Must-see restaurants in Maine

  • Islesford Dock Restaurant

    Mount Desert Island

    This beautifully sited spot on Little Cranberry Island makes an impressive pledge: 'Dock's commitment to our customers is to serve lobster taken from the…

  • Pentagöet Restaurant

    Down East

    Reservations are essential at this art- and antique-filled dining room in the Pentagöet Inn. The menu is a showcase of high-quality, locally sourced…

  • Primo

    Midcoast Maine

    In a sprawling Victorian house a mile from downtown sits Primo, widely considered to be one of Maine's best restaurants. Awarded chef Melissa Kelly has…

  • Fore Street

    Portland

    Fore Street is the lauded, long-running restaurant many consider to be the originator of today's food obsession in Portland. Chef-owner Sam Hayward has…

  • Aragosta

    Down East

    The best restaurant for miles around, Aragosta serves delicious, painstakingly prepared dishes sourced locally from farm and sea. The seasonal menu is…

  • Havana

    Mount Desert Island

    First things first: order a refreshing mojito or caipirinha. Then you can take your time with the menu and the epic global wine list. Havana puts a Latin…

  • Tinder Hearth

    Down East

    In the countryside around 11 miles west of Blue Hill, Tinder Hearth attracts a loyal following for its delicious croissants, pain au chocolat, cinnamon…

  • Nunan's Lobster Hut

    Southern Maine Coast

    Just 2.3 miles east of Kennebunkport, Nunan's is the place to roll up your sleeves and flex your lobster-cracking muscles. Owners Richard and Keith Nunan…

  • Holy Donut

    Portland

    Doughnuts made from potato? Yep, and they're awesome. Local Maine potatoes and sweet potatoes go into the recipe for these doughnuts, creating a moist,…

  • Chase's Daily

    Midcoast Maine

    A true farm-to-table experience, this cafe-bakery-farmers market presents fabulous, all-vegetarian fare – plus wicked-good baked treats, from cauliflower…

  • Shannon's Unshelled

    Midcoast Maine

    If you like your lobster rolls simple, with no accoutrements but melted butter on the side, Shannon's is ideal. The meat is fresh and there's lots of it,…

  • Bayside American Cafe

    Portland

    This charming brunch and lunch spot is great for a rib-sticking meal to start your day. It uses steak in its corned beef and one of its eggs Benedict…

  • Central Provisions

    Portland

    Snug, redbrick Central Provisions is a consistent winner in the Portland haute cuisine stakes. Angle for a seat at the bar, overlooking the line chefs in…

  • Rose Foods

    Portland

    Life doesn't get much better than a good bagel, and the best bagels in Portland are served at Rose. There are about nine bagel sandwich options – we love…

  • Helen's Restaurant

    Down East

    Helen's is the kind of friendly locals' joint where waitresses call you 'hon,' but their food makes your standard American diner fare look like mud in…

  • Thurston's Lobster Pound

    Mount Desert Island

    Superfresh lobster and crab are the headliners at yellow-roofed Thurston's, overlooking Bass Harbor in Bernard. Tie on a bib and crack into a steamy,…

  • Seafolk

    Midcoast Maine

    This beautiful little cafe has great views of the harbor, strong, excellent coffee, and a stellar lineup of egg sandwiches, blueberry pie, delightful…

  • Mount Desert Island Ice Cream

    Mount Desert Island

    This post-dinner must is a cult hit for innovative ice-cream flavors such as stout beer with fudge, chocolate with wasabi, and blueberry-basil sorbet. The…

  • Me Lon Togo

    Midcoast Maine

    You can put West African cuisine on top of our 'Didn't expect that in small-town Maine' list, right alongside unseasonably warm winters. But along comes…

  • Gifford's

    Inland Maine

    At Gifford's, every ice-cream flavor sounds delicious, from Maine Wild Blueberry and Caramel Caribou to Moose Tracks, made with peanut-butter cups and…

  • Fog Bar & Cafe

    Midcoast Maine

    Industrial-chic aesthetic meets an experimental theater, and everything gets overlaid with maritime Maine ingredients and flourishes. The menu changes…

  • Burning Tree

    Mount Desert Island

    Dine on sun-warmed greens from the backyard gardens or locally caught halibut with green peppercorns at this intimate cottage restaurant, one of the…

  • Laan Xang

    Midcoast Maine

    Oh, of course: 'Laan Xang,' named for the medieval Lao kingdom of a 'Million Elephants and White Parasols' – totally expecting a restaurant to bear that…

  • OhNo Cafe

    Portland

    Actually, oh yes. This bare-bones operation looks like a corner store with a kitchen, because that's more or less what it is. The sandwiches here are…

  • Five Islands Lobster Company

    Midcoast Maine

    Imagine crab cakes with fresh dill-tartar sauce, golden fried clams and lobsters dripping with melted butter. The food at this wharfside lobster shack, 13…

  • Palace Diner

    Southern Maine Coast

    This 15-seat diner is the oldest in Maine, and it's lasted so long for a reason: the breakfast and lunch dishes are totally on point. Buttermilk pancakes,…

  • Clam Shack

    Southern Maine Coast

    Standing in line at this teeny gray hut perched on stilts above the river is a time-honored Kennebunks summer tradition. Order a box of fat, succulent,…

  • Terlingua

    Portland

    This fascinating gem serves up small-batch barbecue dinners starting at 5pm, and a menu inspired by the Southwest and the Caribbean at all other times…

  • Red's Eats

    Midcoast Maine

    The lines for this US 1 seafood shack, just west of the downtown bridge, slow down summer traffic so much that the local government has been trying to…

  • Arborvine

    Down East

    One of the most famous restaurants on the peninsula, Arborvine serves up farm-to-table delicacies in an elegant 1823 Cape-style house. Start with Bagaduce…

  • Cabbage Island Clambakes

    Midcoast Maine

    A prized Maine tradition: a scenic cruise from Boothbay Harbor to the small, family-owned Cabbage Island, where a traditional clambake provides a…

  • Wannawaf

    Midcoast Maine

    You're not missing the translation of some obscure form of Central European cuisine: Wannawaf is just midcoast Mainer for 'Wanna waffle?' In this case,…

  • MC Perkins Cove

    Southern Maine Coast

    MC Perkins Cove wins raves for its casual but exquisite way with local seafood. Start with Maine peekytoe crab cakes and move on to the renowned lobster…

  • Suzuki Sushi Bar

    Midcoast Maine

    The super-fresh seafood of midcoast Maine is put to exquisite use at Suzuki’s, where the sushi chefs are women (in a field dominated by men). Sashimi and…

  • DuckFat

    Portland

    DuckFat is famous for its fries cooked in (yes) duck fat. On the right night, they're shatteringly crisp, with fluffy centers. Dipping sauces (truffle…

  • Scallop roll with black tobiko caviar, mayonnaise and sprouts.

    Miyake

    Portland

    This sushi bar offers some of the freshest fish in Portland – and that's saying a lot. Order à la carte or choose one of chef Masa Miyake's omakase (chef…

  • Cushnoc

    Inland Maine

    Pizzas and craft beers make a winning combination at this handsomely designed new space on Water St. Wood-fired pizzas come topped with delicious…

  • River Drivers Restaurant & Pub

    North Maine Woods

    At this handsomely designed restaurant at the NEOC Twin Pines Camp, enjoy upscale comfort fare (blackened haddock tacos, vegetarian lasagna, pork with…

  • Cafe Miranda

    Midcoast Maine

    Kid-friendly family restaurants have a reputation for being a little unimaginative, but this definitely isn't the case at Cafe Miranda. An old house with…

  • Appalachian Trail Cafe

    North Maine Woods

    On Millinocket's sleepy main street, this is the best place in town to fuel up before hitting the trails in Baxter State Park. Join truckers, thru-hikers…