PORTLAND, Maine — “The great advantage of a hotel,” George Bernard Shaw observed, “Is that it is a refuge from home life.”
I agree—and although Joe Ricchio and I didn’t discuss that sentiment, I’m pretty sure he would, too. What Joe and I did discuss on 207 was a list he compiled of some of his favorite bars and restaurants in Maine that are part of a hotel or inn.
As a food and travel writer and host of the Food Coma podcast, Ricchio roams all over Maine looking for something good to eat. Restaurants that seem to have been tacked onto a lodging establishment as an afterthought don’t interest him. He likes places that are part of the heartbeat of a hotel, offering a distinctive vibe to go with first-rate food and drinks.
Here’s the list of hotel bars and restaurants he especially likes. Watch our conversation to find out why.
- Oxford House Inn, Fryeburg
- Natalie's, Camden Harbor Inn
- White Barn Inn, Kennebunk
- The Bar at the Lincoln Hotel, Biddeford
- Canterbury Royale Cottage, Fort Fairfield
- The Chart Room at Black Point Inn, Scarborough