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Kanu

3.6 (43 reviews)
Closed 10:00 am - 2:00 pm, 4:00 PM - 10:00 PM
Updated 3 months ago

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KANU ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Classy
Good for kids
Outdoor seating
Good for groups

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Recommended Reviews - Kanu

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Reviews With Photos

Sweet Cream Stuffed French Toast
Claire B.

Grabbed brunch at @283kanu this morning. The interior is a mix of modern and vintage 1920s with statement wallpapers and dark wood furnishings. There's a more formal first floor dining room and then there's the third floor/roof bar and seating area. There's even a small section so you can see the view of Old Town. Service was very attentive. I ordered the sweet cream stuffed French toast (pic. 1) with a hazelnut drizzle. It also came with some home fries. Very decadent and sweet but perfect for someone with an intense craving for sugar. The Korean chicken and waffles (pic. 2) was also a big hit. The cinnamon waffle was topped with perfectly cooked fried chicken, a hot honey drizzle, and gravy. Mimosas were strong and very tasty. Drinks: 8/10 Food: 7.5/10 Ambiance: 7.5/10 Overall Experience: 7.7/10

New vibe
Amanda R.

Row, row,row your Boat,right to Kanu! This is a modestly priced restaurant in Old Towne. I loved the feel of this place walking in, and the smell! We sat at the 1st floor bar and could see the chefs cooking. The food is phenomenal, the mussels were so tender and sweet I could've drank the sauce. The chicken was superb, they brine it and smoke it, I loved every bite! I will def be back and sit on the roof top patio next time!! Thanks for a great food journey.....ps get the milkshake!

Banana & Buttered Rum pancakes
Christy K.

I'd been hesitant to try Kanu due to negative feedback from friends in the area, but wanted to give it a shot. What a mistake. I will say, on a positive note the place is absolutely gorgeous. The ambiance and decor certainly doesn't make up for the overall very poor experience. From the moment we arrived, not much went right. I had a 10am reservation and was unable to add an extra person online, but based on availability when booking earlier that morning it didn't appear that it would be an issue so I called and left a msg to explain the change from 2 to 3 guests. The hostesses really struggled with this change (seems no one checked the voice mail), but they also asked me what my name was several times as I stood there. I even offered that we can sit wherever there's space available as they tried to figure out how to add one more guest to my reservation. We were seated at the 3rd floor bar as per my reservation and were served a bottle of water w a hinged lid. When I went to pour a glass of water, there was an obvious lipstick mark on my glass. My dining companion's glasses were not much better. Fortunately, we're were seated next to a tray of still wet glasses & could choose clearer ones for ourselves wiping them with our cloth napkins. There was also a pile of containers & other odds & ends at the end of the bar, which made it look more like a VFW bar vs a high end classy establishment. When taking our drink order, I asked about the "adult latte" on the menu. She told me she'd "just put some Jameson in it". I requested Bailey's as well, but as per the menu it seemed like there was a weekly special so I was thinking they had a plan vs just put some Jameson in it. Took 30 min to get the latte, a mimosa, and a basic coffee and we overheard the bartender/server calling downstairs for the foamed milk. Looked like coffee w Bailey's & Jameson to me and sloshed into the saucer so it dripped when I drank it. My bf was given 4 sweet & low packets for sugar in his coffee, which had a dirty finger print on them. I was like, um do you have SUGAR? She gave him one tube of organic sugar & 1 in the raw packet. Both crinkled up like they were pulled from the bottom of her purse. When ordering, we inquired about the ingredients in the Lobster Florentine Benedict special as my friend is gluten free. The server literally said, I don't really know what's in it but there are other GF options on the menu AND told us they have 4 options of GF bread, which seemed unlikely. I suggested she could check w the kitchen on those ingredients, which she did and confirmed no gluten in the Florentine. And no GF bread options but was offered a fruit cup instead of the bread, which was a great substitute. Food finally arrived at almost 11:30 (remember 10am reservation?), so almost an hour and a half later. My gluten free friend got a frittata that she didn't order (remember the Florentine question?); one of my poached eggs on the roast beef hash had runny whites - fortunately the other egg was fine. The server told me "that's just how they make em here" (lmao). Roast beef hash was a few cubes of beef w the deep fried potatoes. My boyfriend had the steak (medium) & eggs (over easy) which his medium steak appeared to be torched & over cooked. We also ordered the Banana & Buttered Rum pancakes to share. Be careful, the topping turns hard as a rock if you don't eat it immediately. Our mistake for thinking it could be shared as a dessert after eating our savory food. One a brighter note, the manager was very nice did apologize profusely and comped most of the order. I would not want her job, that's for sure. However, with proper training, most of these issues could be avoided in the future.

The ribs entree, frankly this photo does no justice to
Broderick M.

Everything about Kanù was impressive. Right when you walk in the door the first thing that catches your eyes is the decor. It's tasteful, modern and unique and definitely seems out of place for Old Town but it's fitting for the building. It feels almost as if you've stepped through a portal into a high end new York city restaurant. We made reservations for the counter on the rooftop and when you walk out onto the roof you're immediately struck by the space that surrounds you. It's clear that the every single detail has been considered; from the salt shakers to the tin backsplash on the bar to the unique dishes the food is plated on. We ordered the Buffalo chicken Brule which was served in a puff pastry bowl. After this experience in our estimation most foods should be served in a puff pastry bowl! The dip itself wasn't too spicy and was amazingly smooth and satisfying. It was definitely a 10 out of 10. We also ordered the mussels which were arguably some of the best we've ever had. The flavors were on point and the mussels fresh. The sauce was the type that you want to make sure you mop up every last drop with the foccia bread it's served with! Everything about this dish was impressive. We shared the woodfired wings and barbecue ribs. The ribs were the kind you need to eat with a fork because they're too tender to pick up. The sauce was just right and it was served over a bed of rice and beans and chorizo which paired perfectly with the ribs. The wings were woodfired which lended them a nice subtle Smoky flavor. They were awesomely tender and the Carolina Golden BBQ sauce was incredible. Lastly we ordered the blueberry waffle milkshake which was fantastic but messy! It was an impressive size. Can you describe a milkshake as beautiful without people questioning your sanity because this thing was bordering on a work of art. Everyone on the roof turned and commented to eachother as it was coming across the floor. It was topped with a quarter of a waffle and rimmed with crushed blueberry cake. Surprisingly it wasn't too sweet and the flavors were nicely balanced. The service was noticeably polished. The portions and prices match eachother well. Our only critique is that we had an early reservation and we were kind of surprised to learn they had run out out of all the desserts already. My girlfriend had been looking forward to trying the blueberry cake as the description on the menu made it sound out of this world. We are both really looking forward to returning to kanu again to try more of their menu because this experience was top notch!

Campfire half chicken with slaw and AMAZING potatoes
Dominic H.

Food: 10/10 Service: 10/10 Ambiance: 10/10 Chairs: 5/10 for people with hips We will be back soon with friends for that roof top. Today my partner and I got to enjoy each other, great food, and got to watch the chef "meat man" make some beautiful dishes.

Truffle Buffalo Wings
Nina P.

This place is a gem!!!! I haven't lived in Maine for 10 years and went home for a visit. I was looking for a new spot with a good menu and found Kanu. I was impressed that a restaurant of this caliber exists north of Bangor! We sat on the rooftop in a igloo which was perfectly tempered. The entire restaurant is very aesthetically inviting. It reminded me of a restaurant in Boston... hard to believe I was still in Old Town, ME. I was pleased when our waitress brought a basket of house-made chips to the table, they were the perfect snack while we chose our dinner selections. For appetizer we had the truffle Buffalo wings which were fantastic! For dinner I had the camp fire chicken and subbed out the beans for roasted squash, it was flavorful and perfectly cooked. My husband had the autumn harvest salad with pork belly- again perfect. My kids ordered from the kids menu and tried the hot dog, chicken tenders and French Fries (I grabbed a few couldn't resist)... their meals came with fresh berries which they loved! Dessert we shared the funnel cake and ice cream. My only regret is sharing this dessert, it was too good I wanted my own!! This place was a 10/10 and I cannot wait to go back!!!

Banana & Rum Butter Pancakes
Tashie D.

I give 3/5 stars for our first-time visit at Kanu for Brunch. Atmosphere and presentation hit the spot. The items ordered we're definitely lack-luster in flavor and had imperfections. Firstly, you expect a good pancake to be light, airy, and fluffy. The Banana & Rum Butter Pancakes were dense, and as I would describe best as "Protein" pancakes. These pancakes were served with a "garnished" caramelized overlay that quickly hardened to the consistency of taffy-- VERY hard to chew and overly sweet-- tooth ache! Secondly, the Korean fried chicken and waffles were the most disappointing food item ordered. The "Korean chicken" was nothing more than a generic frozen box of fried chicken you'd find in the freezer at Walmart-- bland and served not crisp enough- nothing "Korean" about this. The waffle was soggy in places, and lacked brown sugar & cinnamon (listed on menu). The "hot pepper honey white gravy" was of little amount and again, bland, lacking sweet/savory/ nor spicy. This item was not served with a side of syrup, as I found dry and had to order this myself to moisten to consume. Being a new restaurant, I would recommend some changes to Kanu to improve some of the food items on their menu, overall, lacking flavor in many areas. Again, presentation of food items are A-1, but flavor not there entirely.

Over priced drinks

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2 years ago

Great service, good, and wonderful atmosphere. The steak was delicious and cooked to perfection

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3 years ago

The eggs Benedict was good. But I got it with kale which was too spicy for me. The hash browns were lukewarm. The staff is great!

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5 years ago

Bad experience. Service great but food not so. Won't make a final judgment though as it is fairly new.

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4 years ago

Great place fr fr love it there lotta fun food good and the drink nice and beautiful inside

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3 years ago

over priced for not so good food on top of $5 per person to sit in a cramped hot bubble. waitresses were snooty. never again

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Barliman's - Barlimans. Vibes. Tequila old fashion.

Barliman's

(7 reviews)

I think this is a great edition to the Bangor area but they just have a few things to work on…read more Great things: Very cool speakeasy vibes. Decorated very well. Service was friendly and very knowledgeable. The drinks we got were great. Things to improve on: Priced a little high for what you get. Change the menu to much where they don't have anything on the menu you have to hear everything from the waitress which is hard to remember. We didn't try any food for the reason and for everything to be super pricey. I will be back to try again if I'm in the area, even if it's just for a drink!

On my overnight in Bangor I was at a not-great hotel but fortunately Barliman's was nearby to save…read morethe day--or rather, happy hour into dinner into nightcap, which is how it went (mind you this was right after the time change, so it was dark before 5pm and my "late night" meant I left at 8:30, lol). The vibe is chill speakeasy/library; there's a comfy bar area with tables and then a warren of other little spaces where you can hang out as well, with books and games strewn about to peruse. I love that they have a small, curated menu, which makes it easy: Maine oysters (two kinds, both awesome) got me started with a martini (well OK two martinis; friendly bartender makes them *perfectly*), and then you can extend to dinner with a few rotating options. I got lucky because whoever is making this delicious food decided that bolognese and lasagna should have a baby and be served in a piping-hot dish with some bread and salad on the side, and who could be mad about that?! (NB get some red wine with it). And they feature the fabulous Maine martini (aka Allen's Coffee Brandy, to which I have been converted), so there's your perfect nightcap. Sometimes when you go to bars with small menus the food is so-so, but not here: everything was insanely good and the perfect portion size. Who knows when I'll be back in Bangor next, but I'll definitely come here again when I am. Check it out!

Kanu - newamerican - Updated May 2026

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