First up in the week’s Buzz is an uplifting item. An Angel’s Wing is ready to open a new store at Auburn Mall. Executive director Debra York tells The Buzz they plan a soft opening May 7, with a grand opening set for June 1. Plans are still firming up on the specifics of the sales for each event, but for the soft opening, you can pick up a bag of clothes for $20.

The new store will focus on clothing and accessories, coats and the like. The thrift store location at 1567 Lisbon St. offers household items, furniture and more. York said there will be some new clothing offered at the new location, but much of it will remain gently used. The new store at Auburn Mall will be across from Bath & Body Works and will be open Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

An Angel’s Wing is a non-profit organization, and proceeds from sales at its thrift stores goes toward funding the fight against substance use disorder. The organization also operates an addiction resource center. For more information, you can call 207-241-0624.

Expansion Plans back on track at Sonder & Dram

The pandemic may have put expansion plans on hold, but that’s past history for the owners of Sonder and Dram at 12 Ash St., Lewiston. Owner Peter Flanders and partner chef Michael Gosselin are moving ahead with plans to open a 40 to 50 seat restaurant upstairs from the bar, in the former Subway space.  The bar will remain intact in its current space, Flanders said, including it’s own tiny little food-truck sized kitchen.

The bar and restaurant will operate independently within the same company. Gosselin was formerly the chef at Fuel, which closed its doors in September 2018. The restaurant will follow Gosselin’s lead with an upscale new American vibe, similar to what he’s been doing with fellow Chef Brandan Barr with their “Menu Takeover” nights, held on the last Wednesday of every month. The March menu included stuffed shrimp and duck prosciutto for small plates, with duck confit with mushrooms and a white wine cream sauce, New York strip or beef tartare served on roasted bone marrow as mains, and your choice of mixed berry and apple crisp or maple sugar pie for dessert. Not your average bar food, if you ask me.

Flanders said the projected opening ideally is late fall, likely October. But November and December are key business months and if the construction schedule gets off track, the fallback timeframe is February.

Coming soon: Sherman Oaks California Kitchen

Break Coffee Shop closed its doors at 50 Lisbon St. at the end of December 2021 but there’s a new restaurant planned for the space. Sherman Oaks California Kitchen has applied for permits through the city of Lewiston, The Buzz can confirm, and is waiting on the approval of its state applications before it can open. It must first pass all its final city inspections prior to being given the green light.

Owner Aaron Fanjoy said it will be a fast-casual restaurant with limited seating, delivery and take-out available. The theme is definitely California fresh said Fanjoy, where he has spent a lot of time in the past five years. He grew up in Auburn.

While Fanjoy is still putting finishing touches on the menu, he said the offerings will include gourmet sandwiches, soups, a lobster roll special and a melting pot of flavors and styles to include regional specialties like a birria torta, slow-braised, savory beef that is all the rage in California and on Instagram.

Other meats will be cooked in house as will the key lime pie and a host of homemade sauces and dressings, including a house special ranch.

Fanjoy said he plans to hire four or five employees as he gets closer to the opening date, which he hopes will be in mid- to late June. But he knows the permitting and inspection process is taking longer than normal and that it may be more realistic to say mid-July.

The Buzz offers quick hits about trending area business happenings. Have a Buzzable tip? Contact business writer Christopher Wheelock at 689-2817 or cwheelock@sunjournal.com

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