I can't believe I hadn't posted this review, I must have left my head at that hotel we stayed at the night before. The Governor's Restaurant was located in a small town, as we was taking our students to Camp...I knew their had to be a mom and pops dinner in the area. Oh yeah, my palette and saliva co-signed my suspicions. I promise I feel behind because my keen sense of awareness told me to be on the look out for advertisement because I know what I knew. Have y'all ever heard that cops and bus drivers know the best places to eat? FACTS. Oh yeah I was going to find a Dinner like a squirrel looking for nuts. We drop our groups off and he and I approached each other with the same thing in mind...FOOD. Just like twins, we both knew there was a diner somewhere's in that them parts and just like hunters we was after our prey. After we exited the woods our keen sense of knowing what we knew was heighten and without obstruction. Within 2 miles, there was the Governors Diner billboard and off to grandmas house we went. To add to our delight, there was more than enough motorcoach bus parking available. We go in and as always the hostess was relieved it was just us two. We ordered EVERYTHING our stomach craved, the sweet tea made me grin uncontrollably in a sinister type of way. First came out the hot rolls, I told my coworker I didn't want any until he spread the butter across the middle. I don't know what was in those rolls but I ended up eating an entire one knowing the carbs and meal was against my waistline. The food was just as expected of a small town diner including the portion size. When we finally came up for air, just like twins completing each other sentences planned on our return for breakfast the next morning. The price was as expected, service and ambiance the same. They offered deserts on daily special which we could not pass up. The next morning, we was 2nd and 3rd in line patiently waiting for some good ole country breakfast. Of course The Governor's Diner didn't disappoint on their country breakfast, we hurt ourselves and knew it would be a lonnng way back. Have any of you couldn't decide on what to order, so you ask your person what they was going to get? And just when you think you know what to order, they change their order you change yours then you compromise and say ok you get that and I'll get that, gimme some of yours and I'll give you some of mines? That's exactly what we did and yumm to the yumm yummy...happy happy happy. Yes yes yes yes yuuzzzz! read more

See all

My husband and I enjoyed our food. My kids liked the french toast and the toll house sundae. My dad had an meat lovers omelette in which all the meat inside was literally black it was so burnt. My moms corned beef hash was burnt and inedible. My mom told waitress about burnt food and she didn't care. Just said ok. Did not refill our drinks. Baked goods were great though. So were home fries. read more

The food was horrible, I tried to give it a chance but everything tasted like it came from a box. You can get the same quality food from kfc. The service was mediocre, and the place smelled a bit off as well, we sat at the first booth so the whole time it smelled. Do not spend your hard earned money here... read more

Horrible service came in for lunch for with friends. They end up not showing. The waitress totally ignored me the whole time. Never refilled my tea had to go up to the register to get my check. Never an apology or anything. Never will return read more

Service is good. Food is nothing to write home about. I had a BLT sandwich that was mostly bread and mayo. It had 2 slices of bacon and a thin slice of tomato with a little lettuce. Not the best food quality but on the plus side it's very cheap. read more

Our nephew from New Jersey was visit, and we promised some good traditional Maine food before sending him home. We can to Governors and he had a lobster roll and fried whole belly clams (no strips!). They were both perfect! Classic Maine diner plus traditional Maine seafood! read more

Holy moly do they have some great desserts here. Get a chocolate no bake and a cream puff. Trust me. You're goin to love it.

Welcome to my 500th review on Yelp! I think we have been to this branch four times since we moved back to Maine, twice for meals and the other times to pick up stuff from their bakery items. For lunch when we went I had the Reuben sandwich and it was fine. Most recently we went to breakfast and because Between us my wife and I do pretty well at making many common breakfasts, I usually try to find something less traditional for breakfast in restaurants. Governor's menu is not too varied that way. So I did the Breakfast Wrap and it was fine, especially after the server asked if I wanted sour cream with it. Restaurants tends to leave sandwiches a bit dry, I guess because it is easier to add a condiment than remove one if the customer wants it. The wrap came with home fries which were also fine. My wife had the corned beef hash and wasn't happy to how the meat part of it seemed undercooked and she left some on the plate, where usually we bring leftovers home with us. They mostly have good simple Mel's there, especially for lunch and dinner, and I am sure we will be back there for that someday. read more

See all

Possibly masqueradeing around as a regular diner but more of a fast food restaurant without the drive thru. Not sure if they just don't change the oil in the fryer regularly, but the food tasted old like it was cooked ahead and left a "float" time ordered. Tried something more creative, but that was a mistake. Probably best to stick with a cheeseburger here. Nothing wrong with the service, inside is worn down a bit. I just can't recommend this place, which is too bad, cause the food looks good, sounds good, but just isn't. read more

See all

We have a good experiences here. From several takeout meals to two dine in meals. Take out was solid - food is consistent, nothing fancy, but better than most fast food. While it's technically not fast food, the food is ready pretty darn quickly. We have had burgers, hot dogs, sandwiches, seafood and several of the desserts. Burgers are a good size with a generous side portion of french fries (if that's what you order). I have also upgraded to onion rings and they are very generous with those portions as well. The onion rings were ok. The onions were a bit thicker and more crunchy than I prefer, but the coating as good, if it didn't slide off. I LOVED the sweet potato waffle fries. Those were really great! The clam tenders, not bellies, but more of a clam strip were great! I got the large serving and only ate half of my tenders and half of the onion rings. They reheat great in the airfryer. If you are getting a burger or hot dog, for a couple of dollars more, get the blue plate special - you definitely get more for your money and if you are taking out, it can easily be split amongst two people. We are still blown away by that deal. The seafood platter was very generous - it has whole belly clams, which can add or take away from the experience, unfortunately, they were extra "clam flat tasting" recently, so they did not enhance the experience. The dinner rolls - YUM!!! They are hefty, though, chewy and heavy....don't fill up, because it is easy to do so. I love their peanut butter balls. One of my favorite desserts here. If you are in the area and want decent food for decent price and you are with a large party - they can easily accommodate you. Service was 10 stars each time!! They are super friendly and efficient. read more

See all

This is a hotel restaurant with fairly tight booth seating. The food was good enough and the service was friendly but nothing about it made us want to go back again. read more

See all

Awful, dirty and smelly, I should have left then but we were starving. The pie was ok but everything else was not. We've been at a Airbnb for 3 days so I've been making breakfast which I should have done today too. An hour wait for simple food. 2 eggs and one slice of toast came out $5.99 I asked for potatoes because there were none on the plate and that was a $4.49 added... so 2 eggs, 1 slice of toast, and precut, frozen, fried potatoes =$10.48. My daughter's sausage and cheese egg white omelet had undercooked sausage. My sister's egg sandwich was slimy. read more

Governor's Restaurant & Bakery - Way overpriced for the poor quality... 2 eggs w 1 slice of toast, & frozen potatoes $10.48. hour wait for this baaaassssiiiicccccc food. - Bakeries Near Me - Waterville, Maine

See all

I rarely ever have had a bad meal at Governor's, but this one was particularly good. Let's start with the rolls- my kids fight over them they are so soft, warm, and yummy. Don't bypass these! My husband had the pick 2 fried seafood with shrimp, scallops and Cole slaw and onion rings as sides. I had a baked stuffed haddock with newburg sauce with side salad ($2.25 upcharge) and coleslaw. We love onion rings and these homemade ones are great- not greasy and big rings. The batter is same as the seafood, and again, it was not greasy with a good amount of food. My fish was the winner of the day though. A large piece of perfectly cooked haddock with just the right amount of stuffing and sauce. The stuffing was flavorful but not too much of it to overwhelm the star. The fish was flaky and moist- no dryness whatsoever. Their coleslaw is some of the best around - classic mayo base, that I always get. The salad was basic, but large enough to bring home, add some chicken, and eat the next day for lunch. We finished off the meal with a Sunday special - $3 piece of homemade pie. We chose chocolate peanut butter. The crust could have par baked a little longer, but it was still rich and creamy filling. The food came out quick and our young server was sweet and attentive. This location is conveniently located right off i95 and has plenty of seating. Tip: don't miss their cases of homemade giant pastries, pies, and cakes. We have purchased from them for birthday parties and it doesn't disappoint! read more

See all

The food was awesome and well priced. Service was on point, and everything was clean. I will be back for sure. We had a great time read more

See all

Had a light meal . Basic salad with turkey cold cuts . The salad was ok . Fresh ingredients. The crumbs on the blueberry pie was very hard not crumbly at all. Its bottom crust was ok not flaky at all. I end up just eating the blueberry filling. Not a fan of their blueberry pie. Next time I will try their fried shrimp basket . read more

See all

Phenomenal. Wish I could end it there. To start we got sat at our table but it was in the sun and blinding us. Our server, Nicki, moved us without us even asking. She sat us down and asked for drinks. I asked for a frozen coffee. It was something that was not on the menu. She took note of that but said she will make me one anyway. We get up and go get our food at the buffet, which by the way was neatly arranged and clean all around. We sat down with our food and she comes back with a large glass of frozen coffee with caramel swirled around the glass and some on the bottom, and whipped cream in the top. Mind you, I only asked for coffee. Not the extra stuff. She then proceeded to converse with everyone at the table, mentioning how good my mother's tattoo looks and how good the bacon is. Nicki went above and beyond with us when nobody asked for it and we couldn't think of a better server. Thank you Nicki! read more

Very pleasant waitress but the food was disappointing. My Cheese & Sausage omelette lacked enough cheese. My grilled English Muffin was barely cooked and the home fries were literally tasteless. Sorry... I wanted to like this place but the only reason I am giving it 2 stars is the very pleasant waitress. It is convenient... right off the highway attached to the Fireside motel. read more

Governor's Restaurant & Bakery - Bakeries Near Me - Waterville, Maine

I was with friends, she suggested Governors, we said ok, what's it like, her husband said, "I can tell you right now it's not going to bel good!"...but, we decided to give it a shot - how bad could it be?? ...we should have listened to Mike! When I asked the waiter if he had any recommendations, his reply "the seafood, it goes fast so it's always fresh" (but what about the things that don't go fast??) . We didn't order the seafood as we had that the night before at an outstanding restaurant. I ordered a rice bowl, it sounded good - but... it wasn't! The brown rice - was white, the beets tasted like they had come right out of the can & the roasted butternut squash was less than desirable & had way too much feta dumped all over it. My friend ordered meatloaf - it looked very un-appetizing & according to him, it tasted like it looked. The other two in our party got cheeseburgers, they played it safe - how can you go wrong with a burger! On the plus side, it was only $23 for 2 meals. The second plus - our waiter was very accommodating, friendly & funny. Would I ever go back to Governors - never! ...but you are welcome to give it a shot! read more

Amazing seafood. Fries were perfect too! Lobster bisque had a TON of lobster. Just a classic place with character abs delicious food. Totally worth the stop! read more

The last few times I've been here it's disgusting. Service, nasty attitudes, horrific presentation - not the place it used to be! Sadly, I'm done trying. read more

The quality is ok. I base this decision on the region. I am originally from the Midwest Kansas City area where there is an abundance of quality food with many varieties. Here in central Maine they a quite limited when it comes to the diversity of foods. Additionally, here and at other restaurants it seems to be the norm to bring out any sides you you may have ordered prior to your entire meal. Also, STOP RUNNING THE VACUUM! My meal was the Pot Roast, mashed potatoes and coleslaw. While it was tasty the portions weren't even close the cost of $17.99 read more

Governor's Restaurant & Bakery - Placemat - Bakeries Near Me - Waterville, Maine

See all

This is soooo hard to rate!!! If they were only a restaurant, I'd give them maybe 2 stars. If they were only a bakery, I'd give them FIVE stars!! But as they are a restaurant first, and my family and I (party of 11) all came here primarily for dinner... (only a few of us ordered dessert) I have to lean towards my restaurant rating.... Landing at 3 stars overall. (Visit was Sunday dinner 2/12/23) The service was great, our waitress was excellent. She was attentive, kind, patient w/the large party that included 3 young kids. Wait for food wasn't too too long, considering how large the party. But the food was sub-par to average at best. Out of 11 dinners, only one dinner was pushing the high end of average - the Fisherman's Platter, and one app - the Maple Glazed Poutine. Nothing to write home about, but overall high end of average yummy. Several burgers were ordered - all decently average. Not great for the price... The Pot Roast was way over cooked. The chicken tenders tasted like they were fried in old fish oil. The sweet potato fries were completely bland (couldn't tell they were sweet potato) & also tasted like they were fried in old oil. The Reuben lacked sauce & little sauerkraut & the sauerkraut was more sweet than tangy sour... not terrible, but definitely not great/what was expected for a true Reuben. The Philly steak & cheese was very mediocre & not very generous in size for the price. Overall very disappointing for the meals. Would not go back for a meal. Having said that - their bakery has LOTS of delectable options! They have a different item on a fantastic deal each day of the week. Sunday was $3 pie slices. A few of us ordered pie and each was a HUGE serving (more like 2-3 slices at a typical restaurant/bakery) and they were all DELICIOUS!! My daughter, father & I shared "a slice" of the Peanut Butter Pie!! Sooo delicious!! Not too sweet! Big enough for 3 to share if after a meal... but I'd recommend coming here strictly for Dessert & coffee/tea/milk!! Definitely an awesome dessert spot either eat in or take out! Just pass on the meal. read more

Governor's Restaurant & Bakery - Peanut Butter Pie ($3 on Sundays!) - Bakeries Near Me - Waterville, Maine

A chain local to Maine delicious food made from scratch bakery items. Always friendly service.

Fair food! Good service! Homemade food! Supersizes servings! Great prices ! Go if your hungry

Governors is never anything fancy but it's consistent, affordable and as maine as it gets. It's kinda like having a meal at your aunts house. Pretty much everything they offer is that downhome comfort food you'd expect. The fish sandwich is always solid. The pot roast is great every time. Their breakfast options are awesome. The location in waterville recently added a comfort food buffet on Thursdays so I decided to roll the dice on it. The lasagna was tasty. The pot roast was predictably satisfying. The Mac and Cheese was good. The shrimp were delicious. The stuffed pepper wasn't very good but maybe my expectations were a little to high considering the context that it was close to closing time. The nobake peanut butter cookies melt in your mouth. The other dessert offerings could have been better but it's a buffet so no big deal. And for 17 bucks it was a heck of a bargain! Now beyond that, the real star of the governors show is their baked goods. They have a HUGE case of options and all of them are great that I've tried. They also have a case with like 10 different options of pies and cakes that's not to be missed. Grab something to take home because you're sure to be full after your meal but you won't want to skip dessert! read more

This place has quite the menu and was suggested to me by a local. I didn't go in expecting a 5 star restaurant. I just wanted some good seafood from a local spot. This place didn't disappoint. You can easily see it from the main street. The decor inside is a little homely but I didn't mind. There's even a train that goes by overhead on one side of the place. It's those little things that you don't get from a commercial chain restaurant. Got the seafood platter and added a salad as a side for $1 upcharge. It was a pretty decent salad and sized well. Then there was the platter. It was huge. And there were literally 4 types of seafood. All cooked just right and not over fried. I would have done the dessert but the platter did me in. I found the price and diversity of the menu to be very friendly. There's definitely some quality seafood and a decent price. There a few pricey things but it's all the higher end seafood items. I can see a family coming here, being comfortable and not breaking the bank. The staff were all friendly. I would come again and recommend the place to others. Just come with an empty stomach or be prepared for leftovers. read more

See all

Comfort food with some twist! I usually get the meatloaf as a rule here it's been fabulous lately. The cheese curds with maple syrup have certainly grown as staple. The service I'd always great and the desert options are tasty and rather large. read more

Good homemade food. Great service by the friendliest staff. Wicked good homemade deserts. Rarely disappointed. Reasonable prices.

Friendly staff and an amazing menu and dessert variety make for a fun dining experience. One star knocked off for amount of time it takes for meal to arrive. read more

It took 25 minutes to place our order then another 15 minutes to get our drinks I order a hamburger with lettuce tomato pickles and onion came out plain nothing on it ordered onion rings as a appetizer never got the staff seem they don't care read more

Feels a lot like Shoneys but in Maine and nicer - definitely homely (little railroad track around the dining ro that occasionally runs on timer) and pleasantly surprised after reading reviews and then going. Nice seafood options but we just had two lobster rolls and a haddock sandwich along with fried mushrooms. I really was not sure what to get but based on the very nice server's recommendation I went with haddock (she recommended haddock either as a chowder or the sandwich or a reuben but I can get a reuben anywhere) ... It was excellent, large, hot and she commented that their onion rings are great so I substituted the fries for that and very.much enjoyed them as well. My son and father ordered the lobster roll - my son had not eaten it before and probably should have ordered double (or triple for his age) meat since he devoured it quickly along with the fries. If you have not had it before, do note it is served on a hot dog bun with a bed of lettuce and has mayo and served cool. Service was fast, meal was brought in a very timely manner but we did get there before noon when it was just about empty. Before leaving, there definitely was most tables (every other at least). Definitely better than 3 stars really would give 3.5 stars but since it has 3. Stars on average let's give a little bump read more

See all

This was a couple years ago, but I had a chewed finger nail in my soda. I didn't get the soda for free, let alone my meal. Disgusting and never again will I dare come here. read more

If you know how to cook you probably you could prepare a better meal than we had today. We went there this afternoon to give it a try. Man was it bad. My husband had the Hot Meatloaf Mountain with a side of Brussel Sprouts--the presentation was great however if you call that Meatloaf I would call spam in a can tough, did not taste like Hamburg, dry plus cut to thick and the Brussel Sprouts were tough. Now for my dinner I ordered Maple Chicken wanted the chicken grilled instead of breaded tenders--well the sweet potato fries were over cooked and greasy, and the amount of grilled chicken they gave was like two teaspoons full. This meals was not worth the $40 we paid for it. We will never recommend this place to any of our friends to eat here. Since we live in Maine, we found very few locally owned restaurants that have good quality food and service. read more

Absolutely delicious! A must for a home cooked breakfast! Make your own omelet and 3 Blueberry Pancakes! read more

Governor's Restaurant & Bakery - Everything was delicious!!! - Bakeries Near Me - Waterville, Maine

Went to Governors in Waterville.The waitress Niki L Was very friendly The Eclair was delicious and very large Portion Definitely recommend this place read more

Governor's Restaurant & Bakery - Great food and Niki L is the best waitress clean environment and love the Eclair and food - Bakeries Near Me - Waterville, Maine

The Governor's Restaurant was great! Our server (Trish?) was AWESOME, so friendly and incredible service. If you go here - make sure you order food with - I can't emphasize these enough - dinner rolls (comes as a side to most dishes) and/or biscuits!! They were soft, doughy, and my family and I continue to reminisce about them. Fisherman's platter was great. Generous size and tasted great. I wasn't a huge fan of my shrimp & scallops pasta. Looks great, but could have used more cheese and more overall flavor. The dessert (we tried Blueberry Crumb pie and Lemon Meringue pie) were great. Not too sweet, but I felt the crust could be more flaky and buttery (personal preference though). We stayed at the Fireside Inn right next door, and this was the convenient choice for dinner after a full day of exploring Maine. read more

Governor's Restaurant & Bakery - Bakeries Near Me - Waterville, Maine

New to the area. 'Everyone' said "Check out Governors in Waterville. Wait staff was cordial and fun, but the food was lacking in quality!! Had the beef pot pie. it was mediocre at best. Beets were good but the wild rice was tasteless and dry. the dinner rolls are thick and doughy and we're gummy, not to mention without flavor. We won't be back again. PS: After the dinner rolls I was scared to try their pastries!! read more

Ran into Governor's for a quick lunch. Service was slow and minimal (no water). Food was terrible. Will never go again.

The dessert is just incredible, pies are killer. The food otherwise is solid but not amazing. The fried food is pretty decent. Definitely recommend the desserts though. read more

so.... I was in governors today and we were short on time. when we got there there was a 10 minute wait, not bad. when we got to our seats we ordered our food, then we saw that almost everyone got buffet, so there wasn't much in the oven. we waited 4x the wait. we asked the waitress to put our food in to go containers, she gave us LITTLE TO NONE and to top it off they gave us FRIED POTATOES not homefries. ridiculous read more