The Maine Catch — Restaurant in Ogunquit

Apologizing in advance for how ling this is. It’s kind of difficult to pinpoint what was disappointing about this experience. We ate at the bar, hoping to watch the Sox game but they didn’t subscribe to NESN. Every person who sat at the bar asked the bartenders to put the game on. One couple even left before ordering. The bartenders didn’t seem like they knew what they were doing behind the bar. You know when someone is trying really hard and you want to give them props for effort- but they’re trying too hard and don’t ever quite hit the mark? Ok so we order drinks ($13 for a very short Titos and club!!) and food. $33 Jambalaya for him and a fried fish sandwich for me. The fish was crispy- but the bun was soggy and my sandwich fell apart. They didn’t bring our meals out together. (Huge pet peeve) Isn’t that Service 101? (And I don’t blame the runner- she was just a kid. Just lack of training) Ok, so here’s the weird part. My husband thought it would be okay to write “math” on the tip line and just write in the total. IDK why he did that- he has never done that before. I think he thought it was okay and maybe a little funny?? IDK but in his defense he tipped $30 on a $85 bill. He had gotten up to use the men’s room and the bartender picks up the slip and just stares at it. I said, “I’m sorry, my husband was just being funny. Apparently he doesn’t like to do math.” And she replied “tell him I don’t either”. I swear my husband was not trying to be a jerk. He really thought the restaurant would just calculate the tip. When he came back from the men’s room, I was afraid there was going to be some confrontation from the bartender. So I hurried him out the door. So, I think if we sat at a table instead of the bar, we would have had a better experience. Would I go back? No. If the owner/manager is reading this- please call your cable company and get NESN, train your staff on basic service techniques and fix the wobbly...

I will start by saying this: this place easily would have had 5 stars if it weren't for the incident I'm going to describe below. When we first got there tonight 8/6/23 around 5 45 the hostess was super kind and seated us extremely promptly even though we didn't have a reservation and it was a busy night we were fully expecting to be turned away or had to wait and we weren't upset at all but the hostess got us in and seated immediately. Our waiter was very kind and attentive and our food was good.

However. My mother with parkinsons and declining mental faculties accidently left her phone at the restaurant. We went back when she realized at around 8 15 and I had to wait in the car with my one year old son because he was really fussy and I didn't want to bother anyone eating with him screaming. She came back to the car crying that the hostess (a new one not the kind one we had at first) yelled at her because my mom politely said excuse me repeatedly because the hostess was "in the middle of talking with someone else."

The hostess was talking to another waitress about her dog. Apparently that takes precedent over a paying customer!

My mom might have come off rude saying excuse me repeatedly but she gets confused and was worried about her phone and she only repeatedly said it because the hostess wouldn't answer her. Extremely unprofessional and straight up rude. I would understand if the hostess was busy and in the middle of helping customers (I initially asked my mom if this was the case trying to give the hostess the benefit of the doubt) but she was literally standing around talking about her dog since the restaurant was closing at 9 anyways. So rude.

Never...

The Maine Catch has so much potential. The food was terrific — everything we ate was delicious — but the service (or lack thereof) left a lot to be desired.

Thankfully, we went to The Maine Catch on Saturday with reservations, as they were packed. The restaurant is beautiful and has plenty of parking; it’s between Perkins Cove and Ogunquit’s Main Street, nestled amidst countless of trees. They have outdoor and indoor seating. From the moment we walked inside and told the hostess we had a reservation, we were met with a cold vibe, very unlike Maine and Ogunquit ( and something you wouldn’t expect at a restaurant of this caliber).

Our waitress's service was no better. She seemed checked out, and everything felt very transactional. The food made its way to us quickly—sometimes too quickly, as in the case of the crispy calamari starter—which led to a few misses, like having the food arrive before our drinks. Our waitress just seemed to not care. She’d talk to us in passing and do the bare minimum. It was one of the worst services we’ve seen at a Maine restaurant.

The one thing that saved The Maine Catch, and the reason they’re still getting 4-stars, is the food. Our crispy calamari was perfect; not too much breading or super greasy, as is usually the case. The accompanying sauce had a nice kick to it. My partner’s lobster mac and cheese was the best we’ve ever had, and the portion was generous. My blackened salmon, with rice and veggies, was also a 10/10 and probably one of the best salmons I’ve eaten. The rice was cooked to perfection.

Would we come back to The Maine Catch? Yes, the food was good enough to keep us coming back, but I do hope they improve...