DownEast Magazine: Best Restaurants

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A couple of months ago I had the opportunity to take a bit of a road trip up to Maine to photograph the Best Restaurants feature for DownEast Magazine.  I spent several days traveling to Kittery, Portland and way up north to Rockland and Rockport.  After several years of running laps around Boston it was a nice change of pace to head out on the road and see what Maine's foodie scene has to offer.  

On the cover: Maine lobster gnocchi with asparagus at Outliers Eatery in Portland ME.

On the cover: Maine lobster gnocchi with asparagus at Outliers Eatery in Portland ME.

I started my trip in Kittery at Anju, a great noodle bar tucked away just over the border.  When I walked in I saw co-owner Julian Armstrong and quickly realized that I had met him before.  Julian used to work at The Black Trumpet Bistro in Portsmouth where one of my friends growing up worked for many years and that I frequented often.

Julian Armstrong at Anju Noodle Bar in Kittery ME.

Julian Armstrong at Anju Noodle Bar in Kittery ME.

Shoyu Ramen with slow roasted pork shoulder at Anju Noodle Bar in Kittery ME

Shoyu Ramen with slow roasted pork shoulder at Anju Noodle Bar in Kittery ME

After a wonderful day at Anju I stopped over for the night at my Uncle's farm house in Lebanon before moving on to Portland in the morning.

The DeTour farmhouse on a snowy Maine morning.

The DeTour farmhouse on a snowy Maine morning.

First up in Portland was Blue Rooster.  To say that Blue Rooster serves hotdogs doesn't quite do it justice.  With items on the menu like the Seoul Dog topped with spicy kimchi, toasted peanuts and garlic mayo, and a side of tater tot poutine, its more than just hotdogs!

The Seoul Dog with a side of Tater Tot Poutine at Blue Rooster in Portland ME

The Seoul Dog with a side of Tater Tot Poutine at Blue Rooster in Portland ME

Next up was my favorite from the list, Outliers Eatery.  Everything about Outliers is wonderful.  Executive Chef Jonathan Dexter is warm and welcoming, the food is spectacular and the design of the place is breathtaking (the tabletops, oh the tabletops!)  Tucked away on a quiet side street in Portland it would be easy to miss, but Outliers is definitely worth searching out.

Maine Lobster Gnocchi with Asparagus at Outliers Eatery in Portland, ME.

Maine Lobster Gnocchi with Asparagus at Outliers Eatery in Portland, ME.

Executive Chef Jonathan Dexter of Outliers Eatery

Executive Chef Jonathan Dexter of Outliers Eatery

The last leg of the trip took me several hours north to Rockland and Rockport. Salt Water Farms, open seasonally, is a beautiful restaurant overlooking the water (although I was there on a bone chilling day so it looked over the ice!)

Jerusalem Artichoke salad with bacon, watercress, parsley, and grain-mustard-and-lemon vinaigrette at Salt Water Farms in Rockport ME

Jerusalem Artichoke salad with bacon, watercress, parsley, and grain-mustard-and-lemon vinaigrette at Salt Water Farms in Rockport ME

An icy view over the water in Rockport ME

An icy view over the water in Rockport ME

Last up was 3Crow in Rockland.  A great spot on the main drag run by Joshua Hixon.  

Sous Chef Rose Valentine preparing a dish in the kitchen of 3Crow in Rockport ME

Sous Chef Rose Valentine preparing a dish in the kitchen of 3Crow in Rockport ME

Josh Hixon of 3Crow in Rockport ME

Josh Hixon of 3Crow in Rockport ME


Yankee Magazine: Franks & Beans

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Yankee Magazine recently published an article on franks and beans that I did with the very talented Molly Shuster.  Having grown up in New England, franks and beans was one of those staples that I thought had been around so long that it couldn't possibly be improved upon.  Boy was I wrong.  Molly developed some great recipes that update the old classic and opened my eyes to what the old classic can really be. We started by trekking up to Maine to meet up with bean farmer Charlie Baer of Baer's Best.  After gathering some ideas at the farm Molly went back and developed the recipes and we later met up and photographed them in an old barn in Topsfield.  It was a wonderful chance to get out of the city and remember what New England is all about!

Adam DeTour Yankee Magazine

Adam DeTour Yankee Magazine

Adam DeTour Yankee Magazine

Adam DeTour Yankee Magazine

Adam DeTour Yankee Magazine

Adam DeTour Yankee Magazine

Adam DeTour Yankee Magazine

Adam DeTour Yankee Magazine

Adam DeTour Yankee Magazine

Adam DeTour Yankee Magazine

Adam DeTour Yankee Magazine

(Molly and Charlie at Baer's Best Farm in South Berwick, ME)

Edible Boston: Compost

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Sometimes I enjoy a really challenging assignment for the surprise of how beautiful the pictures can be.  I recently shot a story for Edible Boston on the state of compost in Boston.  Massachusetts recently passed the Commercial Food Waste Ban which is a "ban on the disposal of commercial organic wastes by businesses and institutions."  It's a big step since the Environmental Protection Agency estimates that nearly 21% of waste in landfills is food waste.  The new legislation is important and exciting but how do you make it look good? I took a trip out to a commercial compost operation on the north shore and snagged a few shots of the towering hills of compost in all its smelly glory, but it just didn't seem to be eye catching enough for the article.  Luckily I came prepared with a few buckets from the hardware store, threw on my gloves, and started picking stuff out of the piles.

With a few treasures in hand I went back to the studio and worked with my good friend and very talented food stylist George Simons who had saved his unused leftovers from the week.  Together we worked out a few arrangements of compost in its various stages that were fit to hang on a wall.

Edible Boston, Adam DeTour

We started by combining some of the inorganic things I found in the compost piles and combined them with George's leftovers.

Edible Boston, Adam DeTour

I found lots of bones, rocks, and leaves in the intermediate stage of the compost, which were great for this shot.

Edible Boston, Adam DeTour

The final product!

George Simons

Smiling George.

Boston Magazine: 50 Best Restaurants

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I recently had the good fortune to shoot Boston Magazine's 50 Best Restaurants feature with my good friend Michael Piazza.  What follows is my contribution to what was definitely one of the tastiest shoots I've done. On the cover is this tasty Pasta dish from Giulia in Porter Square

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

Followed by O Ya in Chinatown.

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

A special thanks goes out to Asta on Mass Ave.  After a couple of weeks of shooting I was a bit under the weather when I walked it, but they were so welcoming and warm.  They definitely carried me through.

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

Steel & Rye in Milton was a pleasant surprise to find over in Milton.  The rustic decor welcomes you right into such a large space.  Thanks to Bridget Tivnan for the extra food styling help!

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

It was amazing to see the inner workings of the one and only Menton in Fort Point, from the rituals of the candle lighting to the pre service stretches.

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

Definitely take the time to check out the Salty Pig in Back Bay

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

This dish at Clio was a work of art that narrowly missed being the cover.

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Mei Mei Street Kitchen wowed us with their hospitality, serving up three wonderful dishes.

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

Last but certainly not least is this artfully arranged apple pie over at Hungry Mother in Cambridge.

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

Boston Magazine 50 Best Restaurants

Improper Bostonian: Setting The Tone and Table

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Check out my latest work on the Improper Bostonian's article Setting the Tone and Tablefeaturing the work of local wedding planners and designers. For the opening shot New England Country Rental utilized their massive warehouse space to build us an entire set, complete with a faux grass wall!  It was pretty wild to see these talented folks do what they do best.

Setting the Tone and Table

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Setting the Tone and Table

Next I caught up with Lauren Wells of Lauren Wells Events at her home in South Boston to photograph this beautiful moody blue table setting.

Setting the Tone and Table

Setting the Tone and Table

Setting the Tone and Table

Setting the Tone and Table

One of my favorites from the shoot was this tablescape from Lo McShay at Lolo Events in Cambridge.

Setting the Tone and Table

Finally we headed up to the north shore to shoot this subtly simple table from Tangorra Wedding Planning

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Setting the Tone and Table

Edible Boston: Indian Head Farm

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I recently had the opportunity to photograph Indian Head Farm in Berlin, MA for a story in Edible Boston.  The farm has been in the Wheeler family for almost 200 years.  Think about that.  Two. Hundred. Years.  That's a farm founded before the Civil War.  That's seven generations of farmers on the same land.  That's a very long time. One of my favorite images from the shoot is an image of family pictures laid out on the table.  When you're standing there looking out at the fields it's difficult to understand just how much history the family has there.  The pictures provided a glimpse into that history.

It wasn't until after the shoot that we realized another way to showcase the span of time that the Wheelers have been there. When we put the images of James Wheeler and the oil painting of his great-great-great grandfather from the civil war next to each other it was striking how similar they look.

Edible Boston Indian Head Farm

Edible Boston Indian Head Farm

Edible Boston Indian Head Farm

Edible Cocktails

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Out now is Edible Boston's first ever special edition Drink Issue with an article by Luke O'Neil about the connection between the kitchen and the bar.  For the story I was able to travel around to a wide variety of restaurants in the Boston area and photograph the drinks with their culinary counterpoints. And, of course, I may have sampled a few of the beverages. "Not too long ago bars and kitchens had an often adversarial relationship, particularly when it came to bars pilfering ingredients and not replacing them, or kitchens being stingy with the supply.  There was also a more substantial standoff at work in the bad old days of drinking, as Charles Draghi, chef and owner of Erbaluce explains. "For a chef, I was never a fan of cocktails, like a lot of chefs.  It used to mean a war between bar and customer's palate and what a chef was trying to do." Too many cocktails, before the current resurgence, were cloyingly sweet, or else overpoweringly alcoholic. You wouldn't want a diner to be drinking mudslides, say, or straight vodka martinis before a nice meal. But that all changed when bartenders and chefs realized they could work together to enhance the entire experience from first sip, on through the meal, and to the after dinner drink."

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Jenny Dell: Improper Bostonian

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NESN Red Sox reporter Jenny Dell on the cover of this week's Improper.On whether she gets sick of all that baseball: "I think anything you end up putting your all into, you love. So you eat, breathe, sleep and dream it. On my days off, I sit at home and watch the game. Once you’re a part of it, you’re all in."

Melody Ehsani

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Melody Ehsani grew up in a traditional Persian home, destined for law school and a status-assigning marriage. The LA native chose a different route, however, and today her vibrant designs are snapped up by celebrities like Nicki Minaj, Rihanna, and Jennifer Lopez. "I decided to break with my culture and follow my heart into a field I was internally drawn to….design," said Ehsani. "The more I designed shoes and products, the more it felt like the right thing for me to be doing."

Ehsani's style has become highly sought after, and Adam joined her on a recent day at Reebok's headquarters while she worked on a new shoe design.

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MIT Technology Review: A Chocolate Maker's Big Innovation

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For the June/July 2013 issue of the MIT Technology Review, Adam photographed these brightly-packaged squares known as Tcho chocolates. Adam's image really showcases the uniquely textured chocolates. Tcho's dynamic packaging is not the only thing that sets theses chocolates apart from the rest!  For more information check out Technology review's article here.  

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