at the bar after some good shrimping - that was years ago. That night he was dropping off a ziploc stuffed with fresh shrimp for the cute bartender. I asked how things were going this year thinking we could start a conversation and I could learn something. He looked at me for a bit, then turned, zipped up his coat and left without saying a word. Haven't been to Harbor Fish Market this week but Hanneford supermarket had headless for $3.99/lb. Loaded up for Superbowl.

Jezuss, Jack! If we'd met ten years ago I could have steered you to more satisfying conclusions than that but I don't get out much anymore. Make sure you try Katahdin on Friday or Saturday night for a beautiful Martini (and great food). The lady there (forgot here name) has been at it for a very long time. Their bar is small and in the middle of the action there but she's been named "Portland's Best Bartender" several years in a row. Report back next week!

Park Avenue does indeed ship to Maine - many thanks to Dave for passing that valuable info on to me - the question is for how much longer that will be possible. Since my post a few months back about my dad buying a copper still in brasil used to make cachaca thirty years ago, I managed to remember to take a picture of it when I visited last Xmas. Here it is:

Portland Fish Exchange Shrimp Auction - January 21, thru January 27, 2006: 18,721 lbs consigned 0000 lbs sold $0.00 - low bid $0.00 - average $0.00 - high bid Well, I don't see any point in posting the Auction results anymore - - except that about four times the amount of shrimp were harvested than last week. I suppose someone gave someone else a call and said "come and get 'em"... I have a week off in mid Feb so I'll have time to go out and get some answers. Stay tuned.

Absolutely delicious. Is "Book of familiar foods" the same one that chefzadi linked us up to last year?

As a commercial diver, lung capacity translates directly to the amount of work accomplished. One year, I decided to quit smoking one month before our diving season, in August. My time underwater increased from an average of one hour to one and a half hours per scuba tank, allowing more time to earn money (collection of sea urchins). I earned an extra $200 on average per day. To do it, I took the advice of a now-forgotten friend who said to drink a big glass of water whenever the craving for a cigarette hit. Worked pretty well. After the season ended I gradually picked up the habit again during the summer only to quit again August 1st in preparation for another winter of fishing.

This has always bugged me. Having lived in coastal areas in other parts of the world, the lack of interest in seafood here is almost embarrassing. Rockland's Lobsterfest and Yarmouth Clam Festival aside, there are just so many ways you can fry fish. I can only attribute it to the post-war american diet-of-convenience begat by canned and frozen food products (discussed at nauseating length elsewhere) that eventually hijacked any remaining respect for food among the immigrant population. Back when I was diving for sea urchins I lived on an island for a few months one winter, right off Mt. Desert Island. I was headed home with a cooler packed with urchins for a sushi chef in Vermont but couldn't find any ice packs. Exploring the only store on the island, I ended up buying a couple slabs of frozen halibut from alaska for $5. Here I was in the middle of the breadbasket of the North Atlantic and this was the only fish for sale in the store. Street & Co. on Wharf St. does a good job with their seafood-only menu.

Welcome to eGullet Peter. We get the same deal here in the Gulf of Maine. Love those tinkers! Not much appreciation for them here - tinkers are usually salted in those big blue barrels and sold for lobster bait. No wonder so many bugs get trapped, they know a good meal when they smell 'em.

Sarah, the owner/proprietor, has held barkeep positions in some of the better old port establishments for many years. She started making superior chocolate on the side for friends but it got out of hand when the word got out. Bar of Chocolate has been on her mind for years and it finally opened last year. Wine Bar upstairs also contributes to the dessert offerings.

We have to look back to when Lobsters morphed from prison food in the 19th century to the luxury item it is today. What kicked that animal up the star ladder? What was the tipping point? Why can't we do the same trick for Maine Shrimp?

Word has reached me that the little Afghan Restaurant on upper Forest Ave is closing on March 1st.

Chris, it appears so. The fishermen are pissed off too. All these shrimp! Such a long season! No buyers... yet. As the press reports, the availability of other shrimp has squashed the bids for Maine product, which when processed, are pretty much like all the rest, maybe less desirable because of their small size and delicate nature. But fresh they are incredible! The deal then is the shipping radius and then cleaning them. To anyone reading this the cleaning part is worth it, but then, we're not normal. To the masses, they aren't worth the trouble. This animal needs some smart marketing, a novel campaign that makes you look stupid if you don't buy Maine Shrimp...

So did WILD OATS a couple years ago. A few deals here and there, not many though, in fact, they are too expensive to visit regularly. I saw meyer lemons for $3.99 each! They have been consistent though and seem to support an army of enthusiastic employees. This is great news. Anything that gets local produce into the hands of consumers faster is a good thing. Smiling Hill Farms is a hidden jewel.

I'll personally light the torch that scuttles the place if I see a price that high! In other similar news, on-line-only local news site, The Bollard says The Portland Public Market could be up for sale as well. Lots of turnover at the end of the year has yielded a bunch of empty space there.

Chandrika has finally thrown in the towel. Deal is signed today. Story here. I guess I better start paying attention to those "Whole Foods" threads. I wonder if they are going to pull their be-nice-to-lobsters rule up he-yah?

True. If they aren't called for at auction, there is no rule saying shrimp HAVE TO be landed at the Fish pier there, they can land anywhere. Typically, a boat captain gets a call from someone who brokers shrimp to retail/restaurants saying the supply is low and theyneed more. The two agree on a price range (I hear a dollar a pound guaranteed right now) and out he goes to fish. The boat is met at a pier anywhere on the coast and broker drives away with a mess of shrimp to deliver to expectant customers. The Portland Fish Auction will serve processors who bid on large consignments. The article mentioned upthread told of Cozy Harbor Seafoods here in Portland was guaranteeing $1/lb so at least some shrimp harvested gets to their processing plant.

Portland Fish Exchange Shrimp Auction - January 14, thru January 21, 2006: 6055 lbs consigned 0000 lbs sold $0.00 - low bid $0.00 - average $0.00 - high bid

Now that you mention it, it does appear a bit early for eggs, but in the ten years I've followed the fishery it's not weird enough to violate any "rule" that I know of. Last year when I visited the Auction I learned that there are at least four species out there so some boats could be setting their nets a little deeper, or shallower, and harvest a swarm that's well into propagating while others aren't at that stage yet. Beyond that, it could be water temperature fooling their hormones into thinking it's March... Maine Shrimp Season is indeed a winter-only harvest. The seasons were determined annually at different lengths to regulate fishing effort on the shrimp. One year's season was only two weeks. The problem that arose was one of planning for processing. If the season is only two or four weeks long, how can a processor justify fitting equipment and labor for processing shrimp with so little time to harvest product? And then how long is next year's season going to be? The ROI was way off. But this year, the Dept. of Marine Resources set the season from December to April for two years in a row so processors can bank on five months of product and get loans for the gear to handle it. The DMR determined that the fishery has rebounded nicely enough to plan two years out. But then there's the issue of markets...