Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84 Page 85 Page 86 Page 87 Page 88 Page 89 Page 90 Page 91 Page 92 Page 93 Page 94 Page 95 Page 96 Page 97 Page 98 Page 99 Page 100Hungry Eye 34 p o r t l a n d monthly magazine from eft: Courtesy photos (4) meredith perdue for hunt and alpine club; kate odden; churchil catering plying Westbrook with its signature super- sized pancakes stacks, while Portlanders were relieved to see the return of El Rayo to Free Street in the former site of Papier Gourmet. Other restaurants transform- ing retail spaces to food service include Si- chuan Kitchen, which will bring Chinese cuisine to the Congress Street site occupied by Anna’s Used Furniture & Collectibles for many years–surely the most dramat- ic makeover of the year. On Fore Street, the Carla Bella Boutique has become Baris- tas and Bites, a high-end cafe and patisserie with a to-go lunch service. Lowell Designs on Exchange Street is currently under con- struction to become a speakeasy-style cock- tail joint named Proper Charlie’s. And over on the West End, Vespucci’s variety shop will soon be supplanted by Little Giant, a combination bar and premium corner store from the owners of Hunt + Alpine Club. Arrested development Meanwhile,wewaittodiscoverthefateofDa- vidLevi’sRossobianco,openjustfourmonths beforeanindefiniteclosurehaltedoursmall- plateindulgence.AccordingtotheFace- bookpage,Rossobiancois“restructuringand willreopeninthenewyear.”Sincebidding asadfarewelltoPetiteJacqueline’sreignon LongfellowSquare(they’renowat46Mar- ketStreet),we’vebeenwatchinginanticipa- tionfortheforcesbehindOTTO toestablish theirlong-awaitedflagshipburritojoint Ocho atthisprizepieceofPortlandrealestate,190 StateStreet.Don’tholdyourbreath–MikeKe- onandAnthonyAllenconfirmtheyhaveno planstopursuetheprojectin2017.“We’vede- cidedtostayfocusedonOTTO.Therewon’t beanynewopeningsthisyear.”Dittoforthe jointventurewithHerosandwiches,which foldedinAugustafterfivemonthsofbusiness. “Itdidn’tworkout.We’rewalkingawayfrom theHerobrand.”Thisleavesaquestionmark overthepair’sthreeemptylocations(Monu- mentSquare,LongfellowSquare,andCon- gressStreet).“We’repayingrentonempty spacesrightnow.It’ssomethingwe’llhaveto figureout.Itmaybethatwerentthesespaces outtosomeoneelse.” big plans for big tree I t feels like we’ve been waiting for ages to welcome Baharat–the Middle-East- ern-style eatery from the owners of CN Shawarma food truck–to Washington Avenue, but that could just be our hunger for its arrival. On the same street, Pho res- taurant Cong Tu Bot promises to be a fix- ture of our new year. In Westbrook, Big Fin Poké is set to take over the space previously inhabited by the Dancing Elephant Indi- an Restaurant. The healthy counter service eatery will offer poké bowls–the Hawaiian tuna dish much hyped in California. Think of it as the new sushi. Talk about on the move. John Myers, beverage director of starry Eventide Oys- ter Co., recently let slip that “You definite- ly busted me on my nonchalance regard- ing the Boston trip...I am so excited for the future of Eventide and the Boston project.” Owners Mike Wiley, Andrew Taylor, and Arlin Smith of Big Tree Hospitality are taking their successful oyster-bar franchise down to Beantown, where they’re open- ing Eventide Fenway on Boylston Street in 2017. The Press Herald quotes Wiley: “It’s less seasonal down there.” Ouch. Seems like this chic neighborhood can’t resist adopting its own ‘Maine’ flavor. Hope it doesn’t go the same way as the already- closed M.C. Spiedo, another brave attempt by legendary Maine restaurateurs to ex- pand into Boston. Itmaytaketimebeforeashiny newspotshakestheghostof itspredecessor.“TheHoney Paw–youknow,wherethe Pepperclubwas.” Big Fin Poké brings a West Coast craze to Westbrook. Lio restaurant and wine shop will open at Six City Center. Hunt + Alpine Club will open Little Giant bar and grocery on Clark Street.