Friday Food Insider: Two Fat Cats bakery will open a second Portland location
Photo / Courtesy of KWM PR
The new Two Fat Cats West End will be located on the ground floor of the former Mercy Hospital at 175 Spring St.
Two Fat Cats, which has a baking operation in the Bayside neighborhood, plans to open a second Portland location in a redeveloped building at 175 Spring St.
It's expected to open by mid-November, though an exact date has not been set.
Two Fat Cats West End, as the cafe will be known, will be in a former hospital building being redeveloped by Jonathan and Catherine Culley, leaders of Redfern Properties. Zachau Construction, of Freeport, managed construction of project, the former Mercy Hospital location. The Culleys were 2024 Mainebiz Business Leaders of the Year.
The cafe will be adjacent to Chocolats Passion, which offers handmade French chocolates.
Two Fat Cats was founded in 2005 and has its other Portland location at 195 Lancaster St., where all the production takes place and orders are placed and picked up. (Two Fat Cats closed a South Portland store in July.)
The Two Fat Cats West End location will serve breakfast and lunch, featuring freshly brewed coffee and espresso, a selection of sweet and savory options for dine-in, and a menu for take-home. It will also have a market featuring sandwiches, salads, local gourmet products and specialty goods.
“We’re incredibly excited to extend our reach into this wonderful new neighborhood,” said Stacy Begin, owner of Two Fat Cats. “Our goal with this new location is to create a welcoming space where people can gather, enjoy high-quality food, and explore unique products. It’s a dream come true to bring our passion for good food and community to this new area.”
The bakery also plans to pilot with Punch Club, a loyalty platform to help independent coffee shops strengthen relationships with their regular customers.
Two Fat Cats West End will be open Tuesday through Saturday, from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. While the new cafe and market are getting off the ground, all cafe food orders are for counter service, in-person only.
Fat Boy site up for sale
Fat Boy Drive-In, a 1950s-style drive-in diner at 111 Bath Road in Brunswick, is expected to change hands. The Fishman Realty Group has listed the 600-square-foot business for $875,000.
The diner, which is opposite Brunswick Landing, opened in 1955 and was owned by the Burton family for over 50 years. In May 2022, Mike Jerome purchased the business when the original owners planned to retire.
Another BBQ closure
The founding partners of Elsmere BBQ, Adam Powers and Jeremy Rush, announced via social media on Thursday that they would be closing the business on Nov. 9. The BBQ restaurant is located at 448 Cottage Road in South Portland.
“It has been an honor and a privilege to serve you this entire time,” said Powers. “We will carry with us fond memories of creating and testing all the wonderful recipes that became the backbone of Elsmere, of learning the subtleties and nuances of Mama, our big beautiful smoker, and of staying up until 3 a.m. painting the dish room so we could get our food license in time to open the next day on Aug. 17, 2013.
"We never could have anticipated the warmth and encouragement the community would provide to us. We thank you all for embracing us with open arms and allowing us to be the cornerstone of the neighborhood.”
News of the Elsmere plans comes just weeks after the closing of Salvage BBQ in Portland.
The Friday Food Insider is working on some fun stories for the coming months. What changes have you seen in the Maine restaurant world? The Mainebiz Food Insider wants to hear from you! Contact Alexis Wells at awells@mainebiz.biz.
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