last night we went to Magissa for dinner. First let me start by saying I am Greek and a very good…read morecook. When it comes to Greek food we are picky. It was Greek food with a modern flair. It was creative and delish. we had Calamari with a basil olio and of course I asked for more lemon, hey I'm Greek. It was tender and very yummy, we had a salad as well and that was delishious as well. We ordered the lamb chops with greens (horta) and potatoes. the lamb was from upstate Maine and was very fresh and cooked perfectly, the potatoes were crispy. The restuarant was in a nice homey neighborhood and we found street parking no problem. The restaurant is lovely inside, light and airy with an island feel. the waitstaff was very nice and friendly and our meals and drinks came out in perfect time. we met Nancy the owner who we became fast friends. she smart dedicated and creative. If you want a great meal, in a lovely cool place go to Magessa, the word means witch and you will be bewitched by this place and its food, you'll want to go back.

I was incredibly lucky to attend Magissas first Drag Brunch! What an amazing experience. They went…read moreall out with Mamma Mia inspired decorations and the atmosphere was stunning. Great drag queens hosting the party and kept it lively, even getting all the staff and customers to dance. I ordered the greek shakshuka and it was delicious! perfect runny egg and a great dish with the naan addition. I got a glass of the house white and the house red wine and both were divine! I hope they continue to do these fun brunches, the staff was amazing and it was such a great time.

We finished our excursion at the pier earlier than anticipated and needed a brief respite before…read moreour dinner reservation. Wind blown and certainly not dressed for a proper establishment such as this. The rest of the spots along this cobblestoned drag were more like sticky bar type spots. Despite our exterior, the service was super kind and the bathroom - impeccable. Loved the hooks under the counters to organize our shopping bags. The zero proof cocktail (Birkin) and sparkling rose (Woody) - refreshing. Felt very modern French chic.

First let me say I think my expectations were too high but given the rave reviews, I was shocked at…read morehow unimpressed I was. I think that the hallmark of an excellent restaurant is being able to do the basics well and this is where Elizabeth's fell flat for me. The oysters and shrimp cocktail were delicious but the lobster soufflé was lacking actual lobster and the duck confit was so over cooked that it was tough and dry. I did not know it was possible to over cook duck this much both my husband and I were shocked. The service was ok, nothing stellar. Again, I think our expectations were too high but for the price point and the amount of stellar reviews, I do expect to not have dry duck. One thing did meet our expectations and that was how chic the space is. A lot of thought was put into the vibe and the carefully curated space.

This restaurant is a must visit in Portland. From the ambiance to the service and the flavors…read more Absolutely worth it! Our waitress perfectly described the wine list so we could find the one that was best for us and she was spot on! The food was seriously delicious! The presentation on the pesto pasta left some to be desired, but the texture and flavors more than made up for it. The portion was small for the price on the pesto pasta. The ravioli with the truffles - holy yum! That was actually a big portion for ravioli. The only thing that wasn't incredible was the tiramisu because it tasted just a little dry. It's certainly not terrible, but compared to everything else it just didn't level up. Go here. It's incredibly delicious and the service is phenomenal. The only thing that bothered me was that the receipt listed the server as Pool H. I'm assuming that means the servers all pool their tips together which is not ok. Our waitress was so great and I would hate to not see her benefit. I also didn't love the surcharge for health insurance and bread service - it seemed like an odd combination.

I have walked past Solo Italiano many times over the years and just kept on walking. In a city…read morewith so many great restaurants, Solo Italiano "looked" too tourist-y, too mundane. But my spouse won last year's Oscar predictions and he picked so - Solo Italiano we went. You know what? This is a serious restaurant churning out some very good and inventive Italian dishes. I was 100% wrong when I wrote it off as tourist-y. There, I can admit it. We started off with appetizers of beet salad and Bangs Island Mussels. The beat salad was solid. The Mussels were a true reflection of great Italian cooking - simple ingredients, prepared perfectly and presented beautifully. The Mussel sauce was white wine and butter and delicious. Text book prepared and text book good. It hit the mark. My main course was the Za-atar rubbed lamb chops and they were out of this world. Medium rare and very flavorful. My spouse got the scallops. Beautifully done but the portion size was too small for the price. I felt the same way about my lamb chops. The dining room was just okay, nothing more. In fact, the atmosphere is a bit too casual for the prices of the food. There was mandatory charge on our bill for "health insurance and bread service." It is an odd combination, right? Those 2 things simply do not go together. Generally, I hate when restaurants add this sort of service charge to my bill and this one is no different. Just increase your prices to provide employee benefits. But this combination of health insurance for the workers with the bread service was really hard to swallow. For dessert, we got the cookie sampler and the shortbread is among the best I have ever had. This restaurant is a bit of a contradiction to me. Some really good points, some bad points. Will I go back - do I recommend it? Probably not. Solo Italiano just does not stack up well to the other great restaurants in Portland.

We came in to grab a quick drink and sat at the bar. The bartender made our drinks well and quick,…read moreand they were delicious. The vibe of the restaurant was neat and would consider going back there to eat.

Came here while on a trip to Portland! Saw mixed ratings on Yelp but decided to stop in anyway…read more So glad we did! We had a lovely time with the sweetest server. Food was so good, I took it back to our hotel to save for a midnight snack. Between two, we each enjoyed a cocktail, shared the house foccacia (so pillowy and soo good), and ordered the bolognese and the spaghetti with meatball. We can confidently say, we had more than enough food. The bolognese was so meaty and hearty but I'd have to say the spaghetti was my favorite. I really enjoyed the flavors and it had the right balance of salty and sweet for my palate.

NOBODY TOLD ME. Nobody told me that Nom Cafe is one of the best spots for brunch in Portland's Arts…read moreDistrict, with some of the yummiest and most unique breakfast food? A Balkan-inspired menu? Come on. I finally tried it and I'm already counting down until I go back. I was expecting casual counter service and your typical breakfast food. I was so wrong. We were greeted by the warmest staff, who let us pick our own table. We sat by the windows, which was perfect for the morning sunlight; exactly what we wanted. The menu is eastern European with some Spanish touches (think huevos rotos and patatas bravas). Books featuring Bulgarian photography and other eastern European countries were scattered around the space, it was a lovely touch. The service was just as great as the food. My hot coffee came in the cutest mug and our waitress kept refilling it without being asked. The mekitsi and parzhen were phenomenal, with the parzhen being my favorite. The spreads they came with... I wanted to bottle those and take them home. My husband had the patatas bravas and I had the shakshuka, and we added kyufteh to both, this incredible in-house sausage that was 10/10 (it was a little spicy!). Everything was phenomenal and the portions were generous. If you're not feeling adventurous, they also have traditional eggs and omelettes, all with a little twist and somewhat elevated. Their drinks menu was impressive too if you're into a fancy coffee. Can't recommend this place enough. I shall be back!

HIGHLY recommend for a breakfast/brunch option. Wife wanted to try Bayside cafe for our last…read morebreakfast before heading to the airport on a Monday, but at 10:25 they had an hour wait, we said nah & walked 7mins up to Nom where there was no wait & I think it was the far superior choice. The inside is super cute & cozy. They have books about Bulgaria scattered around & on the back of the menus there are a few common questions about some of the menu item names. I love when a restaurant educates diners in addition to feeding us food from their home country so kudos there. I had the shakshuka which TBH is the best one I've ever had anywhere. I even make it at home sometimes using locally grown tomatoes and I can't touch this recipe here. Literally a blessing that they give you some toasted bread to use to clean out the skillet so you don't leave any behind. We ordered the mekitsi to share as a starter and boy was that good. I'm not the biggest sweets eater, and I usually don't eat breakfast except for when I'm traveling, but this was one of my favorite things I've had in recent memory. Perfectly prepared, crumpets stuffed lightly with feta cheese, drizzled in honey with local berries. You HAVE to get these. My wife ordered one of the specials which was local main blueberry waffles. They must have been delicious because she finished the entire thing and I don't think I heard a peep out of her while I was housing my shakshuka. Service was great I feel like Jess checked on us the appropriate number of times & she timed it perfectly to also drop in as I was reacting to how great each dish was. I heard an older couple next to us discussing why they had not came to eat here previously over some of the more heavily traffic places they have been to in town while they were visiting and I share their sentiment.

On a recent visit to Maine, we had dinner with friends at Douro. It was a wonderful experience that…read moreexceeded everyone's expectations. VIBE: The dining areas are urbane white spaces with expansive windows and spare decor -- European Modern. Appropriate music played at a comfortable level. The place was about full, so crowd noise was not an issue. SERVICE: Staff were uniformly cordial, polished and attentive. Food pacing was perfect. FOOD: Everyone was happy with the food. All dishes were perfectly cooked and nicely presented. SImple green salads were exemplary; greens were wonderfully crisp, fresh, and attractive. Tempura romano beans were a hit, perfectly crisp yet tender. Olives were OK, though more sweetly vinegary than I prefer. A swordfish special was the star of the show -- fresh, cooked just right, and served on a delicious eggplant tapenade that complemented the fish perfectly. One diner spoke highly of the Dover sole. There was a nice selection of regional wines (including ports and sherries, of course), nicely categorized on the menu by taste profile. I am very stingy with my 5* ratings, but our dinner at Douro was easily my favorite of this year. I only wish I lived around here so I could be a frequent Douro diner.

First impressions were: this is an odd layout, why is one of the main decor elements cheap looking…read morefake plants, and service leaves something to be desired as it took a few mins to even receive water after being seated, we ran out of water during our meal and waited a while for refills, hostesses watched me struggle with full hands of to go boxes (no bag was offered which we try to be eco friendly but it would've been a nice touch) to grab the door on my way out, and a few other small things. We were excited to come celebrate a birthday at Douro, and we appreciated the handwritten card for the occasion. The table we were given was to the far right when you enter and it seemed tricky for our server to keep an eye on our needs with the positioning of our table on the floor. Overall the experience left a lot to be desired and felt very overpriced for the quality. Our group of 4 all agreed that the food was fine but nothing special, the service was below par for the price point, and we probably wouldn't be eager to return - if we did it would maybe be for a drink and a small plate but not for dinner or any special occasions. I want to note that the staff was very friendly and hard working but seemed set up for failure with the odd layout and/or with the staffing ratios. In addition to the dishes pictured, our group tried the special (halibut) the chicken dish with a side of fries, and a chocolate mousse dessert. A pet peeve of mine is putting an item on the menu "potatas bravas" and making it nothing like the original (patatas bravas). Just name it something different because twice fried potatoes with a creamy aioli like dip is not patatas bravas. Our friends we dined with visited Portugal recently and felt that the Portuguese influences here were loose at best. Not sure how the recent press was attained but Douro was a flop for us.

If you're looking for a VERY strong martini for around $12 bucks... Bread & Olive has it. They're…read moreopen until 11pm; annnnnd, I'm pretty sure they serve food that late too (which is a rarity in this city). The bartender/server/basically-everything the night I came was hustling. She was handling a room full of people, including a very large party, all by herself and was gooooooooooood at it. She made my martini extra filthy dirty; she had all the answers for all our questions. For me, there's not much of an atmosphere or vibe or ambiance. It feels like it's catering to an older crowd who doesn't need that, just a place they can have a drink off peninsula and be a little loud about it. It's definitely not a destination spot for anyone looking up "12/24/48 hours in Portland, ME" so if you want to avoid those tourists altogether, this would be a safe spot. Also, if you're vegan, there's not really much to eat. I mean, there's olives, but they're purple (and, I don't know, but I think the green ones are always better)!

Stopped in at Bread and Olive for a couple of glasses of wine and some appetizers, and it did not…read moredisappoint. Our server, Tina, was fantastic--attentive and quick, making sure we had everything we needed. The wine was delicious, and the appetizers were just as impressive. We tried the scallops and a mushroom pâté, which was absolutely amazing--true standouts. This is a cozy, intimate spot with a short but quality menu, making it ideal for a quiet weekday meal if you're craving something homemade and comforting.

If you're interested in wandering - go to WANDER! We had the mussels, the filet and the duck pasta…read more The food was delicious and the service was exceptional. It may be far from where I live, but I will be back. I will be back!

Had a family meal - indoors due to the cold weather…read more We especially enjoyed the Vignarola carbonara - rich but not too heavy, and the zucchini was firm as it should be not mushy. The smashburgers and fries were a hit as well. The vegetable Wellington was delicious- really didn't know what to expect but it was a cool take on a tired classic. The wines were reasonably priced - we had a Mas Josephine Côtes du Rhône, which paired nicely with the pasta.