Maine Eats · Damariscotta, Maine
Damariscotta restaurants: oyster bars & lobster shacks
5 lobster shacks and roll stops, 2 clam shacks, 1 whoopie pie or donut stop, 2 diners and 6 oyster bars in and around Damariscotta, each checked in business in October 2026. For hand-checked Italians and dairy bars, the nearest are a drive away; they're below too. The Maine Eats app's directory has 26 restaurants, cafés, bars and bakeries in Damariscotta and sorts them by distance from you.
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Damariscotta at a glance
The app's directory has 26 places to eat and drink in Damariscotta. The most common kinds are Seafood (6), Bakery & Sweets (5) and Sandwiches & Deli (4). 14 are matched to a Maine liquor license on the state's list. 3 are locations of a chain with five or more in Maine. 3 are on our hand-checked lists; the longest at the same address is King Eider's Pub, there since 1996. Damariscotta is in Lincoln County, in the Midcoast & Islands region.
On our lists in Damariscotta
The places in Damariscotta on our hand-checked lists, most featured first: James Beard honorees and long-running places lead. That order isn't a rating. Longest at the same address: King Eider's Pub in Damariscotta, there since 1996. Maine's oldest restaurants has the 22 places with 40 or more years at the same address.
King Eider's Pub
2 Elm St, Damariscotta
Oyster bar Known for: Damariscotta River oysters on the half shell; skillet-roasted oysters; crab cakes · At this address since 1996
English-style pub in downtown Damariscotta with a raw bar of Damariscotta River oysters and a whiskey list of 180-plus bottles.
Damariscotta River Grill
155 Main St, Damariscotta
Oyster bar Known for: Pemaquid oysters (half shell, pan-roasted or fried); lobster cakes; scallops
Two-level restaurant and bar on Damariscotta's Main Street serving Pemaquid oysters from the river outside its windows; same owners as Larson's Lunch Box.
Larson's Lunch Box
430 Main St, Damariscotta
Lobster rollSeasonal Known for: lobster roll; crab roll; char-broiled burgers; fried clams · Season: mid-spring through October
Outdoor takeout shack in a parking lot just north of downtown Damariscotta, serving lobster and crab rolls in season; its page says it will be back in spring 2026.
Lobster shacks and rolls in and near Damariscotta
In Damariscotta: Larson's Lunch Box, listed above. The others within 15 miles, closest first. The statewide guide has 37.
Sprague's Lobster
22 Main St, Wiscasset · 7 mi from Damariscotta
Lobster shackLobster rollSeasonal Known for: lobster roll; lobster dinner; live lobsters to go · Season: seasonal; check before you go
Family-run lobster stand on the Creamery Pier in Wiscasset known for lobster rolls and lobster dinners.
Red's Eats
41 Water St, Wiscasset · 7 mi from Damariscotta
Lobster shackLobster rollSeasonal Known for: lobster roll; lobster plate; fried seafood baskets · Season: late April/May to mid-October (2026: opened May 6, target closing Oct. 13)
Family-run takeout stand at the foot of Wiscasset's Main Street on Route 1, known for lobster rolls and long summer lines.
Muscongus Bay Lobster
28 Landing Rd, Round Pond (Bristol) · 7 mi from Damariscotta
Lobster shackLobster rollSeasonal Known for: lobster roll; lobster chowder; Damariscotta River oysters · Season: late May into fall (2025 season opened May 23)
Family-owned wholesale and retail lobster business on Round Pond Harbor with outdoor waterfront tables and a small beer-and-wine bar, the Bait Shed Bar.
Robinson's Wharf
20 Hendricks Hill Rd, Southport · 15 mi from Damariscotta
Lobster roll Known for: lobster roll; lobster; scallops
Waterfront seafood restaurant with a seafood market and gift shop just across the swing bridge from Boothbay Harbor; the market is open year-round.
Clam shacks in and near Damariscotta
Those within 15 miles, closest first. The statewide guide has 11.
Sea Basket
303 Bath Rd, Wiscasset · 8 mi from Damariscotta
Clam shack Known for: lobster stew
Wiscasset seafood restaurant known for generous portions and lobster stew made with fresh local lobster meat.
Delano's Seafood Shack
2090 Atlantic Highway, Waldoboro · 10 mi from Damariscotta
Clam shack Known for: fried haddock
Year-round seafood shack next to the Delano family's seafood market, run by former lobsterman Kendall Delano Jr.; moved from a trailer into a new building with indoor seating in late 2025.
The nearest red snappers and italians to Damariscotta
None of our 11 hand-checked red snapper and Italian stops is in Damariscotta or within 10 miles. The closest are 14 to 35 miles away. The statewide guide has 11.
Dunton's Doghouse
40 Sea St, Boothbay Harbor · 14 mi from Damariscotta
Red snappers Known for: red hot dogs (W.A. Bean); Riley Dog with cheese and bacon; hot dog with coleslaw
Small hot dog stand at the edge of downtown Boothbay Harbor serving natural-casing dogs and W.A. Bean red hot dogs on griddled, buttered New England-style buns.
Harbor Dogs
1 Public Landing, Camden · 26 mi from Damariscotta
Red snappersSeasonal Known for: Jordan's red snappers; Harbor Dog with apple chutney; Chilean Completo · Season: seasonal; check before you go
Seasonal hot dog stand in a parking lot at the edge of Camden Harbor, using Jordan's red snappers on toasted New England-style buns.
Simones' Hot Dog Stand
99 Chestnut St, Lewiston · 34 mi from Damariscotta
Red snappers Known for: red snapper hot dogs on steamed buns; chili dogs
Downtown Lewiston hot dog stand run by the Simones family for four generations, known for red snappers ('Lewiston lobsters') on steamed buns; open weekdays.
Whoopie pies and donuts in and near Damariscotta
Those within 10 miles, closest first. The statewide guide has 16.
Moody's Diner
1885 Atlantic Highway, Waldoboro · 9 mi from Damariscotta
Whoopie piesBlueberry pieDiner Known for: blueberry pie; cream pies; whoopie pies · At this address since 1934
Family-run Route 1 diner known for its pies, baked from Bertha Moody's recipes, and its whoopie pies; open just about every day of the year.
Diners in and near Damariscotta
Those within 10 miles, closest first. The statewide guide has 13.
Deb's Bristol Diner
1267 Bristol Rd, Bristol · 5 mi from Damariscotta
Diner
Small diner in the center of Bristol on Route 130, run by Debbie Thibault.
Moody's Diner
1885 Atlantic Highway, Waldoboro · 9 mi from Damariscotta; listed above
Oyster bars in and near Damariscotta
In Damariscotta: King Eider's Pub and Damariscotta River Grill, listed above. The others within 15 miles, closest first. The statewide guide has 10.
The Shuck Station
68 Main St, Newcastle · 0 mi from Damariscotta
Oyster bar Known for: oysters on the half shell; baked oysters; kimchi oysters
Raw bar run by oyster farmer and competition shucker Brendan Parsons, serving Damariscotta River oysters including his own Blackstone Point oysters.
Glidden Point Oyster Farms
637 River Rd, Edgecomb · 5 mi from Damariscotta
Oyster bar Known for: Glidden Point oysters
Damariscotta River oyster farm whose farm store serves its oysters seven days a week with local beer and wine, with a food truck on site in summer; farm tours too.
Jolie Rogers Raw Bar
8 Railroad Ave, Wiscasset · 7 mi from Damariscotta
Oyster bar Known for: oysters on the half shell
Oyster bar by the Sheepscot River run by Andy Rogers and Ryan Jolie; Rogers won the Pemaquid Oyster Festival shucking contest three years running through 2026.
Mine Oyster
16 Wharf St (Pier 1), Boothbay Harbor · 14 mi from Damariscotta
Oyster bar Known for: raw oysters
Waterfront raw bar and night club on Pier 1 run by chef Ralph Smith; it hosts the annual Pemaquid Oyster Festival with oysters from about 10 Damariscotta River farms (2025 and 2026).
The nearest dairy bars to Damariscotta
None of our 54 hand-checked dairy bars is in Damariscotta or within 10 miles. The closest are 12 to 22 miles away. The statewide guide has 54.
Jefferson Scoop
271 Waldoboro Rd, Jefferson · 12 mi from Damariscotta
Dairy bar Known for: Gifford's ice cream; soft serve
Ice cream stand in the center of Jefferson scooping Gifford's ice cream and soft serve, plus smoothies and slushies.
Dorman's Dairy Dream
189 New County Rd, Thomaston · 20 mi from Damariscotta
Dairy barSeasonal Known for: hard-serve ice cream · Season: spring to fall (2026: opened April 9, Thursday–Sunday 12–7)
Long-running roadside ice cream stand in Thomaston.
Bray Brook Farm
382 Union Rd, Appleton · 22 mi from Damariscotta
Dairy bar Known for: hard-serve ice cream
Farm (with donkeys) and ice cream shop in Appleton with several unique hard-serve flavors.
What Damariscotta eats
The most common kinds of place among the 26 in Damariscotta, from open map data and the state's liquor license list. Each opens the web search, filtered to Damariscotta.
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