The Front Porch

An autumn evening in Ogunquit.

One of the few places to go for a great dinner and entertainment in Ogunquit (in November) is The Front Porch right in the village.

(The Front Porch)

The building used to be a pharmacy.  Now it's a restaurant/cafe, bar/lounge and piano bar.  The ground floor houses the cafe and bar and upstairs is the piano bar/lounge where they have live entertainment.  Khris Francis usually performs and he is very funny and raunchy.

(The Front Porch Menu)

The menu is covered in cork and has a great logo.

(Main dining hall and fireplace)

The dining room is quite cozy and filled with autumnal ambience.

(Spring rolls)

We started with some spring rolls.  Very tasty!

(Salmon with chopped salad)

I had the salmon salad.  The salmon was well seasoned and it was a huge portion.

(Trout and lobster croquettes with cauliflower gratin)

Neil had a decadent version of fish and chips made with trout served with cauliflower gratin and lobster croquettes.

(Lobster croquettes)

The lobster croquettes was something else!  New Englanders seem to like their seafood fried and battered.  

My Very First Maine Lobster

Rocking the lobster.

At one end of the Marginal Way is Perkins cove. What better place to grab a taste of the famous Maine lobsters!

Jackie's, Too restaurant in Perkins Cove is right on the water.  Fisherman dock at their terrace to sell them the day's catch.

5  Preparing for the feast with the lobster bib ritual.

5  One and a quarter pounds of lobster-y goodness!

The lobster was fresh and tasty.  The sweet-fresh meat was laced with the briny taste of the ocean and was further enhanced by the richness of the accompanying lemon-butter sauce.

Bon Appetit!

The Marginal Way of Ogunquit

A walk in the clouds.

The Marginal Way was a gift to the people of Ogunquit given by Josiah Chase in 1923.  It is currently a paved path alongside the cliffs of Ogunquit.  You can pick it up from the town and walk all the way to Perkins Cove.

5  Part of the Marginal Way

5  Posing at the mini lighthouse along the path

The path has fantastic views of crashing waves, the Ogunquit beach and nearby cities.

5  Crashing waves on the rocky coast

5  One of the gorgeous private residences along the path

There are gorgeous houses along the way.  The path is peppered with bayberries, roses and twisted trees and curiosities like a mini-lighthouse.

5  Another private residence

5  And yet another private residence

5  Striking a Hollywood pose by the twisted trees

It's an easy walk but if you get tired, there are about thirty memorial benches along the way where you can sit and enjoy the view.

Distant Sands

On to Ogunquit.

Ogunquit (pronounced "o-GUN-quit") means "coastal lagoon" in Abenaki Indian but it could just as well mean "Beautiful Place By The Sea" (also the city's motto). 

Ogunquit is a small town on the southern coast of Maine and is about 1-2 hours north of Boston.

We booked ourselves a room at the Distant Sands guest house, only because the town pretty much shutters down after the summer peak season and this was one of the few places that was open in November.

5  The Distant Sands Bed and Breakfast

5  The Distant Sands sign (left) and Innkeeper Bob Rush (right)

It turned out to be a great choice.

The place is competently run by Innkeeper Bob Rush who was a most wonderful, charming and informative host (and cute!).  Bob seems to know when you need to be alone by yourself or if you need information or simply chat.  Bob left the corporate life to run this B&B and used to work under Ivana Trump at the Trump Castle in New Jersey.

Bob also prepares the most wonderful breakfasts.  For the three days that we were there, we never had the same breakfast twice and they were all hearty and delicious!

5  The main living room with woodburning stove.  Perfect for relaxing or fireside chats

5  The Breakfast Room

5  Muffins and coffee at the 2nd floor landing (left) and staircase (right)

The Distant Sands have five updated guest rooms in what used to be an 18th century farmhouse.  I hope to come back and find out the stories behind the rooms.  Your day starts with some coffee and muffins that Bob puts out at 7am for the early risers.  The Big Breakfast starts after 8:30 AM.

5  Part of the back patio and the public land that provides the property with a view of the beach

The property is small but it abuts a field that is protected land for public use, which means that no commercial structure of any kind can be built on it so it provides an unobstructed view straight to the ocean from the back patio.  Not only does it provide a great view, but in the summer, the residents plant fruit and vegetables on the property that they gladly share with Innkeeper Bob who in turn shares it with his guests.  There are Apple trees on the property that were still bearing fruit when we were there.

5  The apple tree bearing fruit

5  The path to the beach

There is a small charming pathway to the beach from the B&B that was ablaze with fall colors.

5  View of the beach from the footbridge

The Ogunquit beach looks completely serene and abandoned in November.  It's completely different in the summer when every square inch of beach is occupied by summer tourists.  During high tide, the beach almost completely disappears.

For some peace and quiet, fall is  a great time to visit.  The place is completely desolate in the winter and comes alive again in the spring and summer.