File photo/ Tim Greenway
Restaurant owner Krista Cole of Sur Lie in Portland, shown packing meal kits to go early in the pandemic, looks forward to participating in the 2022 Maine Restaurant Week.
Updated: February 8, 2021
Maine Restaurant Week tweaks its recipe for 2021
Photo / Jim Neuger
Sur Lie, located on Free Street in Portland, is among restaurants participating in the 2021 edition of Maine Restaurant Week. It will take place from March 1-12, with some changes from previous years.
To help restaurants during a difficult time, the organizers of Maine Restaurant Week have tweaked the recipe for this year's version by lining up corporate sponsors to foot the bill.
The annual promotional event allows participating restaurants, including venues not normally open to the public, to draw diners in during a traditionally slow season with meals at special prices.
But while eateries have traditionally paid $495 to be included in the initiative, this year they can participate for free because of sponsorship by L.L.Bean Mastercard, Norway Savings Bank, Coffee By Design, Bangor Savings Bank, and IDEXX Laboratories Inc.
"Feature-wise, we're approaching things differently than in past years," said Maine Restaurant Week co-founder Gillian Britt. "Passion-wise, we're more committed than ever to boosting business for restaurants during winter."
Always more than a week long, this year's edition will take place from March 1-12. So far 26 restaurants are participating, but the list is growing, so customers are encouraged to check the site regularly for updates.
Another change in 2021 is that participating restaurants are not required to create three-course, specially-priced menus, but are asked to share creative specials.
Restaurants will provide clear menu descriptions and other need-to-know details in advance online, and indicate whether they are offering curbisde service and/or indoor or outdoor dining that is safe and socially distanced. All are easily searchable on the Maine Restaurant Week site.
The new formula comes amid a tough time for restaurants nationwide, and owners of participating restaurants say they're looking forward to getting an extra boost in business.
"I think that Maine Restaurant Week will be very important this year," Sur Lie owner Krista Cole told Mainebiz.
"It's always a time of year that we love, it gets new guests through the door. "But this year in particular our industry is struggling and I think a few weeks of celebration around our local restaurants will be a positive thing during this time."
Raymond Brunyanszki, an owner of Natalie's Restaurant and the Camden Harbour Inn on Maine's midcoast, had a similar observation.
"Especially now, when restaurants are operating with limited capacity and at higher cost because of enhance procedures, Maine Restaurant Week is more important than ever," he said. "I hope people will support their neighborhood restaurants by dining out or ordering take out as often as they can to make sure the restaurants will survive."
For Maine Restaurant Week, Natalie's will offer a three-course dinner for $55 a person, along with a two-night stay including breakfast in addition to a two-night stay, including breakfast, three -course Maine Restaurant Week dinner, a glass of Prosecco upon arrival and complimentary minibar with soft beverages and snacks for $410 per stay based on double occupancy.
He added that guests who prefer can also have dinner served in their room.
'Small light' in tough times
Nationwide, a recent report by the National Restaurant Association showing the restaurant and food service industry sales fell by $240 billion in 2020 from an expected level of $899 billion, and the sector finished 2020 nearly 2.5 million jobs below its pre-pandemic level.
Steve Hewins, the outgoing president and CEO of HospitalityMaine, recently told Mainebiz that the state of the restaurant industry in Maine mirrors what is happening across the country while sounding an optimistic note about the sector's ability to adapt.
"We are expecting many changes going forward, and new restaurant models will come out of the pandemic," he said. "While there is a small light now at the end of the tunnel, the rebuild will not fully begin until our employees and guests have had the opportunity to be vaccinated."
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