Mike Smith, executive chef at Scales, one of Portland’s hottest new restaurants, says he is leaving after just five months to work at a neighborhood restaurant that Chris Gould, chef/owner of Central Provisions, plans to open off the Portland peninsula this winter.
Gould and his wife and business partner, Paige Gould, have purchased the former Borealis Bakery & Bistro at 182 Ocean Ave., where they plan to open an Italian restaurant specializing in Neapolitan pizza, handmade pastas, crudo and salads. It will include takeout. Smith and his wife, Robyn Luongo Smith, who works at The Honey Paw, are longtime friends with the Goulds – both chefs worked for well-known Boston restaurateur Ken Oringer before moving back to their home state of Maine. Smith will be chef de cuisine at the Goulds’ new restaurant, which does not yet have a name, and his wife will serve as general manager.