The Sea Dogs Brewing Company: A Review

The Sea Dog Brewing Company is a one of Maine's many micro-breweries. In addition to their brewery, there are three Sea Dog Brewing Company Restaurants. This particular one is at 125 Western Avenue in South Portland Maine. There is also one in Topsham, Maine, and another in Bangor Maine.

Inside are three dining areas, including a private dining room available for private functions. The place has brick walls, black tables and chairs, several booths, and a full bar. There is also a merchandise display counter where one can purchase t-shirts, calendars, and other souvenirs with the Sea Dog Logo (the white dog wearing a lobsterman's rain hat).

I started with a crock of French onion soup ($4.99); a rich burgandy beef broth loaded with caramelized onions on which a couple of small slices of French bread were floating, all covered with wonderful melted Swiss cheese. It was steaming hot and really hit the spot on a cold day. Hubby went for the New England Clam Chowder($2.99 when ordered to a sandwich), and added oyster crackers to the steaming cup. He said it was excellent.

He followed the chowder with a turkey BLT with a side of fries ($8.99). It was stuffed with turkey and the bread was a tasty, toasted multigrain. The fries were crisp and hot.

Instead of fries, I decided on a side salad with a variety of greens, cucumbers, onions, grape tomatoes, carrots and ranch dressing to go with my BBQ burger ($9.99). My grilled burger was topped with pepper jack cheese, Cajun onion strings and hickory BBQ sauce. The bun was disappointing, bland and a little dry. But the burger was well-done without being blackened and the cheese, BBQ sauce, and onion strings made it quite tasty. (I left most of the bun on the plate). The pickles were nice and crisp.

Since we hadn't had a dessert in a while, we decided to splurge today. Hubby had the chocolate brownie ice cream sundae ($4.95). It was elegantly presented with two good-sized fresh brownie triangles, a scoop of vanilla ice cream, a large dollop of whipped cream on a plate that had been drizzled with chocolate and caramel sauces. It tasted as good as it looked.

I opted for the chocolate peanut butter pie ($4.95). It, too, was elegantly presented on a plate drizzled with caramel and chocolate sauce. The round concoction had an Oreo cookie crust, a layer of fluffy peanut butter mousse, topped with a layer of cream similar to what's in an Oreo cookie (but much lighter and creamier!), and on top of that were chopped peanuts, caramel, and a chopped up little peanut butter cup.
It really didn't need the dollop of whip cream beside it...I left that on the plate, too.

The desserts were outstanding; the remainder of the meal was good, but did not tempt me to go back right away. The service was rather slow. Oh, Hubby had the Owls Head Light Ale. He at first said it seemed watery, but I guess it grew on him, because he did have a second one!

If you'd like to learn more about The Sea Dog Brewing Company, click on the link below.
http://www.seadogbrewing.com/