Where can you take in Maine’s best views with a cocktail in hand? Take deck hopping to a professional level this summer.

By Olivia Gunn Kotsishevskaya

July/August 2019

Snapshots

If you don’t have the memory of plucking steamers from a paper basket while clinking Coronas and toasting summer days with friends—it’s time to make it. Old Orchard Beach’s Pier Patio Pub is about as memorable as it gets.

Each summer, Mainers, vacationers, and exhibitionists in speedos make the OOB pilgrimage. The pier, which first opened in 1898, has hosted class acts including Frank Sinatra and Duke Ellington at the former Pier Casino Ballroom. While today Old Orchard Beach rolls with a different vibe, a round of beers and batch of steamers on the Patio overlooking whitecaps remains a Maine summer classic.

Hometown Hero

The newest deck in town is on Portland Pier—Luke’s Lobster. Here you can have your drink and the view, too. Take your lobster roll ($20/$26) and Allagash to the deck, where you’ll find plenty of seating and a whole lotta waterfront. On a recent lunch visit, families and friends filled both decks, so we took a standing spot on the second level—perfect for yacht spotting. My friend laughs as she pops the strawberry from her cocktail into her mouth. “I guess the 130-foot Lady Pegasus would do. Room enough for the two of us.” Over a cup of rich lobster bisque ($9), a buttery shrimp roll ($12), and a bottle of Luke’s Blueberry Lemonade, we watched sails pass and lobster boats roll in. Front row-seats to live entertainment. Luke’s is bound to be packed all summer long, so don’t count on any of the parking spaces. What you can count on is a killer selfie in front of the colorful lobster buoys donning the wall outside.

A Familiar Place

“It’s good to be back.” You know you’ve really returned to the Forest City is when you join the happy crowd at Portland Lobster Company. Whether you’re here for your lunch hour or happy hour, expect a full house. It’s all part of the fun. Watching visitors tackle their first lobster, locals cheer another winter passed, and dogs wiggle with hope as trays pass overhead—it’s all part of the experience. With a Shipyard in hand and a basket of fried clams, take in the songs of Jason Spooner, scheduled August 8. His song “Fireflies” is practically Maine’s summer anthem. Picture it: a lobster dinner, neighbors and friends, and live music all on one deck. Now that’s summer.

Under a Pale Moon

After a day on the Mount Battie trail or soaking up the sun at Barrett’s Cove, slip back into town for dinner at a Camden favorite. Waterfront Restaurant’s outdoor seating places you on the edge of the sea, overlooking the visiting sails. Savor fresh Oysters on the Halfshell (six for $15) or an order of brothy Maine Blue Mussels ($14) while catching moonlight dancing on the waters below. It’s a charming close to any Camden Harbor weekend.

On the Edge

If the waves rolling up to the deck of M.C. Perkins Cove aren’t the perfect Maine therapy, we’re not sure what is. Whether you’re there for the cocktails—the M.C. Perfect Storm will rock your boat—or the Whole Fried Trout dressed in a smoky tamarind coconut sauce ($32), there’s no wrong direction at this Ogunquit treasure. Chefs Mark Gaier and Clark Fraiser’s classic New England dishes are enlivened with notes and flavors from their travels. (You can follow their blog via the M.C. Perkins Cove website.) They bring it all back to their Ogunquit kitchen so you can sit on the Maine coast and taste the world.