‹ 25 small cities with big food › No. 1
Small city, big food · No. 1 of 25
Portland, Maine
Photo: Daderot, public domain,A working waterfront a block from the dining rooms. Lobster, oysters and Maine shrimp come off the boats in the morning and onto plates that night, and the city's restaurateurs keep winning national awards.
A lobster roll and Maine oysters
Where to eat in Portland
1
Eventide Oyster Co.
Get: A dozen oysters and the brown-butter lobster roll in a steamed bun
The place that made Portland a food town people fly to. Its roll is a James Beard-winning dish. (fodors.fodors.com)
2A photo like it
Fore Street
Get: Whatever comes off the wood oven, grill or turnspit that day
Dana Street's room, open since 1996, and the reason he won the 2026 Beard award for Outstanding Restaurateur. (theinfatuation.com)
3A photo like it
Mr. Tuna
Get: Hand rolls and rice bowls
The Press Herald's reason to dine on Middle Street. (pressherald.com)
4A photo like it
The Honey Paw
Get: The noodle dishes
From the Eventide team and on the 2026 lists of the city's best. (unpeeledjournal.com)
Plan the trip
- When to go
- June to October; September is the sweet spot, with the summer crowds gone and the boats still busy.
- Getting there
- Portland International Jetport (PWM), 10 minutes from the Old Port. About 2 hours by car from Boston, or the Amtrak Downeaster.
More for Portland
Why it's on the list
Food & Wine's No. 1 small food city, 2026.
- Food & Wine Global Tastemakers 2026: top small US cities (via Press Herald, Apr 8 2026)
- James Beard Awards 2026: Dana Street, Outstanding Restaurateur (Forbes)
Next small city
Places checked November 14, 2026; hours and menus change. "A photo like it" is the same kind of food, not from that place. Nobody pays to be on our lists.
Chef Amazing remembers every place you ate, keeps the lists friends send you, and helps you cook it at home.
Researched and published by Chef Amazing, from our own stories, this year’s critics and food press, and a check that each place is open. Nobody pays to be on our lists: how we pick. Spot something wrong? Tell us and we fix it.