Mediterranean Mania Continues with Evo at the Hyatt's Preview Menu

Evo is coming. It's been a few quiet months since the small, angular space at the Hyatt hotel was leased, but check out the otherworldly renderings available on the restaurant's new Facebook page and try not to imagine a moon base. The exterior shot in particular, with a feminine humanoid alone (perhaps in standby mode) in the mezzanine atop the bar, is futuristic and eery.

The 50-seat kitchen and bar should land this spring at 443 Fore Street with a focus on "Greek, Mediterranean, and tapas," the third notable Mediterranean opening in recent months and the second in a hotel (Ebb and Flow and Marriott Courtyard's TIQA are nearby). Portland Food Map spotted the restaurant's liquor license application, which refers to the cuisine as "Eastern Mediterranean" and lists potential items like Baba Gannouj, Pork Shoulder Shawarma, and Homemade Lebanese Ice Cream (see pages 74-75 of the City Council notes for the full preview menu).

The Prentice Organization, including Casey Prentice, is in charge of Evo. The group also operated Diamond's Edge Restaurant & Marina on Great Diamond Island and currently runs the Chebeague Island Inn and all four of the Five Guys Burgers and Fries locations in Maine. Art design on Evo is in Might and Main's hands.

According to John Golden, Brandon Hicks of the Chebeague Island Inn will be the executive chef and Matt Ginn, formerly of Five Fifty-Five, will be sous chef. (Also, could "Evo" be the food allergy that Golden predicted Rachel Ray would develop in 2015?)