The Best Restaurants In Bar Harbor, Maine

If you’re coming to Bar Harbor, you likely already have an itinerary packed with hiking, biking, or paddling throughout Acadia National Park. But you should also set aside some time to buy some tchotchkes with lobsters on them, take a harbor cruise to see the puffins, and refuel at a restaurant in town before your next trek through nature.   

Many of the restaurants in Bar Harbor are geared toward tourists (as are souvenir shops with wall-to-wall sweatshirts that say “Baa Haa Baa”), but we’re here to help you avoid being duped by a $40 mid-tier lobster roll. These are the places you can depend on for warm jumbo pretzels or decadent blueberry pancakes after a harrowing hike up Cadillac Mountain or a leisurely stroll around Jordan Pond.

If you're sticking around in Maine, check out our guide to the state's best lobster rolls, where you should eat in Portland, and how to have an outdoorsy weekend around Acadia.

THE SPOTS

We prefer outdoor tapas spot Havana Parrilla over its fancier seafood counterpart Havana because it's the perfect place to unwind after a day of exploring. Order one of the not-too-sweet tropical cocktails that are the color of orange or pink highlighters on the patio, since you might not want to change out of your hiking pants and Tevas. The menu rotates daily and typically has a wide range of influences—definitely get whatever seasonal vegetables are available, as well as the cheesy provoleta and tangy salmon adobo.

Lots of spots in Bar Harbor are closed between lunch and dinner, but not Atlantic Brewing Company. That's exactly why their tasting room in Midtown should be your post-hike destination for crisp summer ales and snacking in the afternoon. Refuel by having a giant pretzel served with beer cheese and grainy mustard on the second-floor patio. Or, seek refuge from the sun (or rain) inside with some chicken karaage drizzled with mayo and a sauce that tastes like a happy marriage between sriracha and BBQ.

No matter what time of day it is, there’s always a crowd on Side Street Cafe’s outdoor patio grabbing a bite or day drinking. You’ll find families coaxing hangry kids into eating mac and cheese after waiting hours at Thunder Hole, cyclists cracking open beers in their skin-tight jerseys, and the linen-clad B&B crowd drinking blueberry cocktails. With plenty of sandwiches and salads, the menu has something for both your mom who doesn’t do seafood and your younger sibling who needs a lobster roll after falling down a LobsterTok rabbit hole. The summer shrimp salad is also a refreshing option with melon, cucumbers, and honey lime mint dressing, and make sure to order a slice of blueberry pie for dessert.

If coming to Jeannie’s Great Maine Breakfast for pancakes isn’t on your cute small-town Maine to-do list, it should be. The buttermilk blueberry pancakes have so many berries in the batter that the edges of the stack are a deep blue hue, and adding a pot of real maple syrup for $2 is worth every penny. The homey diner is only open from 6am-1pm and gets packed with families and park-goers, so either arrive early or browse the nearby shops for lobster-themed ornaments while you wait. There are also a lot of vegan options and protein-rich plates like breakfast burritos and omelets to power your busy day of gift shopping.

Everyday Joe’s has everything you’ll need during a National Park trip: a gas station, a laundromat, and an unfussy restaurant for breakfast sandwiches and burgers. You can grab a quick to-go breakfast burrito as an easy option before you hop on an Acadia-bound tour bus. Or, hang out by the front windows, slurp some noodles, and watch parents wrangle their kids or posh vacationers head to their boat tour. The food here is much better than your average gas station meal, and it’s one of the few spots in town that’s open year-round.