K. Horton Specialty Foods

I was here earlier today as a Maine Foodie Tour. K. Horton’s was my favorite stop on the tour! Emily did a great job with the variety of goodies we were able to sample as well as sharing the history of the store. This will be a regular stop of mine whenever I’m in Portland from this day forward. Well done!

Overall the specialty foods are fantastic! Local, fresh, and yummy– all positives.
The downside is there breakfast sandwiches are microwaved from precooked foods; it is also flavorless, most likely because it is precooked and microwaved (which is the worst way to reheat food when it comes to health).

Okay. I can only comment on what I ordered for lunch today but it was basically my dream sandwich. I got the brie bagel. Now reading Becky’s review, I can agree that not doing aurgula and topping it with romaine seemed a bit odd. But brie on a bagel with walnuts and apples — I really can’t say any bad things about that! The staff was super friendly and I’m happy I stumbled across this cute little market. It’s very convenient that you could also pick up some chips, soda, alcohol, pizza, or basically anything else right there! Also just need to go back there to shop for some specialty foods! The cheese did look fab.

The cheese in this sandwich would be a 5-​star, but the rest of the «Brie» sandwich is just average. Instead of roasted walnuts as indicated on the menu, I got roasted almonds, which are ok but in my opinion walnuts are better paired with green apples and brie. The «greens» were your everyday romaine, so I was surprised that arugula or spinach weren’t included. The raspberry part was the same kind of jam I would use on a PB&J, so that felt awkwardly paired with the whole thing. My expectations were a homemade sauce along with mixed greens, fresh apples, and great brie with walnuts. Instead I got an interesting sandwich that just sufficed my appetite instead of wow-​ing it. I’d go again, but I’d try a different sandwich or maybe ask ahead what would be used to avoid disappointment.

Do you or something you know suffer from cheese addiction?
If so, you should immediately satiate that craving at K. Horton’s where they have (according to their website) upwards of 200 varieties of the stuff from locations both far and away! It’s like Cheese Utopia there. Not sure which one to choose? The lovely staff here is usually more than welcome to share their very knowledge with you, and sometimes even let you try a sample.
Seriously, though: I stop by K. Horton once a week to pick up a quarter pound of their Prima Donna cheese. It’s made in Holland (and this is how the staff initially describe it to me) by cows who eat grass that’s occasionally flooded with sea water making the cheese have this very faint salty flavor (so, it’s the same kind of taste one gets when they’re eating pizza or french fries on the beach — you inhale the ocean air with each bite you take, and as a result get a little additional «natural seasoning», no?). If you like sharper, more poignant cheeses that are also super versatile… try it. TRY IT. Just be sure to leave me a wedge, please!
Besides their impressive cheese selection and beautiful, abundant produce (they’ve also got some mouth-​watering looking olives and hummus in their glass case, by the way), K. Horton makes a really mean sandwich. Most recently I tried the «Avocado.» And, because I’m a ziggypiggy, I got the large. It was positively filled with loads of ripe avocado, sharp cheese, crisp lettuce and tomato, nuts (what a fun textural addition), and sweet, tangy honey dijon mustard. A little expensive, but totally worth it because of the size, quantity of ingredients, and «filling» factor. I’ve also tried some of their bagel sandwiches including the goat cheese one and the brie one. Both absolutely delicious in their own unique way, though a little difficult to eat (as bagel sandwiches usually tend to be). Yum, yum, yum, yum, yum. And yum.
And yum.
Looking for an excellent lunch spot? Come to the Portland Public Market, buy a big old sandwich from K. Horton, talk to their über educated and mega helpful staff about cheese, purchase some even though you weren’t planning on doing so, then fall in love with this wonderful spot!

Wade past the brain-​explodingly good selection of cheeses, wonderful treats, and other things that make you say, «Oooooooh!» and you will find a menu with sandwiches on it.
I ordered the Italian sandwich with genoa salami, ham, olive tapenade, red onion, aged provolone, Morse’s sour mustard pickles, and spinach, on a samoon pocket, which like a type of Iraqi pita, I am told.
Dude, let me tell you, that was a kickbutt sandwich. I had to stop a few times while munching it to vocalize about its delights. The veggies were SO fresh, the flavors were perfect, and the pita, while not what I would usually get an Italian on, was a great way to hold the whole thing together. And tasty in its own right!
There’s a lot going on in the Portland Public Market, and a lot going on a K. Horton, but make sure you don’t pass by their sandwiches, because they’re not to be missed.

Great experiences there, each time I go! They were all out of zucchini one time, so the woman helping me suggested summer squash — my zucchini/​summer squash bread was a huge hit on my camping trip. Thank you! Also, faaabulous local Maine cheeses & pickled goods.

K. Horton is a local gem. When vacationing in Portland, my Mom and I made time to visit K. Horton several times and we always walked out with serious cheese-​treasures. The cheese is to die for and everyone working at K. Horton was knowledgeable about the product and very friendly. We were able to sample the cheeses before deciding on our purchases which helped us make exactly the right decisions for our recipe and wine pairing. If I’m ever visiting Portland again (which I hope to), I will absolutely be back… maybe a few times :). And now I’m craving triple cream brie and three-​year aged cheddar…