Our favorite Portland (sorry, Oregon). This little coastal town makes for a perfect, romantic weekend getaway with picturesque lighthouses, excellent food, and a variety of craft breweries. Honestly, we barely did anything here aside from eat, drink beer, and stare at the ocean. We couldn’t have asked for anything better.
Table of Contents
Lighthouses
Portland Head Light: Our favorite lighthouse visit in Portland was at this park. In addition to the incredible views, there is a big green area to hang out, ruins of old buildings, and an occasional LL Bean pop-up. There also just happens to be a Bite Into Main cart that has our all-time favorite lobster rolls (more on that below). It is a perfect spot for a clear afternoon.
Two Lights State Park: This park offers great views of the nearby Cape Elizabeth Lighthouse. You can take some time to walk along the rocky coast of the park, but there honestly isn’t a ton to do here or a great area to post up and relax. We recommend just a quick visit to see the sights.
Bug Light Park: The lighthouse at this park can best be described as cute. It is short and stout, but the design intricacies are really beautiful. There is also a nice green area to hang out and appreciate the views.
Spring Point Ledge Lighthouse: You can find this lighthouse a short drive from Bug Light Park, so we recommend visiting the two together. Our favorite thing about this lighthouse was the long, stone pathway jutting out into the bay and leading to the structure. It feels like an obstacle course of sorts, with gaps between the stones that drop into the water. Hopping from rock to rock on your way to the lighthouse is just good clean fun.
Breweries
Shipyard Brewing Company: One of the premier breweries in Portland, Shipyard has a great collection of beers, a cool on-site shop, and an almost unavoidable location right downtown. They also set up an outdoor tent for socially distant seating during the pandemic. It was an especially windy day when we visited, so we had to keep our hands on our pint glasses at all times, but that would have realistically happened regardless. The beer is really good.
Allagash Brewing Company: Disclaimer – we didn’t get to visit Allagash. The brewery was closed due to COVID-19 when we were in town. However, it is still worth calling out here as a great option. We really do love their beer, and it is known to be one of the best breweries in the area.
Lone Pine Brewing Company: Great beer, relaxed atmosphere, and friendly service. Lone Pine was our favorite brewery in Portland that we had the opportunity to visit. They have quite a bit of outdoor space, so we were able to watch a beautiful sunset while we enjoyed our beer. They also make killer sour beers among many others. Of course we had to take some home with us! In addition, they do beer collaborations with local establishments like The Holy Donut.
Rising Tide Brewing Company: The award for best outdoor setup during a pandemic goes to Rising Tide Brewing Company. They have a huge outdoor patio covered with popup tents, but that’s table stakes. The real differentiator is the giant vent they have running through the tent blowing out hot air. On a cold, windy day in early October, that was an incredibly welcome feature. The beer is great too. The brewery is also in a part of town that is home to a number of other breweries, so it is easy to walk from one to the next.
Austin Street Brewery: This brewery is right next door to Rising Tide. While Austin Street wasn’t on our original list of places to visit, it ended up being a pleasant surprise. The beer is solid, the building is modern, and there is a nice outdoor area to sit and enjoy the open air. No giant heat vent here, though.
Oxbow Blending & Bottling: When we visited in October 2020, this area was an all-outdoors collaboration space for a few different vendors, including Oxbow, Duckfat Friteshack, and Anoche. Oxbow has a wide variety of beers. However, if you aren’t in the mood for beer, you can go to the window at Anoche to grab a glass of wine or cider. Also, Duckfat is a pretty popular restaurant in Portland, and their Friteshack is an extension of the restaurant serving casual snacks and meals at the window.
Restaurants
Bite Into Maine: BEST LOBSTER ROLL IN MAINE! (hands down) They make a few different styles of lobster rolls that skew from the traditional Maine variation, which is served cold and dressed with mayonnaise. The quality of the lobster is really great. We both tried the Connecticut roll (served warm with butter), and we didn’t regret it. If you are hankering for a snack to accompany your lobster roll, try the potato salad. We went to the location in Fort Williams Park in Cape Elizabeth, which is their original food truck location. It’s quite picturesque – on the coast and right next to the Portland Head Light.
Pai Men Miyake: We got takeout from this ramen restaurant and were pleasantly surprised. It was really good! We still prefer the ramen we had in Japan (obviously) and on the west coast, but Pai Men Miyake is definitely better than any ramen we’ve had in Pittsburgh. The servings are hearty too, so you will absolutely get your money’s worth. Oh, and the lobster steamed buns are terrific.
Radici: Don’t let the lack of reviews fool you – Radici has some great Neapolitan-style pizza. The restaurant is a relatively new project from renowned, James Beard-semifinalist chefs that moved to Portland from New Jersey. They were only open for takeout when we visited, but the pizza was exactly what we wanted after a day of visiting breweries. To make things even more convenient – the restaurant is walking distance from Rising Tide, Austin Street, and Oxbow.
The Holy Donut: Get in my belly – Probably the best donuts on the east coast, and they are super unique. They don’t make their donuts with traditional flour but rather use potato flour and other types of flour, giving the donuts an almost crispy exterior. Apple flour and sweet potato flour were the seasonal flavors when we visited. You can’t go wrong with any of the options. We enjoyed EVERY. SINGLE. ONE. They also make some killer coffee through their partnership with Wicked Joe, so we had to grab a bag for home.
Red’s Eats: This famous lobster shack is about an hour outside of Portland in the direction of Acadia National Park. If you are visiting these two destinations on the same trip, you should highly consider stopping here. Red’s definitely has the largest of all the lobster rolls we tried. It was very good, but we wouldn’t say it’s 100% worth the 1.5 to 2 hour wait. However, if you haven’t tried it before, it’s a great place to visit once. Also, the service was very friendly which is a welcomed surprise after waiting in line for so long.
Other Tips & Tricks
Where to Stay: If you want to be close to the best breweries and restaurants, stay downtown. It is a bit pricier, but you’ll be able to walk almost anywhere in town. Since we wanted to visit the various lighthouses around Portland, we decided to stay at the budget-friendly Residence Inn by the airport. The hotel was nothing special, but it was only 15 minutes from town and gave us easy access to the lighthouses in South Portland and Scarborough.
Scarborough Marsh Audubon Center: To be clear – our favorite nature walks around Portland are those along the coast next to the lighthouses we visited. However, if you want to experience something different, the Scarborough Marsh has a number of trails that take you through an interesting, peaceful ecosystem. You can also rent a kayak or canoe to take into the marsh for a nice day activity.
Getting Around: Overall, Portland is a very pedestrian-friendly town with a number of breweries, restaurants, and attractions within a relatively confined radius. However, if you want to visit the lighthouses outside the city (some of which are 20+ minutes driving from downtown), you’ll want to have a rental car for the weekend.