Hello and thank you to all Black Trumpet fans, friends and patrons!
Denise and I are overwhelmed that so many Lindbergh's regulars, joined by a thrilling number of new faces, have dined with us during our first month of business. For those of you who haven't had a chance to stop in for a cocktail, dessert or full meal, we look forward to your first visit. Here's a taste of what has transpired since March 1st.....
March 1:
After closing with Tom and Scott, Denise and I hurried back to the restaurant where we plotted our course for the next two weeks and celebrated the change with a glass of wine by the window, at the very same table where we decided to move to Portsmouth after our wedding in 1998.
March 2 through 16:
Gregg Duke, master carpenter (and former Lindbergh's sous chef), began demolition on the morning of the 2nd. Every kitchen employee volunteered to help with that portion of the transition. What is it about us kitchenfolk and propensity for fire, knives and sledgehammers?
On the 4th, Josh and Lauren, the incredibly capable and friendly pair of artists who run The Green Foundry in Eliot, raised and unveiled the heavy wood and cast bronze sign they created to a round of cheers from the cast, crew and support team of Black Trumpet. For my part, I smashed a really small bottle of bubbly against the brick doorframe--twice--without hurting anyone.
Over the course of twelve days, Gregg knuckled down on a tight deadline and rebuilt the entryway, among lots of other heroic work. He was assisted by Josh (another former Lindbergh's and Ciento chef) and his lovely partner Michelle (former owner of Saucy Grace, up the street).
Friends and family joined our crew of dedicated local craftsmen and workers to demolish walls, tear up rugs, remove old appliances and deep-clean everything remaining. Paul Laliberte and John Durante, both longtime Lindbergh's servers and Home Depot regulars, offered their construction help. Good friends, including many who work at other Portsmouth restaurants, contributed to our impossible dream of completing the "refreshing" project in two weeks.
On a dark and stormy night, literally seconds after hanging the last framed menu in the stairwell, we opened our doors to a brave crowd of weather-defying diehards. We thank you all
Black Trumpet
About Me
- Evan Mallett
- 29 Ceres Street, Portsmouth, NH, United States
- Black Trumpet Chef Evan Mallett entered the restaurant business in 1989 under the tutelage of Chef Jeff Tunks. In 1998, after serving as a restaurant critic, food writer and freelance writer Evan moved--with his wife, Denise--to Portsmouth. After starting at Lindbergh’s as a line cook, Evan was named Executive Sous Chef at the Spanish-themed restaurant, Ciento, in 1999. In 2001 the Mallett family moved to San Miguel de Allende, a mountain village in Central Mexico, where Denise and Evan jointly operated a restaurant and gourmet food shop. Evan returned to Portsmouth with his family in 2003 to assume the post of Executive Chef at Lindbergh’s. While hiking with his family, Evan—an avid mushroom forager—happened on a meadow of black trumpet mushrooms. The name Black Trumpet at once evokes sleek lines, a wild edible mushroom and jazz. Evan and Denise bought the restaurant in March of 2007. They live in southern Maine with Eleanor (14), Cormac (11), Evan’s dad, a dog, a cat and chickens on a mushroom-rich woodland parcel.
A BT cheese plate
