Bates College (Lewiston ME) Graduation

The real title for this posting should be: "How I went to Maine for my Granddaughters Graduation and ate my way thru southern Maine".
This past weekend, June 24/28, was Graduation. All three Grandparents plus sister, uncle and parents made the trip.We all were most impressed with the graduation, speakers( especially Bonnie Bassler, look her up), and handling of the whole affair, including our own graduate Kathryn Wolf, and a final school picnic for 4 to 5 thousand including "lobsert rolls", "free" or $200,000, depending on how one figures.

We arrived Thursday evening in Portland and had dinner at "Street & Company" The menu is almost entirly seafood and all was prepared excellently. Besides several salads we indulged in Hake, Seafood Stew, very much in the Bouillabaisse mode, Grilled Dorade( flakey white fish), Broiled Sole and of course a small taste of Lobster. Then well satisfied we drove on to our final destination, Lewiston-Auburn.
Next day lunch was at "Chick-A-Dee of Lewiston" 1472 Lisbon St. 207-376-3670. A very typical Maine, stan alone, seafood restaurant with and active fryer and full kitchen, as well. The table started with a pint of fresh clams, fried with crumbs and butter, sweet and crusty. Two crocks of Onion Soup, well covered with cheese and bread, an order of Coconut Shrimp, deep fried, several Lobster rolls, the best of the trip and a Jr.(ha) Mini Shore lunch, fish chowded, Cole Slaw, Lobster Roll, french fries and baked beans( the beans were the only disapontment).
The same night is was an early dinner, 5:15 PM at "Fish Bones" 70 Lincoln St. 207-333-3663. Large menu but poor service and ordinary food. Possibly it was because of the short time laps from lunch to dinner.
Shared a bottle of Fume Blanc( too sweet), Lobster Flatbread( the best dish of the dinner) Grouper, Scampi in tomato sauce, Lobster Ravioli( read better than presented), several salads and an Asian Stir Fry, there has to be one in every group.
Saturday, excellent sanwiches from a stand alone bakery, an then an evening with roommates and parents with sandwich trays and ordinary Thai, but very good company and feelings and lots of beer, after all it's college.
Sunday Graduation, as I said, was outstanding, and the picnic lunch a marvel of timing and work by the Bates food service. Dinner was another drive to Protland, approximtely 35 miles, and an outstanding dinner at "Fore Street" 288 Fore St. Portland ME 207-775-2717. If your in the area make a reservation and go. Large menu divided in to categories and all done exceedingly well in an open kitchen with a wood fired brick oven, not just for Pizza( I don't think that item is on the menu). Numerous drinks, hard and soft and lots of food for 9 participants. Chilled seafood plate( cured salmon, pickled halibut etc), several salads, oven roasted pork belly, Jonah Crab( don't miss), Bing cherry salad( a treat), Halibut, Sweetbreads( which could be passed, better elsewhere), Whole Black Bass( don't pass) Vegetable Pasta, Flounder ( outstanding) Artic Char( also excellent as were all the seafood dishes) 3 Charcutere( tongue, duck pate, farm pate), grilled cauliflower, grilled asparagus, and 3 desserts the best in, my opinion, was the orange and rhubarb crisp. They all completly dissapeared, as did we after the meal.