A sample menu is available at the end of this release
For Immediate Release
August 8, 2013
Contact:
Gillian Britt, gBritt PR
207-775-2126
SOUTH PORTLAND, Maine – Little Bigs, the newest addition to South Portland, plans to open at 340 Main Street in South Portland by Thursday, August 15. Little Bigs will serve a selection of hand-crafted baked goods for carry out including an assortment of hand foods (any food that doesn’t require utensils) ranging from doughnuts to savory hand pies.
Owners Pamela Fitzpatrick and James Murray Plunkett moved to Portland from Chicago in search of the perfect location to open their business and have spent the past several months turning their new location into the ideal bakery and retail shop.
Fitzpatrick got her start at La Brea Bakery in Los Angeles under the tutelage of famed baker Nancy Silverton, and quickly fell in love with the art of baking. She has over 20 years of experience in the industry and has worked as a consultant for such companies as Amy’s Breads, EAT/Vinegar Factory, Hay Day Markets and Columbus Bakeries in New York City, Black Dog Bakery in Martha’s Vineyard, and various bakeries nationwide. She is a member of Bread Bakers Guild of America, Les Dames d’Escoffier, Slow Food, and has given baking lectures at CIA Greystone, Field Museum of Natural History, Cambridge Culinary Academy and Oldways.
Her recipes have been featured in Breads of La Brea Bakery and Chicago Cooks, and honors have included: Bon Appetit’s “Best 10 Bread Bakeries in America” 2011, Oprah’s favorite things 2005, Chicago Tribune Good Eating Award 2003, Modern Baking’s Leadership Award 2002, Bon Appetit’s Best Ciabatta 1999, and she was selected as one of the 3-person American Team to compete at Europain’s Coupe de Monde de la Boulangers 1994.
Fitzpatrick most was most recently corporate chef for Richard Melman and Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises, Inc. in Chicago.
Plunkett’s love for food has taken him all over the country. He has worked for a lodge in Alaska, a luxury fly fishing resort in Montana, and the Quisisana musical theater Resort in Lovell, Maine before choosing South Portland to open Little Bigs with Fitzpatrick. After graduating from New England Culinary Institute, he set out to become a chef, more as a journey than a destination. Immediately after school, he moved to Chicago with the body of his experience being at hotels and private clubs, including The Four Seasons, University Club and Bryn Mawr Golf Club. Most recently, James has worked as Chef de Cuisine at Brown Trout, a farm-to-table restaurant in Chicago.
With their extensive knowledge of the food industry, and Fitzpatrick’s experience as a baker, they have big plans for their small bakery. “Our vision is to serve high quality food with convenience, combining the ease and comfort of hand foods, such as hot dogs at a ball game or sandwiches at a picnic, with quality standards to serve a product that can satisfy on the go,” explained Fitzpatrick.
The menu will feature raised and cake doughnuts with flavors like ricotta cream with blueberry compote or chocolate ganache with marshmallow and crumbled graham cracker. Hand pies will be offered in both sweet and savory varieties with options including apple butter turnover, pork pie with pickle relish, and empanadas with mushroom, leek and duck confit.
Their street front location is small, but open, with 80% of the space dedicated to production and almost no barriers between the production area and the retail space, allowing customers to take a look at exactly how and where their food is being made.
Little Bigs plans to open by Thursday, August 15. Hours will be 6:00 a.m. until sellout, or 3 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday. They can be found on Facebook at www.facebook.com/LittleBigs.
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Little Bigs SAMPLE MENU
Raised Doughnuts
- Monte Cristo
- Ricotta cream and blueberry compote
- Chocolate ganache with marshmallow and crumbled graham cracker
- Bismarck with raspberry jam, cream cheese and powdered sugar
- Vanilla cream with chocolate ganache
- Citrus cream with Tang
Cake and Old Fashioned Doughnuts
- Bittersweet chocolate with chocolate chile glaze
- Spiced with orange glaze
- Jelly with peanut butter powder
- Buttermilk with vanilla bean glaze
Savory Pockets
- Pork pie with pickle relish
- Steak, rutabaga, potato, carrot pasty
- Salmon and pea hand pie
- Pasty with steak, parsnip, carrots, potatoes
- Empanada with mushroom, leek, duck confit
- Empanada with Texas chili
- Sausage, tomato and cheese calzone
Sweet Hand Pies
- Apple butter turnover
- Baked raspberry hand pie
- German sugar hand pie
- Fried apple pie
Brewed Coffee, Coffee by Design
Sodas and water
*Catering sizes of all hand pies available
**Decorated doughnuts available for special occasions