Maine: casual dining up & down the coast

Portland Lobster Company – A store clerk pointed us in the direction of the Portland Lobster Company &, like most recommendations that come from locals, it was fantastic. So fantastic, in fact, that it was not only the first meal of our trip, we also made a special pit stop on the way to the airport to make it our last. The lobster rolls are served on warm, buttery rolls with sweet, buttery lobster meat & buttery corn on the cob (butter + butter + butter = a great lunch). The seating is all outdoors & on the waterfront – picnic tables take up every inch of space on the dock. During the summer they have live music to get your toes tapping all day on Saturday & Sunday. In addition to the great food & atmosphere, Portland Lobster Company has a great number of local beers on tap & a ridiculously cute pager system to let you know when your food is ready (they’re in the shape of lobsters!).

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Cappy’s Chowder House -We stumbled upon Cappy’s during a stroll around Camden on our first evening there. It’s easy to stumble upon, since it’s right on the corner of the main drag of downtown & we assumed good things, based on the crowd spilling out its door. Later in the day, we returned for lunch &, even at 2pm, the place was packed. Cappy’s is all about comfort food served in a comfortable atmosphere. We shared a small mug of chowder at this Camden institution & enjoyed our sandwiches in the cramped, festive restaurant. Despite being packed to the brim, the service was friendly, if a bit slow.

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Fresh – We actually cancelled our reservations at another restaurant when we walked by Fresh & saw light, inviting food & a super cute outdoor dining space. Describing themselves as “Camden’s only American-Mediterranean bistro” might be a way to get tourists in the door, but sells short the amazing seafood that Fresh serves up. Our lobster spring rolls were handmade & stuffed full of juicy lobster meat. My New England Seafood Cioppino was exactly as it should be – steaming, buttery & fresh – while my husband’s chicken (he was getting a little tired of lobster by this point), was a welcome reprieve from all the seafood we had been eating. It was a long, relaxed, different dinner. After days of lobster rolls & quick-serve restaurants, different was a very good thing.