Maine Eats · Waterville, Maine

Waterville restaurants: dairy bars & diners

1 diner and 2 dairy bars in and around Waterville, each checked in business in October 2026. For hand-checked lobster shacks, clam shacks, Italians, whoopie pies and oyster bars, the nearest are a drive away; they're below too. The Maine Eats app's directory has 65 restaurants, cafés, bars and bakeries in Waterville and sorts them by distance from you.

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Waterville at a glance

The app's directory has 65 places to eat and drink in Waterville. The most common kinds are Bakery & Sweets (10), Coffee & Café (9) and Bar & Pub (7). 23 are matched to a Maine liquor license on the state's list. 24 are locations of a chain with five or more in Maine. 2 are on our hand-checked lists. Waterville is in Kennebec County, in the Kennebec Valley region.

On our lists in Waterville

The places in Waterville on our hand-checked lists, most featured first: James Beard honorees and long-running places lead. That order isn't a rating.

Gifford's Famous Ice Cream
170 Silver St, Waterville
Dairy barSeasonal Known for: Gifford's hard ice cream; sundaes; frappes · Season: about late March to fall (opened March 20 in 2026) · A branch of Gifford's Famous Ice Cream, Skowhegan
Scoop stand with mini golf run by Skowhegan's family ice cream maker.
giffordsicecream.com
North Street Dairy Cone
127 North St, Waterville
Dairy bar Known for: homemade 'old-fashioned' ice cream; soft serve; shakes
Waterville stand that makes its own old-fashioned ice cream (Butterscotch Royal, Red Raspberry Streak) plus soft serve.

The nearest lobster shacks and rolls to Waterville

None of our 37 hand-checked lobster shacks and roll stops is in Waterville or within 15 miles. The closest are 33 to 38 miles away. The statewide guide has 37.

Young's Lobster Pound
2 Fairview St, Belfast · 33 mi from Waterville
Lobster shackSeasonal Known for: hard- and soft-shell lobster; clams; mussels; lobster roll · Season: seasonal; check before you go
Lobster pound with picnic tables on the Passagassawakeag River in Belfast.
youngslobsters.com
Larson's Lunch Box
430 Main St, Damariscotta · 36 mi from Waterville
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.
damariscottarivergrill.com
Red's Eats
41 Water St, Wiscasset · 38 mi from Waterville
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.
redseatsmaine.com

The nearest clam shacks to Waterville

None of our 11 hand-checked clam shacks is in Waterville or within 15 miles. The closest are 33 to 39 miles away. The statewide guide has 11.

Delano's Seafood Shack
2090 Atlantic Highway, Waldoboro · 33 mi from Waterville
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.
Sea Basket
303 Bath Rd, Wiscasset · 39 mi from Waterville
Clam shack Known for: lobster stew
Wiscasset seafood restaurant known for generous portions and lobster stew made with fresh local lobster meat.
seabasket.com

The nearest red snappers and italians to Waterville

None of our 11 hand-checked red snapper and Italian stops is in Waterville or within 10 miles. The closest is 37 miles away. The statewide guide has 11.

Harbor Dogs
1 Public Landing, Camden · 37 mi from Waterville
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.

The nearest whoopie pies and donuts to Waterville

None of our 16 hand-checked whoopie pie and donut stops is in Waterville or within 10 miles. The closest are 33 to 34 miles away. The statewide guide has 16.

The Only Doughnut
225 Northport Ave, Belfast · 33 mi from Waterville
Potato donuts Known for: Maine potato cake doughnuts; maple, sea smoke and Earl Grey glazes; brioche and gluten-free doughnuts
Belfast doughnut shop built on traditional Maine potato cake doughnuts (plain or chocolate) with rotating glazes and toppings; open Thursday to Sunday mornings.
theonlydoughnut.com
Moody's Diner
1885 Atlantic Highway, Waldoboro · 34 mi from Waterville
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.
moodysdiner.com

Diners in and near Waterville

Those within 10 miles, closest first. The statewide guide has 13.

Bee's Snack Bar
1 Lithgow St, Winslow · 1 mi from Waterville
Diner Known for: all-day breakfast; loaded hot dogs; hand-cut fries
Long-running Winslow snack bar above the Kennebec, reopened in April 2025 by a Willette family member with all-day breakfast and comfort-food specials; open Tuesday-Saturday.

The nearest oyster bars to Waterville

None of our 10 hand-checked oyster bars is in Waterville or within 15 miles. The closest are 36 to 37 miles away. The statewide guide has 10.

The Shuck Station
68 Main St, Newcastle · 36 mi from Waterville
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.
theshuckstation.com
King Eider's Pub
2 Elm St, Damariscotta · 36 mi from Waterville
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.
kingeiderspub.com
Damariscotta River Grill
155 Main St, Damariscotta · 36 mi from Waterville
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.
damariscottarivergrill.com

Dairy bars in and near Waterville

In Waterville: Gifford's Famous Ice Cream and North Street Dairy Cone, listed above. None of our other dairy bars is within 10 miles. The statewide guide has 54.

What Waterville eats

The most common kinds of place among the 65 in Waterville, from open map data and the state's liquor license list. Each opens the web search, filtered to Waterville.