First visit upon recommendation from Luke's Lobster server for W buck a shuck happy hour…read more Already packed when we arrived at 4:30ish, but back " speakeasy" room opened up, and we met local friends who didn't even know about the place! Attentive staff who kept our beers filled and dozens of Arcadia (or Acadia?) oysters coming. Pretzel bites were great as well.

Another awesome Wednesday $1.00 oyster night at Blyth & Burrows. This time Emmaline & Olivia joined…read moreus. 48 oysters, 12 shrimp, 2 lobster rolls 2 jonah crab a mocktail, 2 wine & a regular cocktail. This time we had a table for 4 with cushions. I also brought in a cushion so my ass didn't get sore like it did last time sitting on a hard wooden stool. Our waitress today was not as engaging as our last waitperson from a few weeks ago. The hostess is awesome just as she was last time. The only thing that wasn't great were the Jonah crab; extremely small & not the best tasting. I have had great Jonah crabs in the past while living in Florida. See you next go around

Had a lovely Galicia Spain wine flight (can also make alterations for other wines on the menu if…read morepreferred) with thorough explanations provided for each wine and the process involved for creating the wine and mixture based on the region. Intimate lowkey atmosphere with peaceful music for a quiet speaking ambiance, absolutely will recommend to others on their visit to Portland!

We have been to Grippy many times over the last few years and absolutely love the vibes! A wine bar…read morebut more an experience, from the walls of wine to the knowledge of Lindsey this spot is spectacular. Further, I reached out to Grippy to procure a pairing for a private dinner celebrating a Birthday. Lindsey went above and beyond to coordinate with the Chef, find a great mix of wines that paired PERFECTLY with all courses we had! Cannot give a higher kudos and recommendation for Grippy Tannins to anyone looking for a wine stop in Portland!

The staff is delightful and great you as you enter Angoor. They are excited to show you have to…read moreuse the facilities to try out their different wines and order snacks. The bar is clean, modern and the machines are fun. It was great to be able to get small servings of different wines and then a larger serving when you found something you like. But I found the wine servings to be expensive for the wines they were offering, and the selection had a limited variety that did not cover most of the wines that I prefer. So, I am still looking for the perfect wine bar in Portland.

I think Angoor's sweet spot is going to be with: a) people…read morewho know nothing about wine but are curious about learning more, b) people who know they like wine but don't want to spend money on full bottles to find their favorite, when a place like this offers "sample" sizes, c) longtime locals looking for something novel, d) bachelorette parties, e) corporate day trips, f) tourists staying at the very nearby Residence Inn. THE SPACE I agree with other reviewers both on Yelp and other platforms (sometimes we think what's being said here is isolated, when it's not): it's an immaculate space, yes, but also very sterile. There's no character or charm or distinct personality atmospherically: it's a white room with white marble tables and seven mini silver "kegoraters" (for lack of a better explanation) that dispense the wines. THE MENU When I visited, all the wines offered were listed on a packet of stapled together 8x11 papers (that had been previously written on by other customers): the font was tiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiny and there was SO MUCH information to read about each one. I wonder if there's a more pithy way to share this because it's overwhelming as is - I would think especially to people new to wine. THE EXPERIENCE When you arrive you hand over your credit card and you are given a wine card. Walk up to any of the dispensers, tap your wine card on the machine (there's a little sensor on the left hand side by the first screen of the machine), then select the size pour you want (2, 4, or 6 oz) from the screen above the wine you want. The wine comes out *VERY* quickly after you make your decision, so make sure your wine glass is under the nozzle it needs to be. When you're finished, walk up to the counter, hand them the wine card, and they'll charge the credit card you gave them!

Holy cow beer lists of beer lists. Great atmosphere for a bar. Basement Bar with great food faire…read more The bartenders are great at making the rounds and giving flavor tasting. We enjoyed a couple pints. Samuel Smith Winter Welcome and Naiad Boline Black Farmhouse Ale.

Novare Res is a convenient and inviting space to get beers with friends while out in Portland. I…read morealways enjoy my time drinking at Novare. The menu is expansive and inclusive, but ovewhelming and the food that I've had the few times I've ventured that far has not been as good as I was anticipating. I have heard good things about their food from other people though, so I guess I'll just have to keep trying!

EXCELLENT pastas & dishes, and perfect for a night out! Reservations are highly recommended - we…read morecame on a Friday night during the off-season and had about a 25 min wait still. Via Vecchia was definitely worth the wait, and this was one of the most surprising restaurants during our trip. We ordered the brussel sprouts, grilled octopus, campanelle, and radiatori. The brussel sprouts was the one dish that I was most hesitant about, seeing that it was paired with a blueberry agrodolce. Not a typical combination, but this ended up being a favorite. The sweetness & tartness of the sauce worked SO well with the sprouts - it's an excellent dish. The octopus had the perfect char, and all of the flavor pairings were really cohesive. I had never heard of either of the pastas, but I loved the textures of both. The campanelle with nduja cream was delicious, but did get to be a little heavy about halfway through. Radiatori with bolognese was a classic but well executed dish. Service is attentive without being overbearing. Prices are super reasonable.

Note: if you come in the winter (which includes March) there will be no ivy growing on the building…read more. The Inside is gorgeous. The mocktails and cocktails are truly inspired. The food was very small plates for the price. You'll leave feeling not stuffed, just right. But the American in you will feel like you may not have got your moneys worth. They didn't offer Parmesan and I felt our food looked different than the picture we had seen. Service was fast and kind. What did bother me was that despite the fact the place was mostly open, they sat everyone right next to, practically on top of eachother, and this definitely made things feel less intimate and more like a crappy Applebees. It was Good, I would come back, but rarely.

Dinner at Central Provisions was such a standout experience. The small plates format made it fun to…read moretry a variety of dishes, and everything felt thoughtful and well-executed. The flavors were creative without being overcomplicated, and each dish had something that made it memorable. The atmosphere struck a perfect balance--lively but still intimate enough to enjoy conversation. Service was attentive and knowledgeable, with great recommendations that really elevated the meal. Definitely one of those places you leave already thinking about what you'll order next time.

A unique and interesting place to visit. Nice atmosphere, you can see how the cooking is done if…read moreyou sit at the bar. Every dish is small plate, though many of them are as expensive as an entree elsewhere. We tried the tuna, very nicely done, melt in your mouth and good flavor. The cornbread was warm and flavorful, but I think there is too much salt in the cornbread especially the butter already have flavored. The beet salad is nice at the beginning until I realized there was crazy amount of garlic. The lamp shank taste fine, rare to see lamp in a curry flavor, but I wish the portion is bigger.

Had a life changing little night here as a solo traveler! Came here by recommendation of my tour…read moreguide earlier in the day and had a blast! Unassuming front but a bar with an amazing atmosphere, great service and yes $5 drinks! This is a true hidden gem and I'm grateful to have gotten to experience it

We LOVE Lincolns have come back multiple times and the fact everything is $5 is amazing. Easy to…read morecash out and that being said it is just CASH ONLY but totally worth it! If you can find the spot it's worth it

Everything about this place is lit!…read more Simple but refined, popped in on 4/20 for some grub after celebrating the day. They were busy, 30 min wait, out of a few things but not crippling. It was busy. I had the pulled pork Viking style, side of buffalo dip, my partner had a 6" glizzy ballpark style with side baked beans. They were both fire!! Service was spot on, super friendly I'll be back, grateful I work down the street several days a week!

The restaurant felt more like a bar, which it was also. The food was delightful and the portions…read morewere more than enough. They were temporarily short staff on the day we visited. However the food was delivered very promptly. I'm a lover of hot dog and have traveled a lot, each time visiting a different hot dog establishment in each city and state. The Thirsty Pig was chosen by my wife and as usual she did a remarkable job of finding a place that serves hot dogs and toppings. This place was delicious and the first time I have ever heard of the type of hotdog I ate. I would do it again, the food was great and the environment was very pleasant.

Scales has really solidifed its place as my favorite restaurant in Portland, and one of my top 10…read morerestaurants of all time. Everything here is just SO good, even across multiple visits over many years. I always love that their menu incorporates seasonal flavors, while keeping their all time favorites. We've tried a number of dishes here over the years, but favorites will always include the cloverleaf rolls, grilled octopus, crab fritters, scallops, and the bavette steak. All are excellent & flavors are well balanced. On a recent trip, we tried the steamers and seafood stew. The steamers are huge and the broth is absolutely delicious. The seafood stew is tasty, rich & bold in flavors, but does get a little heavy and salty after a while. Scallops are a must - the spring pea cream had perfect freshness & earthiness that balanced out the salt from the bacon & scallops. Service here is always really attentive. The restaurant is also beautiful - perfect for a date night, girl's night out, business dinner, or even just a nicer family dinner out.

Unfortunately Scales did not live up to the hype for us. While we were seated right away at 7pm for…read moreour reservation, the rest of the service during the evening could have been better. Our server described to us the specials for appetizers but never said anything about entree specials (maybe there weren't any?). We ordered the cloverleaf rolls, a cup of clam chowder, a cup of lobster bisque, and the maine mussels before our entrees. Both the clam chowder and the lobster bisque were just ok.. nothing special. The bisque was too sweet and had very little lobster. The mussels were the highlight of the meal. The sauce of cider, mustard and dill was very interesting and had deep flavor. The bread served with the mussels was also delicious. The cloverleaf rolls were great too, but perhaps a little too soggy/greasy from the butter at the bottom of the skillet. For our entrees we had the scallops and the halibut. The scallops were delicious- nicely seared and served with mushrooms and a green pea sauce which was bright and flavorful. The halibut however was not my favorite. The fish itself was cooked very well with a crispy skin, but it was swimming in brown butter and hazelnuts and lacked depth of flavor. It also seemed like an odd choice of flavors for a spring menu. It was served with potatoes that needed a bit more salt. We were too full for dessert and also didn't finish our meals. We sat around for a fairly long time not touching our meals without the server checking on us. Eventually we had to flag them down to get boxes and pay the check. While the ambiance was very nice, for the price and the reputation we expected more. Everything else we have eaten in Portland so far has been fantastic so it was a bit of a letdown.

Tried this for the first time the other week for restaurant week. Super cute spot with only a few…read moretables and a couple seats at the bar. The service was very well done. We got the wine pairing too and it was great. The food was tasty. I will be back to try not during restaurant week.

Stopped by on a Wednesday for Restaurant Week. Firstly, they actually had a bargain priced special…read moremenu, unlike most others that amount to a free cup of miso soup. Respect! Now for the food. Excellent! Fresh and nutty beet salad, fork soft short rib, and best heavenly flan in Maine. The homemade fococcia was deprived of enough olive oil, but they were quick to supply more. It's a tiny but welcoming, romantic space with a 4 seater bar and sweet service. A nice thing about the well-curated, expensive, not extensive, wine list is that half bottles are available at exactly half the price of a bottle, not marked up. The only downside is that all the prices are above average for restaurants of similar stature. Took too long to discover this oasis!