Slab, Hot Suppa, Becky's Diner, Primo, Eventide, El El Frijoles via Facebook
I can't tell you how much I truly love food-oriented television programming. Realty shows, game shows, travel shows, holiday shows, the concept doesn't matter. If it's about food, I'll give it a shot.
It's also a wonderful way to discover restaurants in towns or places of travel interest.
However, nothing beats when a restaurant or chef from Maine is featured. There's just a level of pride that beams though my body when our great state is represented on the small screen. It's like our restaurants and chefs are really just our children. And when they make it big, well, we think we all do.
Maine's food scene is special, though. There's an outstanding reputation. Portland has become very trendy over the last decade. Chefs from Maine have competed on hit shows like Chopped and Top Chef. Even Biddeford was named one of the next best food cities in America. The Pine Tree State knows how to fill your pallet.
Below is a closer look at 20 Maine restaurants that have proudly been featured nationally on the popular foodie television shows, including Diners, Drive-ins and Dives, Best Thing I Ever Ate, Food Paradise, Drinking Made Easy, and Man v. Food.
There's no surprise that things trend heavily to seafood, specifically lobster dishes. Lobster is the official currency of Maine, so it's a totally legit strategy by the showrunners.
But there's much more to Maine's cuisine than seafood, and that comes through, whether it be pizza, potato donuts, beer, fresh local ingredients, and much more.
Is one of your favorite restaurants on the list? Ready to find new favorites?