Wandby Landing — Restaurant in Kennebunk

Enjoyed a decent meal at a new elegant Italian restaurant heading into Kennebunkport. We are lucky to have so many new options in this area. The gardens and landscape were vast and very impressive. They had outdoor seating, Adirondacks and a fire pit. The parking lot was a tad dark and the entrance was attractive but not well marked. We weren’t sure if it was the back door. Upon entry there was a podium (thank goodness) and a view into a very attractive bar area on the first floor. Stunning decor. We were seated upstairs. Our server was excellent, helpful throughout. That’s important as they offer unique products and ingredients not seen often. We enjoyed a couple of craft cocktails and their unique and tasty chilled bread and accoutrements. Different and good. We selected two appetizers - Mussels: fantastic flavor/best in the area from what we’ve had all summer. Fried Squid: similar to a spicy Rhode Island version, robust sauce but hidden a little as it was below the squid. Very light and tasty. We were conflicted on our two pasta entree selections. We selected Trenne as one and Eggyolk Taglilitelli now with shrimp as the other. The handmade pasta was excellent. Compliments to whoever made that. Light, melted in our mouths and accepted the sauces nicely. We didn’t fully enjoy each sauce thoroughly. You could tell that there was a lot of thought and technique, but neither of us were loving them, like “I craving more of this”. Good, not great. If they do nail down some great sauces w that pasta, they will have people lining up. We ended with cappuccinos and tiramisu - both awesome. Beautiful restaurant worth trying. Make note they do allow for reservations thru Resy and don’t expect your traditional American-ized menu. They are doing their own creative thing, which we appreciated. Great place. (Subsequent visit) Again, really good service. My bartender was a pro - on point. Had a beer and fried oysters. Possibly the oddest preparation I’ve seen. Instead of flour or cornmeal, they fried them with rice. Very unpleasant, dense and a hard crunch. I came for the pizza, so I was hoping for better. Priced high, but the pizza was very very good. Chewy with nice char on the bottom. No distinct crust, but good flavor - consistent texture throughout. Added Parmesan gave a salty taste. When they stay the course with dishes I find that these guys do really well, but when they get too creative I’ve found they miss the mark. I will suggest that people I know try this place and let me know...

We decided to make it a date night and head to the Kennebunkport area for the evening. We booked a spot at the newly opened Wandby Landing. They opened as early as 4pm, so since it was a Sunday, we had an early dinner res starting at 5pm. Ample parking on the property, beautifully manicured gardens on the property, and the interiors I would define as modern rustic - clearly all recently renovated.

We were promptly sat, and as I got to look around, noticed a HUGE, well-appointed bar space - which looked perfect for a hot summer day to have a cocktail and some small plates or something.

Our server was just the right balance of playful and informed, and helped us navigate her favorites, etc. We landed on the lamb skewers (perfectly done and nice balanced flavors) and the salad (a nice mix of acid and sweetness). We decided to do a half portion of one of the pasta dishes as a second course, with the rigatoni (just a tad bit of heat from the red chili flake).

Our mains were the chicken (butterfly filleted, crispy and great herb flavors) and the swordfish with capers, tomatoes.

We also opted for a shared dessert of Panna cotta.

Overall, this is a perfect coastal dining experience that gives you a hint of big city fine dining but in an approachable coastal feel/environment. Great drinks, friendly service, and locally owned.

Highly recommend if...

Nice atmosphere, wonderful location, very friendly staff, and an interesting drink menu. We were a group of 6, so we got to try many things. Pizza is excellent. Pasta dishes great but Carbonara is supposed to have lots of black pepper and this didn't have any pepper I could taste or see. It was tasty, just not the way the dish is normally made. The chicken entre was excellent. Two areas for improvement: First, timing on appetizer delivery was weak. The first two came out reasonably close together but the last one was so late that we wondered if they forgot it. They also brought out far too little bread with one of them. C'mon, bread is cheap! Second, we were advised that the fried oyster appetizer recipe had changed to panko crusted. Not having been there before, we shrugged our shoulders and ordered them anyway. They were not good. Far too much panko crust and you hardly could taste any oysters. Next time make sure you fully test any recipe changes. Maybe you were doing that and we were the test? Chefs should know what they are putting out and be able to adjust FAST. Other than the one bad appetizer the experience was positive. Would I go back? Maybe, but eating out is EXPENSIVE and there are lots of...