Dec 11 – Dizzy Birds Rotisserie in central Biddeford announced on social media this week that it will close on December 31.
Chef-owner Tom Peacock said he has seen a big change in his customers’ eating habits since the pandemic.
“We play to an empty dining room every night. Pre-pandemic it was 70% dine-in and 30% takeout/delivery. Post-pandemic we were 85% takeout/delivery and 10-15% dine-in,” Peacock said, noting that delivery programs can be expensive for businesses, often requiring a commission of at least 20% to be paid to the delivery app.
“Forty percent of our space is not generating revenue,” he added. “We just didn’t catch fire and I have no explanation for us.”
Peacock said he’s also had staffing issues, and while half of his remaining team has worked at Dizzy Birds since its launch in early 2019, he can’t compete with the wages offered by Portland restaurants.
“I don’t want to make excuses,” Peacock said. “There have been restaurants that have been successful. I’m sad to say we haven’t been one of them.”
Dizzy Birds, located at 65 Main St., is known for its ethically raised, organic rotisserie chickens and prepared side dishes such as maple-ginger glazed carrots and broccoli-kale salad. The extensive menu also offers proteins such as baby back ribs, pot roast, hand-cut roast beef and fish cakes, as well as soups, sandwiches, house-made bread, cake rolls, cookies, crème brûlée and pots de crème.
“We are very loved and the reactions we get from people are very sad,” Peacock said. “They feel like we’re members of the community, and that’s really the way I wanted to position the company from the beginning.”
Peacock said he has been approached about developing a franchise model for Dizzy Birds and suggested one or two smaller Dizzy Birds Rotisserie stores may appear in the area in the coming years. In the meantime, he hopes to sell some Dizzy Birds take-and-bake items at a few markets in the area.
“I have every reason to be proud of what we have accomplished here, and we are excited about the future,” Peacock said. “I don’t know exactly at this point what the bridge is between here and there, but we’ll find out.”
NEW BAKERY OPENS IN WINDHAM
Waxwing Bakery opened Dec. 6 on Route 302 in Windham.
Waxwing, located at 868 Roosevelt Trail, adjacent to Yolked Farm to Table, specializes in laminated pastries such as croissants and Danish and sourdough breads, but also offers other baked goods, both sweet and savory, such as scones, quick breads, layer cakes by the slice, chocolate cream pie, pear-blueberry buckle, sausage rolls and quiche.
Co-owners Hannah Buoye and Billy Hager hope to add a lunch menu in the new year with a small selection of sandwiches and salads featuring local produce from Windham’s Bumbleroot Organic Farm. Waxwing serves coffee and espresso drinks from Tandem Coffee Roasters, along with a variety of teas.
The 1,500-square-foot space has 16 seats, including some seats at the counter. The owners expect Waxwing to be open Thursday through Sunday from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., and may add Wednesday hours as well.
Buoye and Hager live in Windham and moved to Maine from the San Francisco Bay Area five years ago. The couple has more than 15 years of catering experience. Buoye was most recently kitchen manager at Tandem Coffee and Bakery, and Hager was executive chef at Helm Oyster Bar & Bistro, which closed in March. Both will bake at Waxwing, although Buoye has higher education as a baker.
“Owning our own business has always been a goal of ours, and we thought a bakery would be a fun way to showcase both of our talents,” Buoye said.
“When we moved to Windham, we discovered there was a distinct lack of good bakeries here,” Hager said. “There’s a little diner scene starting to pop up, but there was a void that needed to be filled, so that’s what we’re hoping to do.”
The couple also noticed a lack of third spaces – places to connect with community outside the home and office – in Windham, another need they hope Waxwing can meet. “We really strive to make this place a community gathering place,” Buoye said. “We really want to make it a place where people can feel comfortable, relax and enjoy time with their friends.”
COUNTERSERVICE LUNCHEONETTE IS COMING TO PORTLAND
Two hospitality industry professionals plan to open a new salad-focused, counter-service eatery in Portland in the former Cumberland Avenue home of Union Bagel.
Angela Lee and Alex LeBlanc plan to open Luncheonette at 147 Cumberland Ave. in June. In the meantime, they are renovating the 3,000-square-foot main floor so it can accommodate 10 to 12 customers, with an additional 20 seats available seasonally on a rear patio.
“We liked that it’s a small, self-contained building,” Leblanc said. “We really wanted a small place to start.”
The core of Luncheonette’s menu consists of salads ($8), such as celery and fennel with mozzarella and sherry vinaigrette; grated beetroot with yoghurt, dill and pistachio; and mushrooms with wilted chicory and sesame dressing. Customers can add additional proteins such as canned tuna, smoked salmon or roasted chicken for $6. Prepared salads are available in a deli case for easy portability.
The proposed morning menu includes toast, muesli and home-baked pastries. Bread is also available daily. Luncheonette also offers a few sandwiches ($10), such as fried eggplant, baba ganoush and coleslaw on milk bread or sourdough. Drip coffee and tea, beer, wine and house-made soft drinks are available to drink.
A native of South Portland, LeBlanc was a sous chef at acclaimed chef April Bloomfield’s Sailor in Brooklyn, New York, and also cooked for Matt Ginn at Evo Kitchen + Bar in Portland. After leaving a career in advertising, Lee has put together an extensive culinary training program for himself in New York City in recent years, including working as an animal butcher at The Meat Hook, a fish butcher at Osakana and a baker at Petee’s Pie Co.
Lee and Leblanc said they expect Luncheonette to be open Thursday through Monday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
ALLAGASH MENTIONED ON THE NATIONAL LIST OF ‘BRANDS THAT MATTER’
Portland-based Allagash Brewing Company has been named to Fast Company’s annual Brands that Matter list, which honors companies that are making a meaningful impact. Allagash was honored this year in the Enduring Impact category, which recognizes brands that “continue to innovate and keep consumers interested for more than 15 years.” Fast Company highlighted Allagash’s approach to sustainability-focused advertising, as well as its reputation for recycling.
“We are as proud of our beer as we are of our work with communities in Maine and beyond,” Allagash founder Rob Tod said in a statement. “This year’s recognition feels especially important as we approach our 30th anniversary in 2025. It speaks to the continued relevance and impact of our brewery. It’s another sign that giving back, sticking to our core values and taking a thoughtful approach to growth has been the right thing to do. moves for us as a brewery.”
Allagash last appeared on the list in 2022, when it was in a category that recognized community-based initiatives.
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