AUGUSTA — A bill that would see Maine ask the federal government for permission to disallow the purchase of junk food with state and federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program funds, once called Food Stamps, cleared the House of Representatives on a 73-70 vote Monday. The bill, LD 526, directs the Department of Health and Human […]
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Posted inBusiness, sj-web
Maine bars may get chance to stay open until 2 a.m.
AUGUSTA — Maine Public Broadcasting Network reported that the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee will hold a public hearing on LD 1436 next week. The pilot would run this summer through Columbus Day. Rep. Louis Luchini says he’s open to the idea but has some reservations. He wants to hear what people have to say at […]
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Posted inBusiness
IHOP plans to move into T.G.I. Friday site in Auburn
Developer and franchisee Aziz Elsherif has applied to the city for a building permit to turn the former T.G.I. Fridays on Turner Street into an IHOP restaurant, which specializes in pancakes and breakfast fare. The only other IHOP in Maine is in South Portland, according to the company’s website. Elsherif, who owns IHOP Restaurants in […]
Posted inLewiston-Auburn, Maine
Poliquin says federal government should reform welfare programs
LEWISTON — U.S. Rep. Bruce Poliquin is backing legislation that would give states more latitude to make their own rules for welfare programs that are fueled by federal taxes. Poliquin, a Republican who represents Maine’s 2nd Congressional District, touched on a range of subjects during a short interview with the Sun Journal on Thursday prior […]
Posted inBusiness, sj-web
Junk food ban: Maine lawmakers endorse food stamp restriction
AUGUSTA — A bid to prohibit the purchase of junk food with food stamps in Maine came out of a legislative committee Monday afternoon with a positive recommendation — twice. In an unusual series of events, Republican Sen. Roger Katz’s bill, LD 526, heads to the full Legislature after having been approved twice by the […]
Posted inBusiness, sj-web
Last 2 HoJo restaurants soldier on in Bangor and New York
LAKE GEORGE, N.Y. — The 28 ice cream flavors are just a cool memory. Those fried clam plates? All but eighty-sixed. Howard Johnson’s restaurants — the once-ubiquitous orange-roofed eateries that nourished baby boomers before the rise of burgers and burritos — have almost disappeared. The HoJo’s on the main strip of this Adirondack Mountain resort […]
Posted inBusiness, sj-web
Bangor Howard Johnson’s on deadline to find new owner
BANGOR — There are only two Howard Johnson’s restaurants left, and that number could soon be halved. The clock is ticking for the HoJo’s restaurant in Bangor. David Patel, one of the owners, said Friday that the restaurant that dates to 1966 will close in a month if he can’t find someone to lease it. […]
Posted inBethel, sj-web
Bethel’s Chris Gould nominated for national culinary award
A chef who got his start at the Bethel Inn washing dishes has had his Portland restaurant nominated for a prestigious James Beard Foundation award. Chris Gould, a 2002 graduate of Gould Academy, is the co-owner with his wife, Paige, of the Central Provisions restaurant. They opened the business last year, and have been nominated […]
Posted inLewiston-Auburn
Breast-feeding moms object to ‘discreet’ request at restaurant
LEWISTON — If someone is uncomfortable with her nursing 8-month-old Bentley in public, “you’re obviously looking too long,” Lindsey Sawyer-Brown of Leeds said Monday at the Ramada Inn. Saying it’s time people understand breasts are made to feed babies — not for pornography — she and other mothers held a “nurse-in” at the Ramada Inn […]
Posted inbPlus
Eats: Finding the best meatball in central Maine
What does it take to make the best meatball in central Maine? “It’s all about the beef,” says Chris Abbruzzese of Double Z Land and Livestock in Turner. Abbruzzese and his wife, Kate, recently participated in a meatball contest in the Boston area. “We had so much fun,” he says, but “we wanted to do […]