Twelve
Restaurant · Portland ·
Seasonal American cuisine highlighting Maine's ingredients.
Seasonal American cuisine highlighting Maine's ingredients.
"I observed that Twelve on Portland’s waterfront serves an innovative lobster roll atop a hand-laminated croissant as an add-on to its prix-fixe menu, showcasing a buttery, elevated take on the state’s signature sandwich." - Nicholas DeRenzo
"Dinner here feels like an event worth lingering for: since opening in 2022 the restaurant has aimed to evolve local customs (I noticed reclaimed wooden beams transformed into the chef’s sleek counter), and Ryder’s leadership shows in dishes that are refined yet lusty—the New York strip from nearby Pineland Farms is extraordinary with a perfectly executed charon sauce—while even small bites like the cheeky “chips & dip” (a dill-festooned sour cream cylinder encasing caramelized onion jam, served with homemade potato chips and crowned with a cannelé of Siberian caviar) are revelations." - Alexandra Hall
"A Thames Street restaurant where highly skilled front- and back-of-house teams apply creative techniques to classic Maine ingredients—expect inventive cocktails (think a kombu-infused martini), a choice to order a la carte or opt for a prix fixe, and a notable lobster roll served on a flaky croissant." - Jacqueline Dole Jacqueline Dole Jacqueline Dole is a food and travel journalist based in Maine. A lifelong New Englander, her work has appeared in Travel + Leisure, Food & Wine, TimeOut, Insider, Thrillist, Eater, and more. With a background as a pastry chef, she’s always on the lookout for the next best snack. She is a theme park enthusiast and expert, and embroidered hotel robes, amazing pools, and hot dogs are some of her favorite things. Travel + Leisure Editorial Guidelines
"Prentice Hospitality’s swanky waterfront establishment, Twelve, carries Portland’s fine dining mantle now that Hugo’s, Back Bay Grill, and Five Fifty-Five are no more. A la carte and prix fixe menus feature dishes like Nantucket Bay scallops in an apple soy vinaigrette and a decadent hot buttered lobster croissant, made here by pastry chef Georgia Macon. Whether you go for dinner or just pop in for a tipple, be sure to pair the Coastline Martini (sugar kelp, dill, and a touch of lemon oil) with Yukon potato chips topped by onion cream and trout roe. Prentice continues to grow its strong portfolio, including Mediterranean-inspired downtown hotel restaurant Evo; seasonal Chebeague Island Inn, reachable by ferry from Portland; The Good Table, whose menu of American classics has recently been reimagined in nearby Cape Elizabeth; and the wholesale and mobile bakery Not A Bakery, led by Macon." - Stasia Brewczynski
"As you might expect from a team that includes chef Colin Wyatt, an Eleven Madison Park alum, this is no simple Connecticut-style roll. Pastry chef Georgia Macon has entered the lobster roll canon with a flaky puff pastry, as crackly at the edges as the hunks of lobster are tender." - Adam H. Callaghan