September 2018 | view this story as a .pdf

Magic at 3 Spring Street – Third time’s another charmer for chef Cara Stadler.

By Claire Z. Cramer

Up a short flight of stairs overlooking the city in motion, we discover the wizardry of Lio, chef/restaurateur and three-time James Beard Rising Star Chef award nominee Cara Stadler’s newest restaurant. With high ceilings, non-stop plate-glass windows, and curvy wrought-iron-tube chandeliers, it’s like being up in a chic treehouse.

A serpentine bar with lots of low-backed, upholstered stools dominates the center of the main dining room, where we’re shown to a great table at a window overlooking Spring.

There’s also outdoor patio seating and a smaller dining room on the other side of the huge open kitchen. We spot chef/owner Cara Stadler in spotless whites, looking serene and smiling as always, among her busy kitchen team.

She and her mother, Cecile Stadler, opened the acclaimed Asian-fusion Tao Yuan in Brunswick in 2012, and Portland’s beloved Bao Bao Dumpling House in 2015. Lio arrives with a unique—and non-Asian—menu.

Lio’s a wine-taster’s dream, with more than 30 wines—most, but not all, from Europe—offered by the glass ($10 to $18) or half-glass ($5 to $9). The bar is rigged with a Napa Technology wine preservation system that allows them to open expensive bottles and offer them by the glass without degradation to the quality in the bottle. The glass-encased wine room at the top of the stairs is quite a sight.

The menu is a celebration of local seafood, meat, and vegetables. We share asparagus that tastes just-picked ($12). The grilled-marked* spears, dressed with tart beurre noisette, sit on a bright swoosh of puréed asparagus. Tiny cubes of vinegary boquerones and piped dabs of whipped butter, which we capture with bits of baguette, are nicely contrasting garnishes.

We follow with Summer Squash and Shrimp ($10). Behind this simple name hides cool poached shrimp dressed in dill, parsley, tarragon aioli with a bit of lemon. This herby salad is concealed in a roll of mandoline-sliced and marinated zucchini and yellow squash slices. It’s colorful, inventive, and so summery.

As we graze, we sample a fruity white Insolia from Sicily’s Feudo Principi di Butera, a Steininger rosé from Austria, and a nicely astringent Redentore sauvignon blanc from Italy ($11-$12 per glass). Lio’s tall, delicate stemware shows them well.

Turning to hot dishes, olive-oil poached Maine Halibut is a delicate revelation ($17). The tender fillet sits atop puréed potato and fennel laced with bits of crabmeat, forming an island in a glass bowl pooled with shellfish broth. The dish is subtle, yet the clean, fresh flavors are clear and concentrated.

A dish of Squid Ink Spaghetti ($14) is a wonderful contrast. Black, toothsome strands of fresh pasta are tossed with chopped razor clams, very tender, and Calabrian chili, anchovy, lemon, and parsley. It looks and tastes dramatic and bright.

Our server, Carrie, has explained earlier that, as at Stadler’s other establishments, dishes are delivered as they are turned out in the kitchen, and are intended as family-style, to be shared. This system worked well for us because we found it impossible not to taste everything.

Lio’s ambitious menu includes such share-worthy starters as house-made potato chips with crème fraiche and caviar ($15), and potted foie gras ($24). There’s no shortage of meat and fowl, with such unexpected choices as Frogs Legs ($10), Duck Breast with cherries ($15), Lamb Loin with potato gratin ($17), and even Sweetbreads with caramelized fennel ($16). There are so many reasons to return!

We start winding down with a half-glass each of Spanish Bodegas Hermanosa Pecina tempranillo ($7) and a Foris Rogue Valley Oregon pinot noir ($5.50) as we consider dessert.

A square of mousse-like milk chocolate caraway tart shot with orange caramel, which is flanked by a scoop of toasted brioche ice cream and scattered with crunchy dark chocolate crumbs ($9), is an absolute show-stopper to conclude this delicious feast.

Lio, serving dinner Wed. through Sun. from 5-9 p.m.  3 Spring St., Portland; 808-7133; lio-maine.com

Editor’s note: This exceptional review was on Claire Z. Cramer’s computer after we tragically lost her just weeks ago. Her family generously provided it because all of us couldn’t bear not to share it with you. We’ve starred the interesting phrase “grilled-marked” asparagus spears because Claire and I might have had a half-hour conversation about that, just one of many things we’ll miss about her. I’d likely have wondered if “grill-marked” were better, and she’d likely have pointed out my reductive POV as a diner. By using “grilled,” she’s emphasizing the creation, not just what it looks like afterward to a stranger. Because she wasn’t a stranger to words or food. She felt the process and the work behind it. She was bringing the dish all the way to you, the reader.