D. Taylor's Food & Travel

Restaurant Review – Chef George’s Auto Mile Diner, Saco Maine I’ve found a great little breakfast place in Saco, the Auto Mile Diner. It is small, but the food is excellent, and the staff is always friendly. I’ve been there several times for breakfast and have always found the breakfasts great. I was getting my Jeep serviced across the street and walked over for breakfast. I there are only eight tables, but I was able to find a good seat. Moments after arriving the Owner asked if I’d like coffee. After hearing my reply, a nice cup of coffee was placed in front of me. There is a menu on the table as well as posters on the wall suggesting other items. After several visits, I’ve found the Mexican Omelet is one of my favorites—peppers, onions, cheese, jalapenos, and tomatoes, wrapped in eggs with salsa and sour cream on the side. There are several choices for accompanying sides, I picked hash browns and a grilled English muffin. The food arrived quickly and was delicious...

Pleasantly Surprised and Very Disappointed Last fall I saw an article in DownEast magazine that touched my spirit. “ Maine’s 30 Greatest Burgers .” I love a good burger. Many places have frozen, preformed, 1.800-ounce burgers or they serve a 3.5-ounce “hockey puck” where all the flavor has been smashed out of it. So, trying the 30 greatest burgers in Maine sounded like my kind of challenge. Sadly, many of the 30 best were in faraway places like Lubec, Caribou, and Bar Harbor. A bit far to drive for a burger. But many places were in the Greater Portland Area. Two of them I noticed right away as being near places I often go. One is a chain that I often see, sometimes on my way to or from my dentist or when I’m shopping at Stapes or Burlington on Western Avenue. The other I drive by often when I pass through Saco on my way to or from Biddeford.  D’Angelo Grilled Sandwiches With shops in South Portland, Biddeford, Portland, Lewiston, and Auburn, it is easy to stop...

Background Sign: Q Street Diner, South Portland I have long heard of the “Q Street Diner” in the center of “Knightville” in South Portland, I’ve heard they have a great breakfast and an excellent burger. Recently, I was going from an appointment in Falmouth to the South Portland Library Genealogy Group meeting and thought I’d swing by the Q-Street Diner and give them a try.  Seating I arrived about noon and was by myself so I just waked up to the small counter near the kitchen pass shelf and seated myself. Ordering It was a little late for breakfast, so I decided to order a burger for lunch. I’m still in search of the world’s greatest onion rings, so I substituted onion rings for fries. I was a little surprised when I saw, what appeared to be my order on the pass shelf.  After it being there for several minutes and seeing the waitress pass by several times, I pointed towards, with a quizzical look on my face. She indicated the order was just waiting f...

Restaurant Review – Osaka Sushi and Hibachi (Coon Rapids, MN) I was visiting friends in Minnesota and the group decided it would be fun to visit Osaka Sushi and Hibach i. I hadn’t been to a hibachi grill for many years and thought it would be great fun. We made reservations the day before and arrived as a group of seven about 10 minutes before our reservation, but we still had to wait before we were seated. Ordering One of our party asked the server for hashi. The server server responded to see if she wanted her sake hot or cold. Upon further explanation, it became clear that the server didn’t know what hashi are. (It's the Japanese word for chop-sticks.) The server said she was Vietnamese and didn’t speak Japanese.  I admit, I don’t speak Japanese either, but I do know the word hashi and a server at a Japanese restaurant should know what hashi are. Food Arrival Shrimp Tempura - Osaka Sushi & Hibachi I wasn’t happy with the arrival of ...

Looks can be deceiving.  Restaurant Review – Portland Pie Company, Scarborough, ME “It’s all about the dough” is a great moniker for the Portland Pie Company. The dough is great but the pizza, not so much. We stopped at the Portland Pie Co a couple years ago and I guess we had forgotten why we hadn’t returned immediately. I remember now…. We arrived a bit after noon on a Sunday and the place was quite busy.  However, a hostess seated us right away; we ordered our “water with lemon,” a beer, and a cider and reviewed the menu. The Fryeburg Fair Portland Pie Company - Scarborough, ME When the drinks arrived, we ordered our food. I’m still looking for great hamburgers and ordered what they call the Fryeburg Fair - Two beef patties topped with American cheese, lettuce, tomato, red onion, and pickle, finished with a mix of ketchup & mustard it is served in their pie pocket.  I substituted a salad for potato chips for the side. I was a little...

Restaurant Review  By Don Taylor We arrived in downtown Portland very early for a show at the Merrill Auditorium.  We walked past the Union Restaurant and looked at the menus of several of the many restaurants along Exchange Street. We decided to come back to Union and give them a try. Before we went in, it was our plan to sit at the bar, have drinks and hors d'oeuvres before the show.  Seating was a breeze as there was only one other person sitting in the bar, although there were a couple groups seated in the lounge area.  Eric, our bartender was amazing.  His martini and Manhattan preparations were classic. Going against James Bond’s preference, his were “stirred, not shaken.” I think stirring is a much more civilized way to make a martini.  Also, as Eric stirred, he watched carefully and stopped when the melt was perfect, something that can’t be done when a drink is shaken. We ordered truffle laced potato chips with a goat’s milk r...

Review: Riverdance – Merrill Auditorium – Portland, ME – 1 June 2017 I’m sure it has been a grueling schedule for the cast of Riverdance on their 20 th Anniversary World Tour. We were able to watch the show at Merrill Auditorium in Portland, Maine on June 1 st .  It is one of the last 7 locations for the cast this year before they return to Ireland for the summer and tour Europe during the fall. Originally known as the Portland City Hall Auditorium, the Merrill Auditorium is a lovely old theater built in 1911 in the eastern section of Portland City Hall. It underwent a major renovation in 1997 [i] . It seats 1,907 people. We arrived early and went to Union Restaurant up the street. (More about that later.) The doors into the auditorium opened about 30 minutes before showtime. We had great seats, Row G in Section 1 of the Orchestra; the seats were comfortable and had plenty of leg room. I was impressed with the venue. My new phone has a panoramic view option wh...