Central Provisions

In one word - exquisite! We stopped in Portland for a night on our way to Acadia. This restaurant was one of the recommended places in the podcast we listened to when driving, so we made a reservation on the go, what a successful choice this came to be! Got seated at the chef's counter - this is a jackpot seat as you see all the dishes come out and the chef was right there, kindly answering all our questions, as did the servers. We are spoiled in New York, but did this place give... - bluefin tuna crudo GF - the flavors are complex, but not too loud, the fish fresh & buttery - truffle braised leeks GF - cheesy, loved it, especially the fact that truffle was not overpowering - fried maine grains polenta GF - this was so unexpected heavenly, we could come back to Portland for this dish alone... the marigold leaves (we had to ask the chef what the little flavor burst leaves were)... fennel.. that crust.. soft melty fluff inside... mmm.... - bone marrow toast - if you're hungry, this will fill you up. It was tasty but we were waiting for a horseradish kick that never came (our expectations are our problem though). It could be that at this point we were just already full and also spoiled by the dishes that came before. - suckling pig GF - it looks as if it would be too fatty but it's not. It's perfect. It killed the pulled pork for me forever. I don't want to get any pork after this because nothing can beat it. - goat ragu al forno - the flavors were dancing and merry, a bit too salty to our taste, but it might be just us, otherwise perfection, never had a better ragu! - jasmine poached pear GF - we don't eat sweets, ordered a desert still, because evidently this is not an ordinary restaurant. For us, this was too sweet to taste any flavors. It could be we're just sensitized to sugar. We wish we got some veggies on the menu, because they looked fantastic! We definitely will next time we're in Portland. Lora was a class server, drinks on time, plates cleared out of the way at all times, no delays or wait times for anything, all questions answered, very pleasant manners. Thank you for working with us on gluten free options (for one of us).

Great Tapas and Caviar flight. Drinks are amazing. They have an allergen menu for anyone in your party with food allergies and they are very accommodating . (I'm Gluten-Free)