Although Portland is the closest place to campus that can call itself a city, I've noticed that students rarely venture there for dinner.
However, just 30 to 40 minutes from Bowdoin lies one of the most underappreciated and rising food cities in the country.
Chefs from established culinary capitals such as New York and Los Angeles have flocked to Portland to make use of Maine's exceptionally fresh local produce and proteins.
One such chef, Steve Corry, brought his talents from California to open the restaurant Five Fifty-Five, named for its street number. Since opening the restaurant with his wife Michelle, Corry's delicious preparation has earned him many accolades: He was named Food and Wine magazine's best new chef of 2007, and, in 2011, the Maine Restaurant Association named him 2011 Chef of the Year.
Upon entering Five Fifty-Five, you are led through the bar into the dining room, which looks small and cozy until you look up and see the brightly lit balcony above the ground level.
While its dim lighting sometimes makes the menu tough to read, the ground floor boasts views of the snug but bustling kitchen. A menu presented on a wooden clipboard features produce from various local farms. The restaurant's mission to showcase fresh ingredients makes for a constantly changing, small but creative menu. The menu's offerings are divided into small plates, green plates and savory plates.
To start, order the mussels. They are tossed in a pickled cherry pepper and garlic broth, and the seasonings provide a delicious blend of heat and smokiness that pairs perfectly with the seafood.
The extra bread given for dipping, however, is simply not enough. Another solid appetizer is the black pepper ricotta turnover. It's served with salty prosciutto and garnished with a rich fig mustard that, in and of itself, makes the dish worth ordering.
For an excellent green plate, look to "the yolks on you." Though the salad constantly changes, it always features a perfect 3-minute egg yolk and some sort of savory meat such as duck confit sitting atop spinach and complimentary seeds and vegetables. The yolk bursts and creates a flavorful glue that pieces every component together for the perfect bite.
Standout savory plates include a well-marinated skirt steak served with a parmesan cauliflower puree, and the fresh diver scallops, served pepper-crusted, over whipped fennel potatoes and local carrots.
A dish listed as "Mary had a little...lamb" features grilled and braised lamb stew served over fresh fettuccine and topped with a shaved goat parmesan. The sharp parmesan gives the dish a Mediterranean flavor that blends well with the complex taste of the lamb.
The last and perhaps most famous dish on the menu is the truffled lobster mac and cheese. Listed as a savory main course, the dish can also be ordered as an appetizer to share.
The combination of the soft, tender and cheesy shells mixed with the sweet and chewy butter-poached lobster, topped with coarsely shaven crunchy truffle, is a rich contrast of textures and flavors.
Priced at $32, it is the most expensive dish on the menu, but if you're making the trek to Portland, you might as well splurge a little.
Make sure to save room for the home-churned ice cream and a confection plate of perfect salted caramels and warm chocolate chip cookies.
If you enjoy a good meal, try and make the trip out to Portland; the restaurants are worth it and Five Fifty-Five should be at the top of your list.
Taste: 5 stars
Service: 5 stars
Value: 4 stars (you get what you pay for)
Overall: 5 stars
555 Congress St Portland, Maine; 207-761-0555; www.fivefifty-five.com