SEAWEED

Chefs around the country are cooking with the ocean’s bounty.

- Raphael Brion

IN PORTLAND, MAINE, seaweed is everywhere—and not just the bay or the ocean. The Maine oysters at Fore Street are served with a seaweed mignonette. The country loaf at Bread & Friends comes with a side of cultured seaweed butter. At Norimoto Bakery, the focaccia hybrid is dressed with Maine seaweed puree before it’s baked. An entire store, Heritage Seaweed, is dedicated to seaweed-related goods like algae cooking oil and spicy kelp bitters, and there’s even a festival (Seaweed Week) that celebrates these aquatic vegetables in all their glory.