Harvest on the Harbor

For the 2015 edition of Harvest on the Harbor, I went to three events. The common theme was a gluttony of food and drinks and the common problem was the price. Are the events really fun? Yes. But at prices of $ 50-​$ 150 I don’t know if they’re worth it (I went to 2 of the 3 for free).
Moonlight Gala Chefs of the Coast
–This event was held at The Landing, which is a beautiful and elegant venue. The location is very inconvenient though near Pine Point beach. With the amount of alcohol being served, I’d imagine there was at least one OUI. The event did offer buses from the Old Port but the average age of the attendees was probably 50. These people don’t take buses.
–Maine Craft Distillers served unlimited free mixed drinks all night (a pleasant surprise) but the focus was on Italian wines paired with the food of local chefs. There were five rounds of two courses presented on long tables. You walk up and just take as many as you want. Separate tables held the wine for each course. While dining, the chef who created the course came on stage and described the dish, while sommelier Erica Archer outlined the wine.
–Most of the courses were delicious, with my favorites being from Crooners and Cocktails and The Rooms.
–After all five rounds the band started playing and a surprising number of people danced. I suppose that happens with an open bar.
–This event was definitely an older crowd. For me it wouldn’t have been worth $ 90, but it was a good time.
Maine Lobster Chef of the Year Competition
–This was held in my favorite Portland venue, Ocean Gateway. The room has a 360 degree view of the sea with floor to ceiling windows. Banquet tables filled the space and everyone took a seat.
–The event was hosted by the hilarious head chef/​owner of Café Miranda. He would interview a chef on stage while the chef proceeded to create his lobster dish in 20 minutes. TVs around the room displayed close ups of the cooking. Simultaneously, servers delivered smaller portions of the entrée to each guest, along with a half glass of wine.
–All five chefs were incredible. This amounted to a huge lunch and probably two full lobsters, along with several glasses of wine. Or more since we had such a nice server.
–Matt Ginn from Evo won the competition and deserved it.
–I preferred this event to the Moonlight Gala but $ 75 for lunch is steep. With prices like these you only get an older crowd, and again the average age was over 50.
Maine Marketplace Taste of the 8 Regions of Maine
–This was in the worst venue of the three. The Portland Company Complex consists of decrepit warehouses with terrible lighting. But the event was great! Finally the price was ok at $ 50 (this was the only event I paid for).
–Over 100 vendors filled two full warehouses with samples of food and drinks. Everything imaginable was there. Seafood, Mexican, pizza, desserts, liquor, beer, wines. I was comatose in the first hour. It was lower quality than the previous two events but much more mainstream, which a crowd of all ages.
I miss the opening Gala from previous years that they eliminated. The new events are fun, but badly overpriced. Hopefully next year brings positive changes.

This was my first time at Harvest on the Harbor and I thought that the Marketplace was a great introductory event. My friend and I had a great time and though there were a few things that probably could have used some tweaking, overall it was a great event.
The space at the Portland Company was gigantic so it never felt crowded and we never waited in line for food or drink for more than a minute or two. There was great live music and on the whole, the vendors were really friendly and knowledgeable.
I introduced my friend to Spiked Seltzer, a lovely, light, refreshing adult beverage made in Rhode Island. I was already a big fan but after a few generous samples, my friend was hooked. He bought a case the next day! We also really liked the Our Town station. They’re a brand new catering operation and they were working their butts off the entire time to produce two amuse bouches — one savory and one sweet. Amazing! We also really enjoyed the baked brie and ginger pear jelly at Grey Goose Gourmet And the hard rootbeer at Coney Island Brewing is a must buy as is the non-​alcoholic Barritts Ginger Beer. Love!
We started at Fajita Grill and they were giving out an entire meal’s-worth of samples. The food was decent but it was gone long before the end of the session. The most amusing and probably our favorite stop was North Spore Mushrooms. They cultivate their own mushrooms and I think they partake of them too, if you know what I mean.
We also really enjoyed the pumpkin bisque from Rudy’s and the fabulous truffle butter from Casco Bay Butter. YUM! Get this stuff, like now. Other standouts: we went back at least four times to the guy mixing cocktails with Cold River Vodka. Wow. The grapefruit concoction he was making by hand on-​site was to die for.
My friend and I debated whether we felt we got $ 50 worth and he felt strongly that he did. I’m a little on the fence. Marketplace was meant to showcase the many different regions of Maine and highlight their best products and I didn’t really see the theme well-​executed. There was certainly enough room for additional vendors/​stations and I would have liked to see more variety (two Mexican places, two mushroom places and more wine (most not produced in Maine which confused me) than you could shake a stick at. Maybe it’s hard to figure out where a vendor fits when there are so many events?
In any case, it was a great time, there was plenty of food, and I would love to return next year! Great opportunity to get people into town to eat and drink!

Scored some free tickets to the Rock N’ Roast BBQ on Sunday. While the event was certainly delicious with plenty of beer, wine, and food to go around, if I had paid for the event I might have been slightly disappointed in the lack of differentiation in food offerings. There was a lot of pork.
Granted, it is one of my favorite foods, pulled pork is not a food group in itself. Now if the event was billed as a pulled pork cook off, sure, I would have tempered my expectations. The Asian BBQ Lamb bun from David’s that won the award at the fest was by far my favorite food. Second favorite was the ample serving of butternut squash sausage from Thirsty Pig. Loved that it was topped with an apple vinegar slaw. The pulled pork and chicken from Alabama BBQ was quite worthy, with its slow roasted flavor not needing any of the bbq sauce.
I wish there was more brisket! Or maybe some slow cooked bbq beans… or some cornbread. I actually asked someone jokingly if they had any cornbread by chance in their purse. You need some starch to cut that grease in your stomach.

I attended Maine Marketplace Session 2 and the Rock and Roast BBQ. Both events were very similar, the difference being that the Rock and Roast BBQ offered mostly pulled meat/​BBQ food options with choice of beer or wine where as the Marketplace offered a variety of food options.
The Maine Marketplace was supposed to showcase the local offerings for the 8 regions of Maine. I didn’t notice any differentiation between the regions of Maine, but the food/​drink options were great. There was SO MUCH FOOD! There was a little bit of everything: sliders, meat based and veggie options, desserts (gelato fiasco, yum!). As you walk in you’re given a wine glass and you’re able to sample the options from the wineries, breweries, and distilleries. The pours are small but there was so much to try. I will say that the lines for any alcohol were quite long, and I did skip some because it would have been a long wait. There was a nice band playing on a makeshift stage. I was definitely full by the time I left.
The Rock and Roast BBQ was the same idea except all the food was BBQ based– pulled meats mostly. There was probably ¹⁄₃ of the amount of food and drink vendors than there was at the Maine Marketplace, however I left just as stuffed! There weren’t nearly as many people in attendance, so no lines no waiting! The band playing in the background was great. At this event you get to choose between a wine glass or a beer glass when you arrive. I chose the wine glass but you’re still able to sample all of the beer/​cider vendors too.
All in all, I left both events feeling fat and happy, and that’s what matters right?

This review is for Top of the Crop. This was a new event that was put on to showcase the Maine food scene with an emphasis on farm to table operations. The venue was in a large warehouse, directly adjacent to the Eastern Promenade trail/​bike path.
As a few others have already mentioned, this freshman event was poorly planned/​managed as food seemed to run out well before the end. I will say that the vendors that came put up some pretty tasty bites. There were delicious, fresh oysters, pumpkin grits with some fancy cheese and cured meat, smoked pork on top of polenta/​corn bread, and tons of great drink vendors (none of them ran out of booze).
While I had a great evening, I think I would’ve been a bit let down if I had paid full price for this. I did get in free on a complimentary ticket, but $ 65 is a lot to stomach when the food available barely satisfied. I definitely left hungry, but I did have a great time with the food and drink samples that I did have. Hopefully next year’s event will do a better job.

Harvest on the Harbor is a basically a weeklong festival for foodies made up of several events. I was fortunate and received complimentary tickets for two of the events: Top of the Crop (3 stars) and Maine Marketplace (4 stars). The 4 stars (really 3.5) is my average rating for both events.
Top of the Crop tickets were priced at $ 65. The event space was huge for the number of food vendors present at the 2015 event. There was plenty of wine, spirits, and beer flowing. However, there wasn’t enough food to go around! Attendees looked visibly upset/​disappointed (and rightly so) that several vendors ran out of food half-​way through the event. The lighting was terrible and I could barely read the posters and flyers describing the restaurant and farm partnerships. The highlights of the evening were The Brewins (band that was rockin’ it all night long), fresh oysters from Mine Oyster, and the absolutely perfect potato chips from B.Good.
Maine Marketplace tickets were priced at $ 50. I attended the 12pm session. There were 3x the number of food and drink vendors present compared to Top of the Crop. The food quality was also not as high as the Top of the Crop, but there was plenty to go around. There were lots of sliders, burgers, sandwiches, and carb dishes. Overall, I thought the dessert samples were tastier than the savory samplings. The best desserts were offered by Gelato Fiasco (assorted gelatos) and Maine Gourmet Chocolate (chocolate). My favorite savory bites were from The Black Tie Co. and Our Town Catering and Events.
Harvest on the Harbor is a great way to try foods, drinks, and sweets from restaurants all over Maine. However, if you have the time, you are better off visiting one or two restaurants for full meal.

This review is for Top of the Crop. As a past planner for food bank related events, this one was at best, subpar. From the misinformed front door personnel, to the ill prepared food vendors, this event was in need of of a professional. The «nice» port a potties were locked so everyone was doomed to the ones that hadn’t been serviced in three weeks (per the sticker on the door.) The alcohol outnumbered the food, but the morsels you could find were so dwarf you had to make two rounds around to feel like an eaten an appetizer. The offered options were mostly the cheapsest the chefs could find; it felt like they were bullied to participate. By comparison, the Maine Event on Saturday was superb and it was obvious the new event was headed by a not very well guided newbie. It was a waste of money and if I didn’t already love Portland and its foodie options then I would have thought that I needn’t visit the city again. Thank God i had visited the city before and knew it has much more to offer. This event made me reminisce my time Oklahoma City where people cared how others perceived their events.

lots of fun! will go again next year!

very crowded, my suggestion is to not go right when it opens, one hour late and you can walk right in and have the run of the place with ½ the crowds.
food was varied and lots of vino and beer (vodka too!) very small pours of all liquors, if you tasted all the varying liquors throughout the 3 hours, (whatever happened to the advise not to mix your liquors) you would have a very bad hangover… Id rather pick one or two enjoyable liquors and have a full glass… but they frown upon filling beyond a sip. final advise: DONT FORGET YOUR ID!!! doesn’t matter if you white haired and 90 years old, no ID no yellow drink bracelet!

I can’t even tell you how many years I have waited to join this event. It seems that every year that I want to go I have a prior commitment or no one else would go with me. This year, it seems the stars aligned. I won the tickets for the Triple-​B Barbeque event and it was well worth it!
Walking in I was amazing with how they had taken such an industrial place and made it so warm and welcoming! After picking which type of glass I wanted for 2 of the 3 B’s (Beer and Booze) we ventured over to check out the array of options. The tables were filled with everything from a Curry Lobster Roll (I know… not barbeque, but hey… its Maine. You have to have Lobster somewhere!), t to an array of all different types of barbeque. Between bites of Smokey goodness and wipes of the napkin you were welcomed with the great taste of beers from local companies! If you were full and needed to «make some room» you were surrounded by amazing music! What better way to make some room and continue that to dance?
The added cherry on the cake was that I was finally got to meet Steff, our local Unilocal Lady! Let me tell you ladies and gentlemen, she is even cuter in person! I hope this is the beginning of many great «run ins» !
Dear Harvest on the Harbor,
You were one of the best Friday night dates I’ve had in awhile. I will most definitely see you next year!
Love,
Krista

I can’t express my love for food and bev more than spending several nights in a row being served some of the best from around the state. Harvest on the Harbor is a foodie’s Christmas, with about the same pricetag, but you can pick and choose from several events over the course of four days to keep the cash flow low.
The Grand Tasting was wonderful. I do think that with how popular the event is getting, to either find a larger venue or cut about fifty tickets. You didn’t have space to comfortably walk anywhere, let alone the vendor four feet ahead of you. Some of my favorite stops were Azure Café (lobster claw and potato on a skewer), The Brunswick Inn (AMAAAAAZING, lobster, mango & cucumber atop a crustini), Piccolo served a decadent beet and dark chocolate cake with a mascarpone and white chocolate mousse — had seconds and I don’t even like chocolate that much. The Inn by the Sea, from Cape Elizabeth, which happens to be one of my favorite restaurants in the area, served up a wonderful crab cake, enough to bring me back about three times, or until they ran out I believe.
The amount of brewers, distilleries, and wineries were insane. At first, we couldn’t even find a vendor with food. Seemed more this year than in the past. I do not remember the name of the company, but they were serving a cider that had only apples and zero sugar added — tasted like apple juice, but the alcohol content was thru the roof.
I also had the privledge of attending the Big Eat Two Saturday afternoon, the best Harvest Event by far (personal opinion). This was hosted at the Portland Company Complex on their first floor. The middle doors were open to the back room and separated by a great band. My favorite bites were Grandy Oats nuts (and awesome tshirts), the moose meatball, the different bites topped with Snappy Carrot «dip,» the Brunswick Inn’s vegan chili, the sushi company who delivers, among a million more. I couldn’t believe how many different hard cider companies there were! The atmosphere was fun & lively, without being hectic. The anticipation of each new restaurant or company kept impressive smiles on everyone’s faces.
There was one booth that had a «decorate your own» sugar cookie set-​up. They were pretty fancy! ;)
Basically, I can’t wait until the next Harvest on the Harbor followed by years to come. Everyone should go. Now.

Such a fun event! Left SO full. The highlight was the moose meatballs. :) The venue space was so beautiful, so many great vendors, and a great band. Had a lot of fun and definitely hope to return next year.

Typically I am semi-​dubious of food/​wine/​beer festivals– tickets usually cost a small fortune, lines are long and the expo center décor is usually unfestive and boring
Harvest on the Harbor was a truly pleasant surprise. There were two large rooms divided in half by a live band. Lots of lounge and sit-​down café tables were sprinkled about adorned with gorgeous little centerpieces which were happily shared by strangers, excitedly asking eachother where their delicious looking samples came from.
I was shocked that so many of my favorite local establishments and a plethora of many I had never heard were crammed into one building and offering such generous sample sizes… and all you can eat. Leonardo’s pizza was actually giving out full slices!
My favorite was MW’s Catering Macaroni and Cheese. Seriously, I must’ve gotten 5 samples! Everybody was talking about it. Fantastic. I also loved the Honey Exchange booth. The honeycomb was so good and they brought bees with them! It was awesome.
There was beer from local breweries, wine distributors, local distilleries, magazines, news papers, brewery tour groups, and so much more! ( Unilocal!)
It was such a good time and a really fantastic way to taste the local flavor.

Enjoyed the new space with high ceilings. Bands were too loud in front room. Food excellent. Plenty of choices to taste.

Having a grest time with the best bbq, brews, and blues of msine. Love Black Cat Road live blued and all the local food and drink.