Owners of Mainely Burgers restaurant and food trucks to open a Knightville store

Courtesy / The Boulos Co. A long-time neighborhood market at 101 Ocean St. in South Portland is in renovations to become Barber Brothers Meat & Provisions.

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By Laurie Schreiber

The Knightville location of a long-time neighborhood market has sold to Jack and Max Barber, Cape Elizabeth natives and owners of Mainely Burgers food trucks and Mainely Burgers restaurant in Boston.

The Barber brothers bought 101 Ocean St. in South Portland from Alan Cardinal. They plan to open Barber Brothers Meat & Provisions at the site.

Claire Richardson of the Boulos Co. represented the Barbers in the transaction, and Mike Cobb of Colliers represented Cardinal.

The 4,164-square-foot building, on a tenth of an acre, was previously home to a neighborhood market that dated back to 1939. For many years, the market was called Smaha’s. Under Cardinal’s ownership since 2012, it was called Legion Square Market.

The building itself dates back to 1927, according to listing information.

The list price was $950,000 but the purchase price was not disclosed. The purchase was financed through Bangor Savings Bank.

The property was marketed as a “turnkey market with proven revenue in a growing and highly desirable area in South Portland.”

The sale included the business name, real estate, and all furniture, fixtures and equipment, plus an additional 0.17-acre lot at 40 D St. that was being utilized as a 10-space parking lot for Legion Square Market.

The seller

Cardinal owned Legion Square Market for the last 11 years. The market closed Jan. 20.

“For nearly 11 years, my wife, Sylvia, and I, often along with our sons, have been responsible caretakers of Legion Square Market (Smaha’s), a community fixture with more than 80 years of history,” Cardinal wrote in a Facebook post that day.

He continued, “We have put our hearts into the market and into the neighborhood, making so many friends along the way. As with many families, we find ourselves pulled in many directions as needs change and priorities shift. And as with many small Maine businesses, we find circumstances make it more and more difficult to maintain a business — and family commitments.”

Cardinal said he and his wife would focus on family.

“This is a sad moment for us, and we will miss being a part of this thriving neighborhood,” he wrote.

He added, “ We’re proud of having been a steadfast source of necessities during the height of the pandemic and lockdowns, as well as being a sponsor for many local fundraisers and charities.”

For Cardinal, it was important to find a buyer who cared about the market’s history and legacy as a family-owned business, according to a news release.

The buyers

In that sense, the Barber brothers were likely ideal.

They grew up in Cape Elizabeth and their grandfather, Gus Barber, founded Barber Foods, as a meat shop in Portland, in 1955. (The business’s parent company, AdvancePierre Foods, was acquired by Tyson Foods in 2017.)

Max and Jack Barber started serving burgers and fries from their first food truck in 2012. Today, the brothers maintain a seasonal fleet of food trucks in Greater Portland and a Mainely Burgers restaurant in Boston.

They plan to open in the Knightville location as Barber Brothers Meat & Provisions. The Barbers said they expect to be operational by mid-to-late July. Renovations underway include cosmetics such as paint, as well as some building improvements.

“The new business will continue the legacy of 101 Ocean St. and run as a neighborhood butcher shop and market,” the release said.

The brothers plan to introduce new and local products to the space.

“The legacy built by Smaha’s (since 1939) and Legion Square Market (2012) is one for the history books,” Max Barber wrote in a recent Facebook post, noting that renovations are underway.