Five Fifty-Five

Again, this is an older, more widespread review as we go here often. Each time we go we try something different but I would say the charcuterie and the bar service is among the best in town. The mussels are not to be missed either.
The waitstaff and bartenders are attentive and knowledgable. The décor is upscale without being pretentious. We usually eat at the bar. Last time there I had their take on an egg nog. Amazing!
We’ve never had trouble finding a spot but we usually go during the week so I can’t speak to the weekends. All in all a very solid choice for a night out!

I had a wonderful brunch here! Everyone had something different and everyone loved what they received. It was quite dead, we were the only people in the entire establishment on a Sunday morning. It was about 10am which I guess can be early for Sunday brunch.

Full disclosure: this is a foodie place and I don’t consider myself a foodie.
I’ve been here twice for celebratory dinners and have been underwhelmed each time. The restaurant prides itself on being at the apex of the city’s food scene and its prices definitely reflect that!
I’ve ordered off of the tastings menu as well as à la carte. The food always looks good when it comes out, and usually has elements of it that reflect the work of a sophisticated hand ie. The texture of the food I’ve ordered is always distinct and clearly took a lot of effort to craft.
With All of that said, most of the stuff I’ve ordered, with the notable exception of the $ 35 lobster mac and cheese, looks and feels better than it tastes!!!
In my opinion, the place is more concerned about how it presents its food than it is with the food tasting good and filling its customers stomachs. The portions are too small, especially for the prices.
If you’re looking to spend the money on a fancier meal, I recommend going elsewhere — David’s, Fore Street or Street and Company (my personal favorite) are much more genuine in their cooking and give you a better bang for your buck.
Bottom line — superficial, not worth the time and money.

My husband and I ate here for NYE last week and it was a fantastic meal. We dined at 555 maybe 3 – 4 years ago and had completely forgotten if we liked it or not, to be honest. We arrived for our 7:30 reservation and the restaurant was definitely running behind with many tables, but we were in no rush so happily grabbed seats at the bar. We saw one couple near us were given comp champagne and were not happy at how long they had to wait, but after one drink each, we were seated to a great table near the window on the first floor… we didn’t have to wait long at all.
Since it was NYE, they were doing a 4 course meal that you could choose to do wine pairings with ($ 35 per person for wine pairings — of course we did it!). We started out with some oysters (awesome), then had a delicious winter soup and an awesome beet salad, followed by the braised rabbit (awesome), our main courses were the seafood bouillabaisse and the duck two ways (both amazing), and we finished off with a lemon tart and sorbet. All courses were delicious, and each wine (though the dessert wine was a bit much for me) were great. Our waiter was friendly and funny. We were sad to see that a couple tables around us weren’t having as good of a meal, one table sent their duck back twice because of temperature. Too bad (but it did seem like the diners weren’t that familiar with duck).
Overall — very nice dinner, very nice experience. Definitely recommend!

I went here for New Year’s Eve and I love the service, they were so friendly and informative about the menu. Perfect portions and even wine pairing with each course, does it get any better? Will come back again.

Sorry for the late review… trying to get caught up!
My girl took me to 555 for my birthday (September) and have to say .it was incredible! (and Thanks again Babe).
We had the Five course Tasting Menu and it was all fantastic. Started with the foie gras terrine, followed by seared scallops, and a cheese plate that was fantastic, ended with an amazing banana’s foster! (Then Laura brought me a special made chocolate birthday desert. Add a beautiful girl, very good wine, great service (thank you Laura!!) and it was an unforgettable night.
If you want to bring someone special to an elegant place, with great food and service, this is it. Well worth the cost $$$$.

Very rustic looking establishment, the wait staff was pretty friendly (but very serious) and the food was delicious. I visited Portland in August and Five Fifty-​Five was recommended as a must, boy was I glad I listened.
My party and I started with a round of «Bangs Island Mussels» which were deliciously fresh and such a great zing due to the cherry peppers. The main dish of the «Truffled Lobster Mac & Cheese» which was amazing. The cheese by no means overpowered the taste of fresh lobster, yet the plate remained creamy and hearty, such a fantastic balance.
If you’re in town please head to Five Fifty-​Five ASAP it’s a must, they also man a mean sidecar. Buon Appetito!

We visited Five Fifty-​Five for a special occasion on a Friday night. The place had a lovely ambiance with very interesting second floor seating. Looked like a fun place to be — up on high looking over the other diners. Our table was next to the window which would have been lovely were it not for the various homeless men hanging around. But that seemed to be par for the course in Portland.
At any rate, the service was good but not amazing. Our waiter was fine but brisk, he didn’t offer any suggestions unless pressed and wasn’t invested in our table. This didn’t bother us too much but is worth noting for a review.
We shared a cheese course, beef tartare, corn risotto, lobster mac & cheese, and the roasted chicken. All were very good — the tartare in particular was impressive. The chicken came on a smear of smoked carrot that paired very well with the meat — a helpful tip from the waiter when pressed for his recommendation.
Overall a nice anniversary meal for us. The restaurant even had a little printed congratulatory card but the waiter whisked it away so it must be something they re-​use for their other guests celebrating wedding anniversaries.
Recommended for a nice evening out in Portland.

This was my first ever dining experience in Portland Maine. We typically rely on online sites such as Unilocal to help us make our decision. The reviews were great so we made our reservations, which are highly recommended during the tourist season. The restaurant is thoughtfully laid out, with the kitchen out in the open. There is something special about open to the crowd kitchens, it says «we have no secrets» and «watch us craft your meal».
At the time, we ordered seasonal salads to start and the poached Scottish Salmon accompanied by seasonal vegetables for our entrée. When the plate arrived we sat and admired their art for a few minutes and then approached the dish. It really is just like viewing art in a gallery and then chatting about it with your partner. Everything, including the service, was perfect. The staff is very accommodating and really have strong knowledge of the product. I look for these things when I dine out. It makes the overall experience that much better when everybody is passionate about their product and in-​sync.
The menu does change, which I think every one should, with the seasons. One of the things I love about Maine is SO many businesses subscribe to the local theme. This is as good as it gets folks, the way life should be!

I am giving 4 stars mostly do to the food and to the server who saved our experience.
During a trip up north over Labor Day weekend, I along with two friends (one of which is also in the dining and hospitality industry) were told by another industry friend to check out 555 during our travel. She told us to let her know if we were going so she could let whoever she was in connection to know that we were on our way. Either our friend did no such contacting or the restaurant did not seem to much care about being overly hospitable.
First, the only reservations we could get were either at 5:30 or 9:00, which is not a complaint since I understand we made the reservation somewhat last minute. We chose the later reservation. Around 8 pm, we called to ask if we there were any cancellations so that maybe we could come a little earlier. The host told us that we could try coming in at 8:30 but there was no guarantee, or we could come at 8:45 and be sat a little earlier. We thanked her for the information and made a point to arrive at 8:30 — 8:40.
We waited at the bar to have a couple of drinks. The bartender seemed a little overwhelmed by any order he was given either by guests or servers needing drink orders (perhaps he was new and still learning the drink menu). He gave me a taste of tempranillo, which I didnt care too much for, but when I asked for a different wine (an actually very lovely «proper claret») he gave me a taste and completely forgot to pour the rest of my glass until well after my party received their orders, one of which he got wrong initially.
As time went on, I noticed it was already several minutes past 9, and none of the host staff approached us to seat, though there were very many empty tables throughout the dining room and I could see there were only 3 OpenTable reservations left on the computer. My friend who’s name the reservation was under went up to them and they then took us in right away. They had forgotten we were there!
The host brought us upstairs, which frankly, should never be sat, because it is atrocious. The lights by the stairs were like a floodlight blinding any table near it. After we sat for a few minutes, the glare actually began to give me a headache. I very politely asked or server of we could just move somewhere away from the light and she was very understanding. She even offered to take our order to make it easier on us and the next server and send bread that we could nibble on while we waited for the hostess to reseat us, which was prompt.
Once that was resolved, and we were moved back downstairs, everything was fantastic! The food, the wine, the atmosphere was much nicer! All the servers we encountered were amazing and highly accommodating. All-​in-​all, despite the hiccups, I would come back

Went last night. Such a disappointment. Spent 35 $ on mac and cheese that was so soupy. It tasted okay but it wasn’t cheesy, gooey, creamy or anything. It was al dente pasta (which is not my favorite) in white salty soup. The lobster part was really good, but didnt make up for that disastrous attempt at a basic dish. And for 35 $ I felt cheated.
I am a bartender and I always order manhattans. I couldn’t even finish this one. It was like drinking straight whiskey. The color was not nearly dark enough for a perfect manhattan, so they didn’t use enough bitters and it was not sweet enough so they didn’t use enough vermouth. If you don’t have a jigger behind the bar, get one. Also, an incredibly basic thing to make made terribly.
Didn’t complain in the place because i hate embarrassing the waitstaff when its not their fault cause if I had had my way I would have wanted to send everything back.
Hopefully mgmt will read this. I cant get over how expensive this place is and how mediocre it was. Worst meal so far in Portland.

Context: We were staying at our vacation rental above a restaurant called «Five Fifty-​Five». Seeing that the restaurant RIGHT BELOW US had such high reviews on Unilocal,we had to stop by and make reservations for dinner. Our 8:30PM reservation was made and we were wondering if the experience would exceed the wonderfully positive reviews on Unilocal.
We were given a window seat (that allowed us to see the busyness of Congress Street) and took a quick look at the menu. What was most appealing to use was the Tasting Menu and the Chef’s Tasting Menu (which had to be made by appointment at least 24 hours beforehand). After talking to the waiter, he recommended the Tasting Menu because it allowed us to pick one item out of the 5 categories on the menu itself. With the two of us, it would provide for a wider variety of plates to taste between the two of us. We were sold, along with the wine pairings for each dish.
Here is how I’ll start, my favorite dishes to the good dishes.
— Mussels: The last time I had really good mussels was when traveling around Brussels, Belgium, a few years ago. I so wanted these mussels to taste the same. The mussels came with a tomato-​like sauce that went so well with meaty (yet tiny looking) mussels on my plate. I told my boyfriend that he had to try it along with a spoonful of the sauce (which is what really made the dish). Our waiter was taking away the dish and my bf was still trying to scoop out the leftover sauce. That was how good it was.
— Lobster Mac and Cheese: I realize that many of the reviews for Five Fifty Five revolves around this dish. To be honest, there are MANY places in Portland, Maine, that sell Lobster Mac and Cheese. I’m sure we passed by over 20 places on the way to Portland, Maine that sold this dish. For $ 35, it better be so damn good Lobster Mac and Cheese and, damn it, it was. With shaving of black truffle on top with some truffle oil mixed into the cheese itself, it is the heartiest and fullest mac and cheese I have ever had. The lobster was fresh and I soaked that meat in the cheese before every bite.
— Manchego cheese: Manchego cheese was fresh and creamy that went well with the marmalade. A nice break to the heaviness from the lobster mac and cheese and mussels.
Our waiter was wonderful! He said that he usually isn’t a waiter and works in the back but he was super helpful, courteous, and made sure that my water cup was full after so many glasses of wine. I’m glad that he didn’t judge (or didn’t seem like it) and shared with us some stories about his life. We gave him a nice tip for staying late to accommodate our experience.
Overall: Let’s just say that when my boyfriend and I were finishing up the final leg of our Maine and Boston trip, we were still talking about the dishes from this night (particularly the mussels) and have been looking forward to relive the experience the next time we are in Portland. When arriving back to California we started looking up restaurants that had some good mussels but have yet to find a place that has the quality and care of five Fifty Five. It is a tragic shame that we have to be so far apart, on opposite sides of the country, to have a love so strong. Until then, Five Fifty Five.

When I came to Portland, I made a vow… there was to be lobster in every lunch or dinner, in some form or fashion. After 3 days of faithful adherence to said vow, I was badly in need of a bite of chicken. If I saw another lobster at this point, it would have ended me. Enter Five Fifty-​Five with its array of lobster free dining. It’s was finding a land oasis in the middle of the sea with a chicken running around on it… and I was determined to eat that chicken.
This place I would have to say, felt like the least pretentious of the dining places we visited. It’s clearly a nice joint, but not over the top. Nor is it trying to be. It just felt comfortable. The food, service and atmosphere were all excellent. We went the a la carte route with the menu, and I couldn’t be happier with my chicken dish.
So bottom line, if you’re looking for some killer land fare in Portland, this is your huckleberry.

Well, I’ve wanted to try this restaurant for years now and finally had the opportunity. I just spent two weeks in Portland and we ate out almost every night. The Portland food scene is certainly growing, and I’ve been coming to Portland for 28 years now. I will say, this was my best dining experience this past visit and among my top 3 choices overall. It seems all Portland restaurants are now expensive but this place is no more expensive then many of the other choices, especially when you take portion size into account. While many of the «new» restaurants are pushing small plates, well into the $ 20/​plate range, the portions at 555 are just right. Service was very good, paced properly, and the food quality left no room for complaint.

This place is RACIST!!! We asked for a table for two on a Sunday morning and the hostess said since we didn’t have reservations we could sit in the bar area. While we noticed there was another party of two that arrived right after we sat down and was asked if they had reservations. They didn’t have reservations either but was seated in the dining area. I confronted the waiter and told him about this occurrence and his response was probably at the time there were no seating in the back, but I didn’t see anyone leaving the restaurant, since I was sitting right by the doorway.
FYI: There were two other asian parties sitting in the front by the bar as well! Now I got why!!!

TL;DR: Breakfast. Food really good but service kind of strange and slow.
On a rainy Sunday we were in search of breakfast. Our friends wanted to just eat donuts but we didn’t really feel like starting our day with sugar so after picking up a couple donuts to go we parted ways. We tried hitting up Central Provisions but they didn’t open for another hour. Then we looked on Unilocal for the next best brunch option and found 555.
When we first walked in the place was empty and the waitstaff looked at us funny. We asked if they were open and served breakfast and they immediately asked if we had a reservation. A reservation for breakfast?
We were seated and ordered two lattes. They took about 15 minutes. We ordered huevos rancheros and the Sunday Breakfast. Both were excellent. Sausage was some of the best we’ve had. The little muffins they gave us before our meals were yummy.
Overall it felt like the atmosphere just wasn’t for us and we probably won’t go back given all of the other options in Portland.

We had a great dinner here. We were seated upstairs in the loft area. Impeccable service and really good food. It had been a few years since my last visit here. I’m definitely going come back. Our table shared the mussels. Plenty for the four of us. We all ordered salads. Beet salads and the grilled Cesar salads. Excellent. I had the duck. Perfectly cooked. I would have like a few more vegetables on the plate though. The scallop dish was another excellent choice. Lots of scallops and well seasoned. Cappuccino and light dessert of some sort of lemon pudding.

My boyfriend and I came for a late brunch on Sunday. We actually were headed to another place I found but the walk was longer than expected and it was frigid out! I have been wanting to try 555 so we looked at the menu and just popped in.
I got the Lobster Traitor and my bf got the Standard breakfast (see photo)
For starters they brought out cranberry scones and butter biscuits with honey butter. OMG I would have just eaten that for breakfast, they both were SO GOOD and with that butter, they were amazing.
Our waitress Alexendria was on top of her game… see below — minor issues that prevented me from giving 5 stars — however I have heard amazing things about the mac and cheese so I will be coming back to try that!
His:
2 medium eggs, hash browns, smoked bacon, toast and orange juice.
His eggs were super under-​cooked and the waitress noticed it (he did not complain at all to her) and sent over the blond hostess (manager?). She told him «enjoy your plate and we’ll bring you fresh eggs in a minute» that was SO nice of them. Sure enough, they brought out new eggs and he was much happier with those. He loved the bacon (perfect crispy edges) and the hash browns were really good as well. His meal was reasonably priced, and it was a good portion, he didn’t even finish it all! His orange juice however, was a little past due and had that old fermented taste to it. He didn’t say anything until I reached over and took a big sip and almost spit it out. We said something to our waitress and she took it off our bill, no questions asked.
Mine:
Two poached eggs with fresh lobster over kale and biscuit with lemon hollandaise sauce.
The lobster was super fresh but the kale was a bit watery and tough so it gave the dish a slight odd taste /​texture but it wasn’t horrible. The dish could have used a tad more sauce and a side, like fruit or hash browns. The lobster was very tender — my boyfriend loved it. Overall, it was alright, but it didn’t blow me out of the water like I expected it to for $ 21.
The place was empty except for 2 other tables, and the atmosphere was quiet and cute for 2 pm on a Sunday. The manager and waitress really made our experience and we will def be back to try the dinner sometime.

This restaurant was phenomenal! The quality of the dishes rival some of the best restaurants in NYC. We ordered the chef’s tasty menu and I thought I died and went to foodie heaven!
The duck pâté dish was delicious! However the thing to order was the lobster mac-&-cheese. Husband ordered it and it was very filling! Yet the best part of the tasty menu is the ability to sample everything without filling up on 1 dish! So it was worth it!
The waitstaff were attentive and provide good recommendations for wine pairing! Make reservations — this place is super popular and amazing date place :)

I have to start out with my biggest gripe of the meal which really pushed this place to a 3 star establishment. From the time of we sat until we got our first plate was an hour. We sat down at 8:30 and didn’t see our first plate until 9:30. Granted it was a busy night but that kind of wait is crazy. By 10:30 our waitress, while great, seemed a little perturbed that we wanted to hurry it up. The delay in our meal made me feel rushed when the food arrived. I can’t deny that the food is 5 stars, but the delays in our food really caused our experience to not be optimal.
Grilled Caesar Salad — One of the best takes on this salad I have had in memory. I would definitely get this item again.
Stilton Cheese Plate — A good cheese plate but nothing to write home about.
Truffled Lobster Mac ‘n’ Cheese — I enjoyed this, fresh lobster baked into mac ‘n’ cheese. I didn’t see any whole truffles, flavoring probably provided by some potent truffle salt, which I didn’t mind at all.
Brûlée Foie Gras — I get excited when I see an interesting dish prepared with Foie Gras. I have found it to be a very versatile item in the right chefs hands. This was no exception. Served warm and sweet. This substituted for any dessert I could have wanted. Excellent.