Fore Street

Doesn't Recommend

Lisa King

Joined 3 years ago

If you like to shout across the table, this is your place. This restaurant is highly overrated as far as I am concerned. I have been there 3 times in the past three years and each time I end up shouting across the table to my husband because it is just so darn noisy. It is actually better in the little room off the back, but in there you are so close to the other tables you might as well be sitting with them. You sure as heck don't want to be talking about anything you don't want other people to know about in that room either as it is so close. I ordered haddock last year, and was told after I ordered that it was bone in (wow! it sure was! I couldn't finish it. It was awful). Other things I have had are just okay...not what people in Portland would like to believe when they throw out that they are going to Fore Street, like it's gourmet heaven or something. It isn't. For a better, intimate, and less pretentious dining experience, try David's at Monument Square. Their wait staff is actually more knowledgeable as well. We go there about 3 times a year.

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gambino

Joined 4 years ago

never really got the big deal. this place is just ok, never understood big deal. yes, you will get a good meal, not a mindblowing, great meal. but just good all around and priced like you are gonna get a life changing meal i think. just ok, good place to go if you're a yuppie and wanna feel like a big shot and dont get out of portland much.

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Lapidum

Joined 4 years ago

Pretentious. Six of us ate dinner there on a very busy night. The atmosphere was loud but comfortable. The steak was good and rare, the onions with it were over-spiced, maybe too much salt. The meal does not come with any side dishes. No salad either. Twenty-five dollars for one steak on a plate? Come on! I've eaten in numerous high end restaurants and this was not the caliber of high end that doesn't include sides. We ordered two side orders of mashed potatoes, costing five dollars each. My husband ordered a salad, ten dollars extra. One of my sons ordered chicken. The chicken looked raw. The meat was very pink, and holding onto the bone. The waitress said, I can cook it a little longer but the chicken is brined so it always looks pink. It looked raw despite what she said. It was a half a chicken with the skin-on just placed on a plate. He didn't eat his meal. The bread was grainy, and good. This meal was the only disappointing meal on our vacation.

Doesn't Recommend

dulcesarita

Joined 4 years ago

loud, smokey, and cramped. This is not the type of atmosphere in which I expect to dine on fois gras. The sound of people chattering is like that of a busy cafeteria, and the food itself is uninteresting in light of the prices they ask.

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CSMobileUser

Joined 5 years ago

Good pricey food. Great food but expensive different menus daily limited vege choices

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scottgor

Joined 4 years ago

Loved It. This was a great experience. Everything that we had was wonderful. The atmosphere was as good as the food and service. A find

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exercisegirl

Joined 11 years ago

Wonderful dining experience. We're from NYC and have been to Portland twice in the last month. We've eaten at Fore Street both times, and will definitely go back again. Although not everything has been perfect (sent my fish back once because it wasn't cooked well enough, and sent a side dish back because it wasn't hot enough), it is still one of my favorite dining experiences. The wait staff is very knowledgeable, the wine is great, and all the seafood dishes we've had have all been awesome. The ambiance is wonderful too. In fact, we've said both times that Fore Street is as good as any restaurant in Manhattan.

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love2eat26

Joined 6 years ago

Can't go wrong with great Local maine specialties.. I've been to fore street many times, and I have to say that every time has been very enjoyable. Recently I went to four street with my family, while driving up to maine from phily. Fore street is always our favorite restaurant in maine, because of its amazing ambiance and great service, not to mention reasonable prices. When we got there the waiting staff sat us immideatly and we sat down near the window, which had a great view of Downtown Portland. The waiters quickly brought us bread, with oil and butter. The bread is the best bread I have ever tasted, and can be found next door at Standard Baking Company. For appitizers I reccomend the Mussells with nuts in them, and the winter Salad. For Entree's you can never go wrong with some of their cheaper options, my personal favorite, the hanger steak/butler steak with onion marmalade. Each steak tastes amazing. They have very little fat, and nice sized portions. Surprisingly my favorite part of the meal was the amazing tasting mashed potatoes, unlike any other. If you want to spend more money ($33) you can enjoy the duck breast, which looks fantastic, although i've never tried it. Fore street has amazing deserts, like chocolate sufflets, upside down cakes, homemade chocolates, and my favorite; the cheese platter. The cheese platter allows you to pick 3 cheeses all from around maine. Each cheese is either firm, semi firm, or not firm.

Overall the best dining experiences I have had have been at four street restaurant.

Doesn't Recommend

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Joined 6 years ago

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Eric Grossman

Joined 10 years ago

Portland's most decorated restaurant lures gourmands from all over New England and beyond.. The Scene
Foodies come from far and wide to bow at the altar of the James Beard Award-winning chef Sam Hayward. Housed in an old warehouse, the bi-level, high-ceilinged space sports a distinctly rustic charm, and its location, a short stroll from the bustle of the Old Port, makes it a true destination. Twinkling candles and copper-top tables lend a romantic vibe. Efficient servers are well-versed in the menu's many intricacies, and the well-chosen wine list is consistently lauded as Portland's best.

The Food
Hayward and his staff are on view for all to see, as most seats have a direct view into the sprawling open kitchen. The menu is printed nightly, guaranteeing a different culinary experience with every visit. Many dishes can be described as a gourmand's idea of comfort food: plump rope-cultured mussels are roasted and served swimming in garlic-almond butter, while sweet organic Maine fingerling potatoes are roasted in duck fat.