When you go to Boothbay Harbor, Maine, you pass within a very short distance of one of the finest botanical gardens in America.  For quality of collection, virtuosity of landscaping, attention to the needs of visitors, infrastructure, and even brilliant whimsy, the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens easily rival the legendary Longwood Gardens (outside of Philadelphia) and Butchart Gardens (Victoria, BC). I posted a gallery of photos on the Foodie Pilgrim Facebook page.

The gardens, while fabulous, are not a foodie delight, but I made a discovery nonetheless!

The cafe offered Green Bee Lemon Sting soda, an all-natural soft drink made with lemon, honey, and rosemary. It was like sunshine in the gardens - I can't think of a more appropriate refresher there. The rest of the cafe is good enough, but in my opinion it lacks the vision that characterizes the 248 acres surrounding the dining room. 

Afterward we explored the nearby islands a bit before finally fetching up in Boothbay Harbor.

Boothbay Harbor can be cool or even downright chilly and foggy even in July, but it was beautiful yesterday. I took some photos (such as the one here) and then waited at the Red Cup Coffeehouse while Lorna shopped. The Red Cup folk were friendly, and they had indoor and outdoor seating with free WiFi.

Even better than that, they had the Baxter Amber Road! Baxter is a newish brewery in Lewiston, and among the first New England craft brewers to adopt the use of cans for their brew ("We do what we can. We can what we do."). Craft beer fans everywhere are familiar with the great can controversy, but more and more craft beers from some really top names are coming out in cans - this is not your dad's Schlitz! The beer was what an Amber Ale ought to be, as I posted on untappd using that free WiFi!

We also stopped at Eventide Specialties, where we got something that we hope is wicked awesome and way cool, but it's a housewarming gift for my sister so I cannot mention it yet except to say Eventide has some pretty cool stuff for the cook.

Ultimately, though, we had to leave Boothbay Harbor for dinner in Wiscasset. I always like to go to Le Garage, where they always take good care of us and show great creativity and whimsy in their specials. Each week they focus their specials on something, and this week it was tomatoes, so I got the Tomato Blossom, a ripe heirloom tomato stuffed with lobster and scallops in an herby cream sauce. That was my Best of Show this week - the setting and view, the service, the food and its local focus and sense of fun - after a great day it all came together for a great dinner!