Another Primo menu has been posted! hmmmm

Greens are harvested
Meats are braised
Pasta is made
Sauces are bubbling
Kitchen is humming
Breads out of the oven
Flowers arrangements in the works
Wine is chilling!!
13th season going to be a great one !!!

We are getting ready….are you?

It’s the 13th Season at Primo – Rockland, and we are spending the today outside, preparing the grounds & gardens.

Be sure to join us for opening day Friday May 11, 2012 - Click here to make a reservation!

The broiler chicks arrived a few weeks ago and they are happily thriving in their new warm space. Price picked up the baby birds at the post office where they were nestled together in a card board box. At Primo, we use organic, sustainable and ethical practices to grow the food you will eat. This especially includes the animals we raise on site. Hop on the internet and pull up any news feed regarding mass scale animal production and you do not have to go far to find the disheartening failings and flaws of the current systems. Yes, the animals are meeting the same end, but the way they are getting there is vastly different. Pasture raised animals are happier and healthier without a doubt and when considering the culinary aspect, there is no comparison between flavor.

When the chicks first arrived, they were unaware of the act of drinking water, so Price took each one and gave the birds their first drink by gently dipping their beaks into fresh water. They were quick learners and pretty soon, they were drinking all by themselves. In these first few weeks, it is very important to monitor their body temperature. They want to stay very warm and as the weeks pass, their bodies start to adjust to cooler temperatures until they are ready to head out onto pasture. For now, you can visit the birdies in the garden shed where they will welcome you with lots of running and peeping around.

Birdly Yours,
Jacinda

Great day in the garden with the Primo Team…mulching, weeding and local grassfed burgers! Thanks everyone for an awesome job!
Received our first pig from Mary Thompson of “Beans Corner Farm” in Montville, Maine…

and a beautiful side of grassfed Beef from Gabe Clark at “Cold Spring Ranch” in North New Portland

The Lucky 13!, by Chef Melissa Kelly

Time to unwrap from winter and forge forward into spring. Trimming and capping prosciuttos, taking down the coppas that have dried nicely over winter.
Cleaning, organizing, planting seedlings, tilling, amending and tending to the baby chicks. Planting cover crop for our broiler chickens to enjoy.
Anticipating the return of our staff from all corners of the country and abroad returning with stories and exciting menu ideas, hopefully rejuvenated and excited to begin our 13th Season!!
Green garlic, mint, chives, sorrel and angelica all poking out through the mulched beds.
Meeting with local farmers to hear about their new ideas and plans for this season have found a new Lamb Lady! Nanne Kennedy in Washington, Maine visited her farm yesterday and her animals are gorgeous. She may even be able to raise some rose Veal for us this season!

Mary Thompson (Beans Corner Farm) says the piglets, Red Wattle, have been born and will arrive here by the 1st of June we have also ordered a pig for opening menu as well as a side of beef from Gabe Clark ( Cold Spring Ranch)!!

On the farm here we will be getting Guinea Hens and Ducklings this season. We will continue to raise heritage Turkeys down the road at our friends beautiful property on the Weskeag River.

Our Bees look healthy and seems to be.

Matt our Upstairs Chef has been making beer all winter and I think he is getting quite good, made a Old Speckled Hen Clone, as well as an Anchor Steam and a Juniper Ginger, YUM!

Hopefully he will do our hops justice this year and roll out something fun for fall, perhaps something to pair with our pig menu.

We look forward to seeing many of our regulars and return guests after the years many of you feel like family. We love celebrating all of your special occasions!!

Congratulations Primo Rockland!

Opinionated About Dining 2012 Survery, Top 25 Lists By Region

It’s that time of year again. The sun lingers in the sky for a few more moments each day causing most to forget the long cool of winter. For gardeners and farmers in the northeast, this is one of the most valuable times of the season. The month of March is a time to organize, finalize planting plans, and most importantly, get seedlings started in the greenhouse. Here at the Primo Garden, we are dusting off sleepy tools, waking up water spigots, and keeping our eyes turned to the upcoming weather patterns. Warmer weather is a friend at this time of the season. Warm weather means warmer soil temperatures and this leads to planting crops on time, if not a little earlier. Nature is known to throw curveballs like last years snowstorm here in Maine on April 1st, which was not exactly the funniest joke. For now, let’s appreciate the mild winter and hope that in the next few days, winter turns into spring with a gentle hop.

Let me introduce myself, my name is Jacinda Martinez and I am the new Head Gardener here at Primo. I am so excited for this season! In addition to posts about food, our guests, the restaurant, this blog will be used to post updates and pictures of life in the garden. Please do check in periodically to find out what is happening and if you get a chance to come by the restaurant, don’t be a stranger. We encourage visitors to walk around the garden to see where the delicious food they will eat comes from. So far this season, the lower greenhouse has been bustling with life. We started seedling flats of leeks and scallions on March 8th and on March 15th, those little green spires started poking up past the soil. Since then, more flats of herbs and flowers have been seeded. Coming up this week, we have our big seeding of hot crops: eggplant, peppers and tomatoes, as well as, planting fava beans and peas outside.

The chickens continue to cluck along having just moved to the area behind the lower greenhouse to forage through a new part of the garden.

Warm Weatherly Yours,
Jacinda