Meredith Goad

Staff Writer

Many people tell Meredith Goad that she has the best job in Maine, and most of the time she agrees.

Maine has a crazy appetite for food stories, and it’s Meredith’s job to satisfy those cravings with juicy tales from chefs, food producers, local farms, and the state’s fast-growing restaurant scene. Her work appears in Wednesday’s Business section and the Sunday Food & Dining section, and occasionally, but not as often as she’d like, on the front page.

A native of Memphis, Tenn., Meredith shamelessly flaunts her knowledge of good barbecue in front of her Yankee friends. She earned a bachelor of science degree in wildlife biology from Colorado State University, then studied science writing at the University of Missouri, where she received a master’s degree in journalism. She spent the first 20 years of her career covering science and environmental news, then switched to features in 2004, just as Portland’s food scene was taking off.

Her own most memorable meal? Back in the 1980s, on assignment in Finland, she shared a dinner of reindeer and Russian vodka with Maryland’s governor and a bunch of hungry scientists.

Meredith lives in Portland, but spends much of her time off back in Tennessee - either visiting family, or in online archives, researching her family’s history.
Posted inFood, Life & Culture

Soup to Nuts: Gosh, Beav … Could ya wake up and pass the green bean casserole?

by Meredith Goad

Back when Earth Day was still in diapers, cheese fondue was considered an elegant appetizer and people thought they looked hot in bell bottoms, there were no free-range heritage turkeys or fancy-pants sweet potatoes on the Thanksgiving table.

No, our birds came frozen from the nearest factory farm. And the cranberry sauce? It slid out of a can with a schlurp that made children giggle.

The average American Thanksgiving we celebrated 30 to 40 years ago was, for the most part, processed, cheap and convenient. And, not knowing any better, we loved it.

Posted inFood, Life & Culture

Food Dispatches, Nov. 17, 2010

by Meredith Goad

PORTLAND Rabelais sessions to cover culture of immigrant food Rabelais will host a talk and book signing Saturday with two authors who write about the immigrant food experience. Jane Ziegelman, author of “97 Orchard: An Edible History of Five Immigrant Families in One New York Tenement” (HarperCollins, $25.99) and Andrew Coe, author of “Chop Suey: […]

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Posted inFood

Cookbook Corner: ‘I love bacon!’

by Meredith Goad

They say that bacon is so over. But is it, really? Bacon became a national obsession during the last few years, showing up in everything from cocktails to lip gloss. If you haven’t quite gotten over your own pork-infused infatuation, “I Love Bacon” (Andrews McMeel, $19.99) is sure to satisfy. The book is a collection […]

Posted inFood, Life & Culture

Soup to Nuts: Shellacious toppings

by Meredith Goad

Once, oysters were as much a part of holiday celebrations as cranberries and champagne.

There’s never been a better time to revive this tradition. There are dozens of Maine oyster growers who can supply the freshest shellfish for your holiday table.

Toss out the overpowering cocktail sauce and dress them with an oyster mignonette instead, and you’ll have an easy yet elegant appetizer to serve at your seasonal parties from Thanksgiving through New Year’s Eve.

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