It's ten o'clock, and the place is starting to empty out. We sit at the bar and order a glass of wine. We enjoy the soup and then the olive oil-poached salmon with deconstructed tapenade, tomato jam, and buttermilk basil emulsion. The fish melts in my mouth. Evans tells me a bit about his background.

"I got into cooking out of trade school. I was studying to be an electrician. One day I walked by a restaurant, and a guy leaned out the window and said, ‘I need a cook!' I loved being surrounded by food all day. I was nineteen, and was eating lobster and prime rib every day!"

He grew up near Worcester, Massachusetts. After cooking for a few years, he became "disenchanted" and began doing kitchen renovations. "Two years later, I went to Hawaii and worked on a cruise ship. I saw teamwork, met European chefs, and thought seriously about cooking as a profession for the first time."

Evans has worked at many restaurants over the years (the Inn at Little Washington in Virginia and The French Laundry in Napa Valley, California), but he is essentially self-taught. He opened Hugo's seven years ago and feels committed to Maine. "We're here to stay," he says.

A little past 11 p.m., he tells me it's fine to take off. But everyone is still in the kitchen checking supplies and organizing their stations. Nancy is at the bar eating a salad and the trout. I step back into the kitchen to say thanks and goodnight to the crew. Truth be told, I'm exhausted. I feel like I've run a marathon without training. My legs ache from standing up for nearly ten hours, but I'm happy and filled with delicious food. As I drive home, I realize this team will wake up early tomorrow morning and do it all over again. I'll be at my desk, dreaming about my career as a biscuit baker. I'll also be dreaming about that soup, and the salmon, and the banana cream pie.

Hugo's, 88 Middle Street, Portland, Maine. A four-course prix-fixe dinner is $68. The Chef's Tasting Menu must be ordered in advance. Hugo's serves dinner Tuesday through Thursday from 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m., and on Friday and Saturday from 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Call (207) 774-8538 for reservations.

Beginning this winter, Hugo's will move away from the prix-fixe menu and develop a new menu that Evans calls "a fresh, new concept." Check www.hugos.net for further details.

Duck Fat, 43 Middle Street, Portland, Maine, (207) 774-8080.

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