Even before the news about a restaurant closing gets posted on the Press Herald’s website — then almost invariably shoots up the list of our most-read stories — it’s the subject of office scuttlebutt.

“Already? I’d been meaning to go there!”

“I’m not surprised. It was way overpriced.”

“Seriously? I loved that place!”

While our newsroom might have a head start with restaurant rumors making their way to the water cooler, you could go to any cube farm in the city, book club meeting in the suburbs or Maine-centric Facebook page, and the conversation is bound to come around to Portland’s food scene. Where we’ve eaten lately is our go-to small talk. Lists of places to try live in the notes apps of our phones. We all have our stand-by recommendations for visitors, insider tips and hot takes.

With an ever-increasing number of food shows to stream (from docuseries “Chef’s Table” to drama — yes, I said that right — “The Bear”) and online review platforms making critics out of anyone with internet access, it’s clear that obsessing over restaurants isn’t unique to Portland. But because of the size of our city and disproportionate number of places to eat — driven by access to quality ingredients, accelerated by national accolades and buoyed by tourism — it’s more pronounced.

Tracking new restaurant openings has been a popular pastime of people who live here for years, but the amount of turnover we’ve seen since the pandemic — compounded by menu price increases that can be hard to swallow — has made it almost impossible to keep up. (Though Maine Restaurant Week, which started Saturday, is always a good opportunity to give somewhere a try.)

“I thought I was on top of it,” said Peter DuCharme, 57, who moved to Maine from outside New York City in 2020 and remembers strolling the streets during the pandemic, peering into the windows of places he might have a meal one day.

Among people he knew in New York, trying new restaurants was all about finding places that were unusual, out of the way and cheap, and he’s brought some of the same sensibility to discovering the food scene here, searching beyond the hottest of hot spots for new favorites.

If Asian-inspired noodle bar The Honey Paw’s too busy, he’s just as happy to go to Old Port Korean restaurant N to Tail. Instead of waiting in line at Scratch in South Portland, he sometimes prefers to patronize longtime Cape Elizabeth bakery The Cookie Jar. And on a nice summer night when he’s feeling less spendy, rather than sitting outside at Lambs, he’ll make his perch overlooking the Fore River on the patio at Broadway Bowl.

DuCharme’s current restaurant-related goals are to find pizza that lives up to his standards (which are high, having grown up outside New Haven, Connecticut, and lived in New York) and a replacement Sunday evening spot in his South Portland neighborhood, where he can leisurely read The New York Times Book Review over a couple beers. It had been Elsmere BBQ, which closed in November.

DuCharme, who works remotely in machine learning in music, makes an effort to try new places, usually when meeting a friend during the week, knowing that someone took “a crazy gamble” on opening a business.

“You’ve got to give it a shot,” he said, though it’s been a tall order trying to get to all the new restaurants before it’s too late.

“All too often, when I think to try it, the place will have closed,” he said.

Whether Julie Suiter decides to try somewhere new or visit an old favorite depends on her mood, what else she’s doing that day and where in town she plans to be.

Suiter, a registered nurse at Mercy Hospital, grew up in the Midcoast and was a meat-and-potatoes type of eater until a few years ago, when a friend who travels the world encouraged her to start trying new flavors — and she liked what she tasted.

Formerly an introvert, she also discovered that she enjoys striking up conversations with strangers while sitting at a bar. Now, she goes out to eat about three times a week, at least in summer, when she can walk to places from her home in South Portland, which she prefers to do.

“I’m looking to live life, and I find that, by way of food, I’m really able to have a reason to meet new people, go new places, travel more, learn about cultures,” said Suiter, who described herself as middle-aged.

Her must-visit list is a mix of old-school spots, ultra-hip newcomers and hidden gems. She loves the Q Street Diner in South Portland for its classic, neighborhood feel, complete with the coffee mugs of regulars hanging on the wall. Her favorite dish right now is the mofongo at Sal de la Tierra in downtown Portland, and she thinks Five of Clubs, the new cocktail bar in the Longfellow Hotel, makes the best Old Fashioned in the city. For a date night, she’d head to Munjoy Hill for dinner at Jing Yan, followed by ice cream and a cocktail at Low Key.

She keeps track of places she wants to try by pinning them on Google Maps and has flagged restaurants all over the world. In Maine, it’s mostly higher-end spots that she doesn’t have the budget to visit as often.

Nick Ascanio said he doesn’t even think about cost when going out to eat — that’s just how he chooses to spend what disposable income he has from his job as a logistics specialist at Idexx.

Ascanio, 36, can trace his love of food to his childhood when his Sicilian grandfather would cook up all sorts of Italian specialties — not the kind you’d find in most red-sauce joints but things like octopus salad.

“I always loved to try new food,” he said.

He has what he calls his “daily drivers” — places he visits every week — like Pai Men Miyake in Portland for ramen and Taj in South Portland for the Indian buffet.

Ascanio, who lives in Freeport, will gladly drive out of his way for good food — to Biddeford for Fish & Whistle or Peng’s Pizza Pies and Westbrook for the roast beef at George and Leon’s.

He’s always on the hunt for something he can’t get anywhere else, which has led him to the paella at Paella Seafood, the breakfast taco at Lenora and the “out of this world” dumplings at Little Pig (also singled out by Suiter).

“We’re very fortunate to have all these places and all these options,” he said. “I just hope it continues.”

After talking to these frequent diners, I tried draw some conclusions about why so many people here — myself included — are so interested and invested in Portland’s restaurant scene and realized that, though our motivations vary, it comes down to one obvious commonality: that we can be.

The abundance and variety of high-quality restaurants is a resource we have, not unlike our access to the woods and water. And just as outdoor enthusiasts range from hardcore hikers and ATV riders to boaters and birdwatchers, everyone has their own ways of enjoying it.

If you can find a reason to take advantage of what Portland’s dining scene has to offer — however your budget allows — you should.

(Need some guidance? Read our 2025 guide to the Best 75 places to eat and drink in Greater Portland.)