In Pictures: Sailing away... [Portland Schooner]

One of the things on my NY to-do list is sailing on the Hudson however, when the opportune came up to do a short 2 hour sail trip in Casco Bay by Portland,  of course I wanted that too. It would be my first time stepping on a sailboat but not D's who has been on a smaller sailboat where the heeling (when the boat leans on one side) is a lot more worrisome.

We had such a good time even though it was slow paced and there wasn't much to see on the bay except some islands, an old fort, seals!! and lighthouses. Ok, so there was stuff to see but the whole experience was to enjoy the ride under the warm sun and non-gentle blowing of sea winds on my face. I was most excited to see the oldest lighthouse of Maine but the Portland Head Light was under a mass of fog and we could not get close enough.

We bought two bowls of clam chowder and lobster rolls from Gilbert's Chowder House for snacking purposes. We initially wanted to get one serving of clam chowder and lobster roll from different restaurants. J's Oysters did not do take-outs and were pretty adamant about it (bitchy!) and Three Sons and Lobster where we ate a super fresh 3.6 lbs lobster the day before was closed, covered with danger signs all over the entrance, so we suspect we got lucky to have our mini lobster fest. *I just read that they were evicted from their location on that morning! Yikes!

Our ride: The Bagheera

We're in good hands

They let us take part of the sailing action but I was more preoccupied with eating

Gilbert's Clam Chowder

Lobster Roll

Cheers!

BYOB sold us to pick this boat for our 2 hour sail trip

Our girl skipper

Totoro approves

Photos by me.

xx

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nykeiko eats: more of Fore Street [Maine]

The bar at Fore Street

While waiting for our table to get ready, we parked at the bar and ordered a couple of drinks. I am now obsessed with Gimlet. D makes it for me at home and it's my new girly but non-girly drink I order when I go out. I took some pictures around the restaurant to show you where the great food at Fore Street was being prepared. The chefs didn't mind me taking snapshots of them as they gleefully smiled for the camera. I wish I had their contact to send them a copy. The open kitchen where the friendly kitchen staff prepares the food feels so organic and quaint. No spitting in your food or picking your nose here! The staff is friendly and everyone seems happy to work there. Our waiter even let me touch his earrings which was iron cast from a real rose thorn made by his friend from San Francisco. I really enjoyed my experience at the restaurant which is not something I often say about a restaurant!

Enjoy!

The drink menu

My current drink of choice: Gimlet

A gin from Maine for my Gimlet!

Preview of the menu at the bar

Sea salt, ground pepper and butter for your bread

Friendly chefs who appear to love their job :)

Open kitchen makes you feel like you're cooking at home for a party of 100+e

Fresh bread served from the Standard Baking Company

Photos by me.

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nykeiko eats: Foodie galore in Maine [Fore Street Restaurant]

I did not know what to expect from my first trip to Maine. All I knew was that I would be able to see vast lands filled with natural beauty (I really wanted to see a moose as we drove through White Mountains but two red foxes made my day!) and of course eat lots of cheap delicious Maine lobsters (ours was not cheap but delicious!). The arts and food scene in Portland Maine was vibrant and kind of wished we had a couple more days to explore the city and outer boroughs where antique and vintage shops are a plenty and of course, eat, more! I mean, I still gotta try Duckfat where the fries are fried up with duck fat. Sounds unhealthly good!

Here are pictures from our memorable tasting at a restaurant called Fore Street which has been opened for more than 16 years as I was told by one of the bartenders. Also, their menu changes DAILY based on the day's shipments of the freshest produce delivered from local Maine farmers, fishermen, foragers, and cheesemakers. They do not FREEZE anything in the kitchen and everything is prepared FRESH! At a place like this, you bet it's hard to get a reservation at a desired sitting time on a short notice (like us!) but one trick is to show up when doors open at 5 p.m. when they take walk-ins to fill some open seating and then you can pick a time to eat dinner that will not be absurdly late (but maybe too early). We canceled our 9:30 p.m. reservations when we made it for a 5:30 p.m. spot! You can also pick later times but I was too anxious to try the food.

We had just gotten back from a sailboat trip where we munched on a hardy clam chowder and lobster roll + champagne, so my appetite was deceivingly low and I choose to order a couple of appetizers (3 to be exact) while Dave picked an appetizer, an entree and a side. Damn we're big eaters even when we're not hungry. Usually, 1-2 things stand out from the menu but I definitely wanted to try everything and on the menu. They also write where the source of each main ingredient (meat, fish, veggies, cheese) come from. More about the menu here.

Enjoy! A definite must try place if you ever visit Portland ME.

The menu was printed on paper and I asked for a copy.

Pan Seared Richmond island squid

Cape Elizabeth, Fennel and garden onion, lemon and coriander leaf vinaigrette

Shitake and Roasted Garlic soup

Toasted Sourdough and fresh herbs

Chilled seafood tasting platter

Must emphasize on the raw sea bass. I never had that and it was def fresh!

Pan Seared Maine Farm rabbit livers

South Paris, Sweet corn with smoked heritage pork sausage, riche madeira and brawn sauce.

Garlic Mashed organic Maine potatoes (BEST THING EVER!)

Marinate Maine farm rabbit

South Paris, beet and spinach mascarpone on toasted pain au lait marinated garden radishes.

BEST garlic bread ever!

They make the most simple dishes perfected to amazingness. That's attention to the small things.


Photos by me.


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Goats have freaky eyes....

....but they have vision of 320-340 degrees and see great in the dark. So who cares!

Totoro getting a closer look at the pupils

They also like to munch on anything and everything in sight to see if it's edible. I gave everything green I could grab from the ground and they ate them all, even the flowers (which I presume taste the best of them all).

These pictures were taken at our host's beautiful farmhouse in Maine where they maintain a farm as a hobby with 5 goats, 25 chickens and also 5 dogs and a cat!

They kept chewing the straps on my camera bag after not loving my pants too much

D: "hey goat, say hi to your mother for me"

Enjoy your weekend!

xx


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