Food

Ogunquit’s [1] dining scene is simply excellent. With new restaurants popping up all the time, you can dine any given night on anything from boiled lobster to Thai food to French cuisine.

For more than a decade, 98 Provence (262 Shore Rd., 207/646-9898, www.98provence.com [2], 5:30–9 p.m. Wed.–Mon. Apr.–mid-Dec., $23–31) has been serving country-style French dishes in a clean, serene dining room. Dig into plates of duck confit with prunes and grilled rabbit with goat cheese.

Simple flavors meet sophisticated palates at
Arrows (41 Berwick Rd., Cape Neddick, 207/361-1100, www.arrowsrestaurant.com [3], 6–9 p.m. Wed.–Sun. Jun.–early Sept.; Thu.–Sun., Apr–May and mid-Oct.–Dec., $41–44), the big-ticket restaurant housed in an 18th-century farmhouse. Almost all of the produce here comes straight from the garden—and gets made into lovelies such as English pea soup with prosciutto, crispy mushroom salad with kafir lime and green peppercorns, and ravioli with parsley and saffron paprika oil. It ain’t cheap, but there are few places better in Northern New England for special occasion dinners. Reservations are essential in the formal, antique-appointed dining room.

Lobster shacks don’t get much more fun than
Barnacle Billy’s (Perkins Cove, 207/646-5575, www.barnbilly.com [4], 11 a.m.–10 p.m. daily mid-Jun.–Oct., $4–20). The loud, gray-shingled harborside eatery’s tables fill up nightly for boiled lobsters, clam chowder, and cocktails on the deck.

Next door, Billy’s Etc. offers a more varied menu that includes fish filet, broiled scallops, and other seafood favorites as well as grilled chicken and steaks.

Locals and vacationers alike look forward to dinner at Gypsy Sweethearts (Shore Rd., 206/646-7021, www.gypsysweethearts.com [5], 5:30–10 p.m. Tue.–Sun., summer only, $18–29), which serves up solid entrées (like almond-crusted haddock or the spectacular cranberry-marinated pork tenderloin) and an epic wine list. The restaurant is located on Shore Road, on the right just after the turn off Main St.

For breakfasts that will keep you full straight through to lunch, set your sights on The Egg & I (501 Main St., 207/646-8777, www.eggandibreakfast.com [6], 6 a.m.–2 p.m. daily, $7–14) and dig into the hearty omelets and scrambles.