Nationally recognized Brunswick chef prepares her next course
Photo / Tim Greenway
Cara Stadler, owner and chef of Tao Yuan in Brunswick, plans to open Bao Bao, a dumpling house, in Portland's West End this fall.
Despite spending time in California, Massachusetts, France and China, restaurateur and chef Cara Stadler, 26, has called Maine home for years. The family summered in Phippsburg and now lives here year-round.
“I've probably spent more time in Maine than anywhere else in the world,” she says.
A James Beard Foundation “rising star chef of the year” nominee, Stadler was named one of this year's “best new chefs” by Food & Wine magazine. With the help of her family, Stadler runs Tao Yuan in Brunswick and this fall will open Bao Bao at 133 Spring St. in Portland's West End. Her mother, Cecile Stadler, is the business manager of the restaurants, which have about 36 full- and part-time employees.
Stadler spoke with Mainebiz from her 52-seat establishment on Pleasant Street in Brunswick. Here is an edited version of the conversation.
Mainebiz: What are the biggest challenges to running a restaurant in Brunswick compared to say, Beijing or New York City?
Cara Stadler: Access to some products. In any major city you can pretty much get whatever you want, whenever you want it. Not to say there aren't amazing products here. There is a plethora of amazing produce and cheese and meat. We go to the Portland Farmer's Market twice a week and we go to the fish market there. But the weirder ingredients are sometimes harder to source and I can't find some things that I'd like to get fresh-fresh. Things like young ginger — premature ginger that's more tender — and celtuce, a variety of lettuce. One Maine farm grew celtuce and it was available for only a few weeks. We grew it ourselves this year. The stuff shipped from southern California was terrible. That's why we're building an aquaponic greenhouse, so we can grow our own things.
MB: How does the clientele in Maine compare with those in bigger foodie destinations?
CS: It's great. It's taken time for it to grow. But we have an amazing clientele — lots of people who are very into food and up for new adventures and trying new things. I think it's definitely taken some time and some trust for them to be sure they know that what they're spending money on will be delicious. Bowdoin College brings people from all over. During the International Music Festival, we had a huge group of Chinese people for dinner. I think they enjoyed it.
It can be a total mixed bag. Some people walk in and they ask, 'Where are the signs with all different numbers and pictures of food?' And some people know everything under the sun. It's a very mixed crowd in Brunswick.
MB: Do you have any plans to move or are you laying down roots in Brunswick?
CS: We have no plans to move. We're planning on expanding here. We're trying to add a few seats. The biggest things are fixing up the kitchen and putting in an aquaponic greenhouse. We're also opening the dumpling house in Portland. Bao Bao means 'wrapped treasure.' I'll be living above the place, so I'll probably be there every day. I'll be here every day, too. I'll be busy. I might have one day off a week. I'll probably never have a day off.
MB: How will Bao Bao be different?
CS: It will be more casual. Really simple. Just dumplings. We're super seasonal here. We change dishes based on just what we have every day. Almost every day we're reprinting menus. Finesse and technique are emphasized a lot more here at Tao Yuan. At Bao Bao, it will really be about eating delicious dumplings and maybe having a cold beer with it and maybe a salad. You know, really simple and tasty and super casual. Take out, for sure.
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