PRESQUE ISLE, MAINE – The Maine Potato Board has announced that the Caribou Russet potato and other varieties of Maine Potatoes are being featured in restaurants in and around Bangor starting with High School Basketball Tournament Week. Restaurants began featuring the then-new Caribou Russet potato five years ago around tournament time. While some restaurants regularly use Maine Potatoes, the Maine Potato Board felt the time was right to team up with them once again, and call attention to those restaurants who are buying and serving local.
“We hear ‘buy local’ a lot,” said Jeannie Tapley, Assistant Executive Director for the Maine Potato Board. “The reason we hear it a lot is because Mainers really do want to support each other when they are making choices on where to eat, where to shop, and where to spend their money. The restaurants we are putting a spotlight on are using their culinary skills to bring Maine Potatoes to their diners, and we think that is worth celebrating, especially as thousands of basketball fans will be traveling to Bangor this coming week for tournament week at the Cross Insurance Center.”
Geaghan’s Pub & Craft Brewery will be using the Caribou Russet for its Irish Nachos and Hops House 99 inside Hollywood Casino is using Maine Potatoes for its Baked Potatoes. Both restaurants partnered with the Maine Potato Board five years ago with the Caribou Russet, and are both located across the street from the Cross Insurance Center. Spreading further beyond Main Street, Maine Potatoes are being used and prominently featured at Novio’s Bistro on Hammond St. in Bangor; Kosta’s Restaurants in Old Town and Brewer; Smoke N’ Steel near Bangor Mall in Bangor; and Woodman’s Bar & Grill in Orono. Additionally, Moe’s Original BBQ on Broadway in Bangor is using Maine Potatoes for a new menu item unveiled earlier this week, BBQ Seasoned Fries.
“This is the first time Moe’s in Bangor and South Portland are offering fries and we are proud to be doing so using Maine Potatoes,” said Dewey Hasbrouck, owner of two Maine-based Moe’s Original BBQ restaurants. “We rolled out our BBQ Seasoned Fries for the first time on Valentine’s Day and they became an instant hit. I have no doubt that is not just because of our fabulous team in the kitchen, but also the quality of Maine Potatoes being used.”
“In the potato world, the fresh market supply of Maine Potatoes eventually runs out for the season,” said Tapley. “That usually happens in the springtime, but once harvest is completed in the fall, we will once again be shining a spotlight on these restaurants and others that are buying local when it comes to offering the best potatoes in the world on their menu.”
Maine Potatoes are routinely available for grocery shoppers throughout the state and the region. The Caribou Russet hit store shelves with limited supply in 2016. A year later, Hannaford stores began stocking the new variety in its produce sections throughout Maine. The Caribou Russet is now widely available in grocery stores throughout New England, and is being made available to restaurants, along with additional varieties of Maine Potatoes throughout the region through food distributors.
For more information on the Maine Potato Board, visit www.mainepotatoes.com.