Food Map - Portland, Maine

[johnnyd]

Portland Food Map

Pinned in the eG France Forum is a Map of Restaurants in and outside of Paris, developed by M Joe Knox and Dave Hatfield. One can see the possibilities for other metropolitan areas, so I was excited to come across a comprehensive "map" - it's more of a hierarchical cluster analysis chart thingie - of Restaurants, Bars (including Sports, Pool Hall and Gay), Clubs, Cafés, Ice Cream parlors, Bakeries, Markets (both Super and Neighborhood), Farms, Butchers, Fish Mongers... etc., for Portland, Maine.

There is a breakdown of styles such as the usual (and unusual) ethnic places (ethnic restaurants and markets on the map are color coded according to the part of the world they're from), Seafood-centric, Sandwiches, Pizza, BBQ, Pubs and even food carts.

The non-edible category includes Cooking equipment sources, Organizations (eg. Slow Food), Annual Events (Greek Festival), Publications, and area foodblogs.

From the Admin:

I am still experimenting with different ways to group the map. For now, it is consists of six major categories:

  1. Eat Out—places you go because you want to try something different and eat out

  2. Grab a Bite—diners, pizza joints and other casual eateries where you go when you need to eat

  3. Nibble and Sip—coffee, tea, snack food

  4. Take Home—food, raw or prepared, that you'll eat at home

  5. Drinks—bars, lounges, clubs, etc

  6. Non-Edibles—magazines, blogs, and other resources for the foodie in you

The entire list is live-linked to websites, if available, and in the case of restaurants, a list of recent reviews in area publications, both print and online. It is organized in an elegant flow fashion that I find appealing.

Screenshot:

It is updated on a regular basis and occaisionally adds features such as the "Under Construction" list of places to open soon, and the "List of Unknowns" - places who have yet to get reviews. I find the "map" itself is so code-heavy that it hangs or disappears sometimes (on my system anyway) but the "List View" is always available.

Portland Food Map

[Busboy]

Hey: is this guy on the map?

[johnnyd]

Why, as a matter of fact, yes!

I scrolled down the list to Fish Mongers, chose Free Range Fish & Lobster and got the following:

Free Range Fish and Lobster  Rating: (2)

Silly name, limited stock, and an overwhelming fishy smell. The FRFP might be a good fill-in for seafood on a Sunday but I wouldn't go there the rest of the week when the Harbor Fish Market is open.

Reviews

MaineToday.com (6/23/2005)

450 Commercial Street

Portland, ME 04101

1-866-700-8469

map

Visit Their Website

http://www.freerangefish.com/

How does it rate, Mr.B, since I witnessed your purchase there last month?

[Busboy]

Although I thought lobster might be a little cheaper in Maine (I guess if I'd been able to buy it from a shack on the docks...) for $8.99/lb it was possibly the best lobster I've ever eaten. We steamed for a couple of minutes and then tossed it with that spiced rice vinegar you see around and a little olive oil, and served it atop fresh tomatoes and someone's garden cukes.

The oysters and the clams deserved kudos, as well. Savvy oyster buyers know that you can always request the tag from the bag the oysters reach the store in. In this case, it was amongst the bivalves in the cooler and it was the first time this inlander had ever bought oysters that were less than 24 hours from harvest. And they tasted it. "R" they any better in the fall than in August?

[opinionatedchef]

johhny, what a terrifically helpful person you are to post this. we're headed up fropm boston this month and have alrdy used it to make reservations!!

i wonder who is generating this website- a labor of love??

best,

mindy

[johnnyd]

johhny, what a terrifically helpful person you are to post this. we're headed up fropm boston this month and have alrdy used it to make reservations!!

i wonder who is generating this website- a labor of love??

best,

mindy

←

It really is amazingly complete and getting fed every day or two. I've never seen anything quite like it. Seems to me the pinnacle of what chambers of commerce websites across the world have strived for ever since the web was unleashed - only it's food-centric.

I've sent an eMail to the author inviting him/her to check out this topic and comment at will in private. From what I can tell, it's a labor of love and probably satisfies an innate need to organize. (You all know who you are! )

[ghostrider]

I am not sure what the "map view" offers that the "list view" doesn't, and the map certainly takes a long time to download when you're on dialup!

But the content here is terrific. Anestes is really on the ball.

[johnnyd]

The Portland Food Map's latest evolution is a growing compendium of geographic locator maps per culinary category, using google mapping. Check out the Coffee Map. Note the left side where there is a list of other categories that are/will become live when mapping is completed:

American Restaurants

African Restaurants

Bakeries

Bars and Clubs

Barbeque Restaurants

Breweries

Burrito Shops

Butchers

Candy Shops

Chinese Restaurants

Cocktails and Wine Bars

Coffee Houses

Delicatessens

Diners & Sandwich Shops

Ethnic Markets

Fish Mongers

French Restaurants

Fusion/Eclectic Restaurants

Gay Bars and Clubs

Gelato Shops

Greek Restaurants

Halal Markets

Ice Cream Shops

Indian Restaurants

Italian Restaurants

Juice Bars

Latin American Restaurants

Pizzerias

Polish Restaurants

Pool Bars

Prepared Food

Pubs

Organic/Vegetarian Restaurants

Seafood Restaurants

Specialty Stores

Sports Bars

Supermarkets

Sushi/Japanese Restaurants

Tapas Restaurants

Tea Shops

Thai Restaurants

Variety Stores

Vietnamese Restaurants

Wine & Beer Stores

Wings

Hats off to this innovative endeavor!

[layla17]

Thanks for the great information. I visited a restaurant a few years back and absolutely loved it, but couldn't remember the name. I looked on the map and there it was.

[johnnyd]

The Portland Food Map has added a search function for Portland and Maine food websites. A google search assistant, it picks up most active web pages containing your search term. I tried two Portland restaurants and eGullet appeared in the top ten of the second try.

[johnnyd]

The Portland Food Map has added an Events Calender to the website, further fleshing out this extraordinary resource for Portland Maine food lovers.

Other features include the Under Construction list of restaurants in development, and a list of Unreviewed Restaurants that have no reviews available online.

Those who check in daily get a wrap-up of local food-related news from all local media from a neutral perspective. Those who plan to visit Portland can consider this the de-facto aggregate of restaurant information and market availability. Links to reviews are in plain view, easy to use and actually work. Worth a bookmark in your "Food" folder.