Photo courtesy of Central Provisions

The Hit ListBoston

The Resy Guide to Dining in Portland, Maine

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If you’ve never visited Portland, Maine, or if it’s been a while, you might imagine the dining scene to be all lobster rolls and oysters on the half shell. There are still plenty of each — great ones, natch — but Portland now boasts so many exceptional restaurants making creative use of New England’s bounty, it’s easy to spend a week eating there and still not experience them all.

Công Tử Bột serves tender cured scallops in a fermented tofu green sauce with coconut milk and peanuts and, on the side, a rice cracker toasted in duck fat. The seasonal preparation of Fore Street’s wood-grilled foie gras highlights Maine blueberries when they’re at their peak, using a cornmeal blueberry muffin and a wild blueberry jam with lemon honey to contrast the salty-savory duck liver.

Are cured scallops and wood-grilled foie going to bump lobster rolls and raw oysters off of Portland’s proverbial food map anytime soon? Doubtful. (If you don’t believe us, check out the perpetual crowd at Eventide.) But if you’ve been considering a visit, now is the time to go. And to help you out, we’ve turned our lens on Portland for an expanded Resy Hit List; here are 14 places to find classics, the new-new, and everything in between.