Skip to content

Portland Food Map logo

The definitive guide to Portland's food scene

  • Map View
  • List View
  • Featured
    • Maine Food Map
    • Under Construction List
    • A Guide to Maine Cider
    • Maine Heirloom Apple Guide
    • Maine Beard Award Winners, Nominees, Semifinalists
    • James Beard’s 1964 Visit to Portland
    • Portland’s Living Food History
  • Events
    • Weekly Event Summary
  • Instagram icon
  • Twitter icon
  • RSS icon

Eat Drink Lucky Must Eat List

June 3, 2024 | Posted in Reviews

The team at Eat Drink Lucky has assembled a list of 70+ “Must Eat” dishes at Portland area restaurants.

The list includes options like the Soup Dumplings at Empire, Ox Tail Cheese Fries at Yardie Ting, and Loaded Biscuit at Tandem. See the full list on the EDL website.

Post navigation

Upcoming Food & Dining Events
Salvage Reopening Tuesday

About Portland Food Map

Portland Food Map launched in 2007 as a simple directory of the local food community. Other features have been added over the years including food event listings, the Under Construction page, guides to Maine apples and cider producers, the restaurant real estate listings, Year in Review reports, the My Kitchen Their Table chef interview series, the Maine Food Map guide, Maine news reporting, and the annual Maine Thanksgiving List.

The 2025 editions of the Portland and Midcoast Pocket Guides are now out.  They’re available in packs of 25 on our online store.

  • Include them in the welcome bag for a wedding or business event
  • Provide them to guests at your hotel or bed and breakfast
  • Keep them on-hand for out of town visitors

portlandfoodmap
Welcome to the December edition of the Portland Fo Welcome to the December edition of the Portland Food Map raffle sponsored by Evergreen Credit Union (@evergreen_credit_union). The winner will receive a $150 Visa gift card for use at Cuties and either two tickets to the Maine Mariners OR two tickets to the Portland Museum of Art. Simply comment on this Instagram image and tag a friend (or, two, or three...), and you’re entered to win. To whet your appetite for a visit here’s a look at some drinks and dishes from Cuties: the Nashville hot chicken sandwich and a Bloody Mary, a full spread of cocktails—the Porn Star Martinez is a favorite—and snacks at a group gathering, the tuna tostada with grapefruit and pistachios, funfetti cake photography, the shrimp roll and crispy potatoes, and the avocado tostada with sunny fried egg, chili oil, along with taiyaki-pressed French toast with citrus butter and coffee for breakfast, and an afternoon pair of drinks with Chex mix. #mainefood #evergreeneverywhere #nashvillehotchickensandwich #funfetticake #taiyakifrenchtoast NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. 1 winner will be chosen at random and will receive either 2 tickets to a Maine Mariners home game OR 2 guest Admission Tickets to the Portland Museum of Art. Date of Maine Mariners game to be determined with the winner. Meal for two at Cuties is good for up to $150 in the form of a VISA gift card; any additional costs will be the responsibility of the winner. The winner will be chosen on December 9th, and will be notified via Instagram direct message by Portland Food Map. Winner will connect with Evergreen Credit Union to receive their prize package. Per Instagram rules, this promotion is in no way sponsored, administered, or associated with Instagram, Inc. By entering, entrants confirm that they are 18+ years of age, release Instagram of responsibility, and agree to Instagram’s terms of use. This contest is in no way sponsored or administered by the Maine Mariners, Portland Museum of Art, or Cuties. By entering, entrants confirm that they release the Maine Mariners and Portland Museum of Art, and Cuties of responsibility.
Wow India (@wow_india_207) opened for business tod Wow India (@wow_india_207) opened for business today. The new Indian restaurant is located at 649 Congress Street in the Arts District. The kitchen is headed up by owner Prakash Jayavelu Singh and chef Pardeep Prasana. Singh started his career in India. For nearly a decade he was a chef at Tulsi in Kittery where he and Prasana crossed paths. The menu includes a wide selection of Indian dishes and some that are at the crossroads of different culinary influences like the dish of mussels shown here (4th image) which is prepared with a cilantro-kokum coconut broth. The bar menu has local draft beer from Allagash, Lone Pine, Maine Beer Company and Batson River along with Indian beers, wines by the glass and bottle, mocktails, and a selection of house cocktails that tap into Indian ingredients and flavors like a tamarind margarita and a lassi cocktail made with mango lassi, rum, Cointreau, coconut milk and Cardamon. Wow India will be open Monday through Thursday, 11 am – 2:30 pm, 4 – 10 pm, Friday/Saturday, 11 am – 2:30 pm, 4 – 11 pm, and Sunday, 11 am – 2:30 pm, 4 – 9:30 pm. #indiancuisine #portlandmaine #mainefood #pakora #indianmussels
The owners of Arcadia have leased the former Soako The owners of Arcadia have leased the former Soakology space at 511 Congress Street where they plans to open Bad Neighbors (@badneighborsbar). Dave Aceto, Nicole Costas and Dennis Gaines envision the establishment as a “Hi-Fi Listening Space”. 🎺🎵🎸 Aceto shared, “We’re excited to bring another third space and unique nightlife experience to Congress Street and the 500 Block. The programming is inspired by independent radio stations like WFMU and WMPG. While the bar will play album sides throughout the evening, each night will have a dedicated 3 hour block focused on a different genre, band or influence.” Costas will be working with chef Evan Richardson to develop the food and beverage program for the new establishment. Watch for menu details to be released next year. Richardson was the founder of Eaux and of Cafe Louis in South Portland and is the owner of Costa Media (@_costamedia), the Cafe Louis outpost in Camden. Bad Neighbors will seat 75 people with a mix of bar, booth and table seating along with a standing room area and pool table. The sound design of the space is being developed by Gaines who is a sound engineer. The team hopes to launch Bad Neighbors in the spring, and plan to be open starting at 4 pm Wednesday through Sunday, with weekend service including brunch, cocktails and coffee, available 10 am – 3 pm. #listeningbar #mainefood #badneighbors
Rambler Cafe (@ramblermaine) recently reopened for Rambler Cafe (@ramblermaine) recently reopened for business. They’re located at 463 Stevens Ave in the space formerly occupied by Rwanda Bean, and prior to that by the Black Cat Coffee. Owner Charlee-Ann Charron took over the coffee shop earlier this year and relaunched it last week after a redesign of the cafe. Charron and her team are serving a full line-up of drip and espresso-based coffee drinks utilizing Rwanda Bean (@rwandabeancompany) coffee including their house special The Brambler Latte which is made with house made blackberry and vanilla syrups (4th photo). The food menu includes croissants, Danish, muffins, bagels from Orchard Ridge Farm (@orchardridgemaine) in Gorham, and on Sundays pastries from their neighbors at Norimoto Bakery (@norimotobakery). Shown here (2nd photo) is the Za’atar special from this last weekend which was topped with whipped feta, honey, cucumbers and fresh dill. Billed as Portland’s “Original Flower Cafe” Rambler also sells flowers and bouquets. Charron previously operated a mobile flower truck which she launched in 2022. Rambler Cafe is open Tuesday through Friday, 7 am – 2 pm, and Saturday/Sunday, 8 am – 2 pm. #mainecoffee #portlandmaine #mainefood
RAFFLE COMPLETED Welcome to the November edition RAFFLE COMPLETED Welcome to the November edition of the Portland Food Map raffle sponsored by Evergreen Credit Union (@evergreen_credit_union). The winner will receive a $150 Visa gift card for use at Lil Chippy and either two tickets to the Maine Mariners OR two tickets to the Portland Museum of Art. Simply comment on this Instagram image and tag a friend (or, two, or three...), and you’re entered to win. To whet your appetite for a visit here’s a look at some dishes from Lil Chippy 🐟🍄‍🟫🦞 : the mushroom buddy sandwich, clam chowder, fried chicken sandwich, greens and herbs salad, choripan-style squid sandwich, lobster roll, roasted delicata squash with sunflower seeds and goat cheese, fried fish topped with calabrian chili hot sauce. #mainefood #evergreeneverywhere #clamchowder #friedchickensandwich #choripansquid #roasteddelicatasquash NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. 1 winner will be chosen at random and will receive either 2 tickets to a Maine Mariners home game OR 2 guest Admission Tickets to the Portland Museum of Art. Date of Maine Mariners game to be determined with the winner. Meal for two at Lil Chippy is good for up to $150 in the form of a VISA gift card; any additional costs will be the responsibility of the winner. The winner will be chosen on November 11th, and will be notified via Instagram direct message by Portland Food Map. Winner will connect with Evergreen Credit Union to receive their prize package. Per Instagram rules, this promotion is in no way sponsored, administered, or associated with Instagram, Inc. By entering, entrants confirm that they are 18+ years of age, release Instagram of responsibility, and agree to Instagram’s terms of use. This contest is in no way sponsored or administered by the Maine Mariners, Portland Museum of Art, or Lil Chippy. By entering, entrants confirm that they release the Maine Mariners and Portland Museum of Art, and Lil Chippy of responsibility.
The 2025 Maine Thanksgiving List is now available The 2025 Maine Thanksgiving List is now available (link in bio). It already includes 110+ Thanksgiving dinners, free community meals and food baskets, special holiday take-out options from restaurants, bakeries butcher shops and markets. 🦃 🥧 The list has options from all of Maine’s 16 counties from Kittery to Houlton and dozens of other communities in between. We’re adding to the list as businesses and organizations publish details on their plans for the holiday. #mainethanksgiving #thankksgiving2025
Follow on Instagram

This Website is Sponsored By:

Food News Tip?

Do you have some details you’d like to pass on about an upcoming business or development in the Portland food scene? Then please fill out our Contact Form, we’d love to hear all about it.

Year in Review:

  • 2021 Year In Review
  • 2020 Year in Review
  • 2019 Year in Review
  • 2018 Year in Review
  • 2017 Year in Review
  • 2016 Year in Review
  • 2015 Year In Review
  • 2014 Year in Review
  • 2013 Year in Review
  • 2012 Year in Review
  • 2011 Year in Review
  • 2010 Year in Review

Features:

  • Portland Food History
  • Beard’s Portland Visit
  • Sunday Brunch List
  • Under Construction List

Follow Portland Food Map:

  • Instagram icon
  • Twitter icon
  • RSS icon
© 2025 Food Maps, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Privacy Policy

shines & jecker labs logo Built by shines & jecker labs