Last weekend Sara and I went up to Portland, Maine for our annual post holiday getaway. We hit the road Friday after work and stopped in Portsmouth, NH to stay with my sister Chelsea and her boyfriend Ed for the night. Chelsea put together an incredible Asian tapas feast including some seared tuna, broiled beef cups, soba noodles, scallop soup, chicken wings. Our contribution was a bag of Island Creek and Moon Shoals oysters with a home-made shallot and sake mignonette. Sake-vodka martinis were poured, records were spun and many bivalves slurped….it was the perfect introduction to our gastro-weekend in Maine. Slightly hungover Saturday morning we headed north and arrived in Portland just in time to check into our hotel and head over to Novere Res for a couple much-needed beers. I stuck with one of my old standbys; the Peeper Ale while Sara went hard with some high alcohol Porter that impressed our server…it being only around noon for our first round. After squelching our hangovers we walked around town for a bit and settled into Duckfat for an afternoon snack. The rumors were true…the food was fantastic! Duck fat fries are even better than you might imagine and the duck rillettes….well…it’s not called Duckfat for nuffin. BAC and cholesterol levels restored we wandered a bit more, made reservations at Fore Street for dinner and then headed back to the hotel for a quick nap. Our meal at Fore Street was one of the best dining experiences both Sara and I have had in some time. We started with some wood-fire roasted mussels and a bottle of red Sancerre (a very light, some-what fruity and highly drinkable red similar to a Beaujolais). For the main I had wood-fire roasted local rabbit with an apple puree and lentils (definitely the best rabbit I’ve ever had) and Sara had Casco Bay Hake roasted with kale…both just beautiful and simple dishes that affirmed my love for Fore Street and the Portland dining scene. After a couple of whiskeys we trudged out into the cold Portland evening in search of a night cap.

The next day we hiked around the city a bit more and settled into a hearty New England breakfast at the Porthole. Portlanders take breakfast SERIOUSLY and the Porthole didn’t disappoint. I had some incredible home-made corned beef hash (which seems to be a town favorite) Sara had a giant, fluffy lobster omelete…it’s Maine…they put lobster in omeletes! After filling our bellys we did some more walking and then checked out of our hotel, got in the car and headed down to Cape Elizabeth for some picturesque lighthouse viewing and a seaside walk. After a bit of ocean gazing we decided to head back to Portsmouth via Rt. 1 and take in some sights along the way. We stopped off in Kennebunkport for a couple beers at this great little seaside bar called the Ramp. Super small, quaint and friendly; the Ramp quickly made us fall in love with the perfect Maine Sunday afternoon…we could have easily stayed into the night. Instead we continued south back to Portsmouth and met Chelsea and Ed for dinner and drinks around town. We had more oysters at Jay’s and a veritable small plates feast at the Black Trumpet….both exceptional. We woke the next morning and headed back to Boston with yet another hangover and the feeling of satisfaction only a weekend up the New England coast can bring. Food, friends and a beautiful view….it’s all you really need.