Lobster and Beyond: Family-Friendly Hidden Gems in Portland, Maine

Turns out this historic, progressive New England town has a lot more than just lobster to boast about: it’s a bona-fide foodie’s paradise. Best of all, there are are plenty of family- friendly dining options poised to please not only your sophisticated palette, but also your tot’s budding one.

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Here’s a sampling of some of the city’s finest offerings for fun, kid-friendly dining:’

For that lobster fix. the charming and whimsical DiMillo’s On the Wateris surprisingly kid-centric, with plenty to engage the little ones as you wait for your meal. This floating restaurant started out a decommissioned car ferry, and its antique ship wheels and oversized portholes with harbor views garner lots of ooohs and aaahs from kids and grownups alike. The lobster is simple and perfectly cooked, as you’d expect from an established Portland eatery, and there is a good kid’s menu that features plenty of crowd pleasers like Mac and Cheese and Spaghetti and Meatballs.

Located ocean-side in South Portland, The Saltwater Grille offers breathtaking water views inside as well as out with it’s a big saltwater aquarium, replete with pint-sized Adirondack chairs right in front of it, so your children can have an up close and personal look-see at all the fish inside while nibbling on their Chicken Fingers, PB&J, or a host of other children’s entrees. For Mom and Dad, Johnny’s Bouillabaisse or Linguini in Lobster Sauce are both excellent choices, and there is a good wine list to complement the seafood- focused fare.
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Stealth Health Lunches Kids Love Cookbook review

With school just in a week or so it’s that time again to come up with healthy quick lunches kids would love to put in their lunch boxes! Not only that we all deal with the dilemma of healthy eating for kids. They can be picky and it’s a hit or miss half the time and let’s face it gluten loaded lunches can drag our kids down.

With the new cookbook Stealth Health Lunches Kids Love: Irresistible and Nutritious Gluten-Free Sandwiches, Wraps and Other Easy Eat, by Tracy Griffith you can take the guest work out of this hassle and make some nutritious and amazing lunches your child is guaranteed to love. Recipes in the book are all gluten free and unique aiming purely to be healthy and get the kids energized which is a mega help during school hours. Not only are they healthy but they are fun, delighting kids with plenty of variety to choose from.

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Right away the cookbook is filled with really easy recipes. All of which can be made fast, are kid friendly  this means mostly that not only are they eye catching, but in small portions that pertain to kids. There are different parts to the book, which include the sandwich area, rolls, pita pockets, rolls.  gems wraps and buns. You have sidekicks or nibbles ( snacks)  dips and spread as well as a section on how to cook perfect sushi rice. Rice is used in more than half of the recipe which also use what is called Gem Wraps. An all-natural wrap made from fruit and vegetable puree. Side note they are not good as a standalone they are meant to eat using the recipes in the cookbook in chapter four. Trust me on this.
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Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole

I am not a morning person. In fact, if you catch me before I fully wake up, you make meet a bear.

However, this hash brown breakfast casserole is so easy to make, even the growliest bear will have no problems making it work.

Its also very filling and not too bad on the pocketbook.

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To make Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole, you will need:

  • 6 Medium sized eggs
  • 3 lbs dice potatoes (I use the frozen “Southern Style” hash browns)
  • 1 1/12 Cups Cheddar Cheese, shredded
  • 4 Small ham steaks
  • Seasonings: pepper, salt, onion powder
  • 1/2 cup milk

1. Start by browning the hash browns. Many recipes for breakfast casserole skip this step, but I really like the flavor and texture browning them adds. Also, pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees F.
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99 Restaurant – and 99 Problems?

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This chain restaurant may have 99 things on it’s menus, but nothing we ate was worth eating. The food was dry, bland, and unappetizing.  The portions were small for the money, with prices that were comparable to other chain restaurants of it’s nature.  As my husband put it, “Meat like this makes me think I should go vegetarian.”   He wasn’t wrong.  While it might be tempting to stop in because of convince, based on the fact that all three of our meals were so poor in quality, I can tell you we won’t be going back.
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WIN – Best Lunch Box Ever Cookbook

School is here! Ready to make those lunches? No? Well think  again if you are dreading this daily chore to help get the kids off to school. The Cookbook Best Lunch Box Ever , ideas and recipes for School Lunches Kids Will Love by Katie Sullivan Morford is a promising cookbook to help get parents and kids excited about school lunches again.

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Sometimes you just need help , an idea to help put together a lunch. Kids get tired of the same old things, peanut butter and jelly, an apple a salad. Boring! Spice up that lunch box and have the kids help .

With 10 Chapters to go through you have plenty to choose from, the Brown Bag basics which is tips to keep food cool till lunch, portion sizes and more. Planning is important, there’s a section on this and it will help even the most unorganized parent prepare lunch easier. Don’t skip this chapter! Next is the food chapters, your array of sandwiches, including just a few are- Smoked Salmon Tea Sandwich, Chickpea Panini and Turkey Hummus Cuties. You have Salads that are aimed for children, roll ups, wraps, and a whole chapter on how to help turn left overs into an amazing lunch. Not skipping the main bulk is fruits and vegetables, little extras to add in there for the kids and even a section for some healthy treats like Rosie’s Energy Balls and more. I like the additional chapters for after school snacks. Yet another daily thing that parents like myself sometimes come to dread. You just serve the same things over and over, well Katie helps take you through the steps and tips to kick up not only your kids lunch box meal but after-school goodies the kids will adore you for! I made some Shredded BBQ Pork Wraps for the kids from leftovers. Perfect size for the lunch box!
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Nutella: 30 Best Recipes Cookbook Review

Make way for the New Nutella Cookbook full of 30 Delicious Recipes! You all know Nutella, The Worlds most  favorite sweet and nutty spread that grabs both kids and adults attention.

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If you have never heard or tried Nutella, it is a chocolate and hazelnut spread. Sweet,  rich, creamy and perfect for many treats and most importantly ones on the run it is by far the next step up from peanut butter. Use it on toast, use it for your dessert and even more. The cookbook Nutella 30 Best Recipes makes recipes from simple to elegant only a page turn away. Impress guests or family members with easy yet impressive sweet treats using one of the most popular spreads.

We tried the Nutella Soufflés, very quick I was surprised and easy as well to make.  Not even twenty minutes to prepare and then then 30 minutes to bake. It came out amazing.
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Eats: Enjoy All the Seconds Cookbook Review

Let’s face it when we cook dinner half the time there are left overs. So what are you to do with them? Certainly not waste the food! We are a family of six, and so my meals are cooked with leftovers in mind actually. I got into the habit of this when my kids started heading to school and pick up times ended up colliding with my lunch. Dinner left overs became my lunch on the go so it has been a habit to cook like this. What if you didn’t intend to have any left overs though? What if you have no clue how to use them up and make it just as grand as the dinner itself? Mary Lamontagne solves this problem in an amazing cookbook I  highly recommend any family pick up.

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Eats: Enjoy All the Seconds 135 Colorurful Recipes to Savour and Save by Mary Lamontagne is probably one of the attractive as well as tasteful cookbooks I’ve ever come across. The idea behind her masterpiece is this, what do you do with those leftovers? The cookbook is filled with up to 135 recipes that give you perfect ideas on how to use up that extra food. Waste no more, question no more, just flip the book open to what you have on hand and you are set!
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Jonathan’s in Ogunquit, Maine

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Jonathan’s in Ogunquit, Maine is a fantastic family friendly restaurant.  There is a 600 gallon fish tank in the middle of the main dining area to keep the kids amused while you enjoy a delicious meal. They also have beautiful gardens outside and concerts going on indoors on multiple days of the week to keep the entire family entertained.  The food is fresh, and choices range from seafood dishes to steak or pasta.  Jonathan’s caters to a variety of dietary restrictions too, so anyone can come in and enjoy a wonderful meal.  They have an entire gluten free menu, which is very hard to find. Many of the dishes can be made into gluten free versions- all you need to do is let your waiter or waitress know what you’d like.Maine

You can start out your meal with a silky delicious lobster bisque, oysters, boursin stuffed mushrooms, or a classic salad.  Maybe they will have the pan seared scallops special, which is fresh tender diver scallops, served with mustard green fritters for some crutch and carrot ginger sauce.  For an entree you will have to decide between items on the regular or specials menu, both will have you drooling by the time you choose.  They have a juicy chicken piccata or prosciutto stuffed chicken if you are in the mood for poultry, tender grilled ribeye and sirloin steaks if you would prefer beef.  They even offer a vegetarian option with fried eggplant, spinach, and goat cheese with potato gnocchi. Of course, there is a children’s menu with choices that all kids enjoy, and they even have crayons to color the menu with.
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