Press

 
Grand Central Wine Bar has completed its relocation from Gorham to Sebago, and will open for the season Thursday.  

The wine bar is located at 256 Sebago Road in a 1,400-square-foot space formerly occupied by Krista’s Four Seasons diner. Owner Karen Nason said the venue – outfitted with a Chickering baby grand piano and a miniature Grand Central Terminal replica clock – seats 25 customers inside and 30 outside.

Grand Central will offer about 20 wines by the glass or bottle, along with a menu of salads, paninis ($16-$18) and charcuterie boards ($28). It also will have prepared foods, cheeses, baguettes and wines for retail sale.

“We have packaged foods,” Nason said. “You could just come in, fill up your basket, get on your boat and have a good day.”

Nason said Grand Central will feature live jazz on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. Nason plans to be open seven days a week, from 12-9 p.m., through October.

Originally opened in Gorham in 2019, Grand Central Wine Bar was forced to close in the summer of 2021 for lack of pandemic relief funding.

 “It’s been a whirlwind to get back into business again,” Nason said. “We couldn’t have picked a better spot than Sebago Lake. It’s a gorgeous tourist destination that doesn’t have a lot of places to go.”

After pandemic circumstances forced Karen Nason to close last summer, the owner of the former Grand Central Wine Bar in Gorham plans to reopen in Sebago next spring.

Located at 256 Sebago Road in a 1,400-square-foot space formerly occupied by Krista’s Four Seasons diner, the wine bar is now under construction, Nason said. “It makes perfect sense for me to open here. It’s something Sebago Lake really hasn’t had,” she said.

Nason expects to be able to seat about 50 customers inside the wine bar, and another 50 or more outside. The bar will feature live entertainment, such as local musician Flash Allen playing the baby grand piano as he did at the Gorham location. Nason also will serve food, including charcuterie and cheese board options.

The new Grand Central Wine Bar, located on the fourth and fifth floors of the Station Square Development, represents the culmination of owner Karen Nason’s efforts to bring a sophisticated New York-style jazz bar and cocktail lounge atmosphere to the greater Portland area. This successful effort represents Nason coming full circle, returning to the town where she grew up and to the area where she first began to explore her musical and culinary interests.

Soon you won’t have to take a plane, bus or train to get that New York City vibe. Grand Central Wine Bar at 7 Railroad Ave. in Gorham, modeled after Grand Central Terminal in New York City, is scheduled to open Nov. 21. The hours will be 3-10 p.m.

The bar has a full liquor license and will serve tapas prepared by executive chef Greg Cullinan. As for the design, look for a spiral staircase, big windows, a baby grand piano, and – soon – a clock “just like the one at Grand Central” in New York. Here’s a sneak preview of the space, thanks to owner Karen Nason, a Maine resident who moved back here from the New York City area to open her dream bar.

Born and raised in Gorham, singer and business owner Karen Nason is excited to be returning home…and in a big way. She will be opening Grand Central Wine Bar at 7 Railroad Avenue in the new Station Square building.

A Portland native who became a successful businesswoman in New York City and recently ran for mayor of Hoboken, N.J. is moving back to Maine to open a wine bar in Gorham.

Karen Nason – singer, entrepreneur and political activist – says she plans to open Grand Central Wine Bar in May at 7 Railroad Ave. The space has a spiral staircase, windows with grand views, and will be decorated “exactly like Grand Central Station,” she says, right down to the famous clock.