ViA VECCHiA

The 15 Best Portland, Maine Restaurants | Condé Nast Traveler

"From the moment you walk through Via Vecchia’s ivy-strewn brick facade, this is about as glam as Maine gets—and then some. From the giant crystal chandeliers suspended above dark emerald velvet banquettes and flashes of gold accents, Via Vecchia feels like you’ve entered another dimension. As for the food, welcome to cosmopolitan Italy by way of Maine. There are rich-as-can-be pastas served in rustic-meets-modernist bowls—a la the fragrant campanelle, studded with local smoked mussels and shrimp, cherry tomatoes, and a piquant n’duja cream sauce. One not-to-be-missed gem: the scallops, equal parts sweet and savory over green lentils and kumquat purée, pomegranate, and sweet leeks. Even utterly un-Italian dishes like the (American classic) Statler chicken taste like an afternoon in Amalfi." - Alexandra Hall