2 Best Restaurants in Down East Coast, Maine

With dishes like Parmesan-crusted baked haddock and seafood pasta, the dinner menu here isn't all about fried seafood, as steak and chicken dishes are available; the lunch menu features burgers, wraps, and sandwiches. The dining room has tables, booths, and bar seating, and a dessert case tempts; beyond here the pub, with a "steampunk-inspired" compass rose mural by a local artist, offers bar tables and seating at the curved wood bar. 

In business for many years, the look here is updated and fresh, as the family-run establishment was rebuilt after a fire in 2014; it serves lunch and dinner, with entrées as well as burgers, sandwiches, salads, and the like. While the menu is big on seafood, don't expect only fried: try choices like charbroiled salmon topped with a maple glaze made with mustard, maple syrup, and blueberry jam, all Maine-made. Even before it was a foodie thing, Helen's was sourcing from local farms and waters. House-based goodies include a huge selection of pies and traditional New England hermit bars.