The Cockatoo Portuguese Restaurant

I have enjoyed every meal i have eaten at the Cockatoo since the Carters first came to Deer Isle. Suzen’s signature meals, the Caldeirada and the Paelha, are unforgettably delicious. They add new and yummy items each year. In the dessert category, the Flan is nothing short of perfect. I had it 4 years ago, then the next 3 years they didn’t happen to have it (i once even watched the last piece go to an earlier customer…). Finally got it this summer: just as I had remembered it.
I have not stayed at Goose Cove, but I know the accommodations are varied and comfortable, as well as reasonably priced.

meh

Great place for drinks, right next to gorgeous Barred Island trail. Had «Portuguese» kale soup – an unusual version of this dish. Basically potato purée with slivered kale and two slices of sausage. Lacked taste and texture.

Interesting restaurant with full bar right over the beach, outside deck, guest moorings. Only Portuguese restaurant I’ve ever been to so I can’t compare it but the sauces seem a little heavy while the seafood seems wicked fresh. Open for lunch and dinner.

This review is for the address to the restaurant that was on Unilocal.
The restaurant is NOT located in Trenton.
We drive to the address listed on Unilocal and came to an abandoned trailer down a gravel dirt road, we left and went back to the main road where I asked Siri for directions, she gave me directions ti another location 15 minutes away, we drove around in a big circle and winded up at the same driveway, what a total waste if time but we laughed our assets off.
Wonder how many more people have found themselves at the trailer.
I googled the restaurant and found the correct address, I submitted a revision on Unilocal but it’s still not reflecting the correct location.

This completely surprising and festive place is down the end of a long winding driveway on a sparsely populated cove. Cockatoos, flowers and a festive atmosphere await.
It has a funky, hand made atmosphere where people have put a lot of effort into creating an original spot.

Suzen is amazing, and her staff is simply delightful. What a great place tucked away in a little corner of Maine wilderness. Beautiful view of the cove.

We had food at this restaurant when we stayed in Stonington, ME. Amazing views, along with awesome food. We had Chicken mozambique along with shrimp and chicken egg roll accompanied by a potato based soup. All of them were really amazing. Service was good. They also added extra shrimps to our dish as we asked them not to put clams in them…

Our very last night during our recent Maine trip, unfortunately, ended on a low note when it comes to dining experience. We heard about this Portuguese restaurant and my sister was determined to give it a try… What a disaster.
First of all, the location is both good and bad. The bad is that the signs were difficult to follow and the location was quite secluded. The good being that once you get there, it really is part of a beautiful resort.
The menu certainly looked interesting and after much debate on what to order, the four of us placed our dinner orders. My sister had the seafood paella, my brother in law had the swordfish, my husband decided to try the Portuguese steak, and I ordered their in-​shell clam linguine in white wine sauce. For appetizer, we ordered spicy sausage which was served over an open flame and it was certainly delicious. The garlic bread served before meal was huge and also delicious.
When our dinner entrée came, much to our surprise, the paella did not look like a paella at all. It was really a seafood platter over rice. Now, I think it was a nice looking platter, I mean, it was HUGE with a full lobster on top. But I also think that if it is not a paella, then don’t call it a paella. It looked like all the seafood were cooked/​grilled separately and then placed on top of a rice pilaf. My sister did enjoy it, but it certainly was not what she had wanted.
My husband’s steak was a bit of a disaster. There was a fried egg on top of the steak with a lot of sauce. Don’t get me wrong, I love fried eggs and that’s not the reason why it was a disaster of a dish. But really with all the sauce and the half raw egg, just made it a mess. The steak had a lot of grizzle on one side as well. The fries, as a result, were a bit soaked. So my husband, who LOVES fries, didn’t even touch it.
None of the above disappointment compares to my dish though. It was a huge portion with lots of in-​shell clams on top of pasta. My first bite into the clam though, I spat out immediately because it was too salty and sandy. It was not properly cleaned. I thought maybe I had the bad luck of picking a bad clam, which was kind of the case as other clams weren’t as sandy. But all of them were over cooked where the clams were soggy, soft, and fell apart upon touch. Simply put, the pasta was overcooked, the broth bland, and the clams tasted nasty.
I had thought of returning the dish, but that’s when the owner came to our table to strike up a looong conversation with my brother in law, who asked about the paella (looong as in she wouldn’t leave, not of his choosing). Maybe she has been asked the same question before, but she got a bit defensive and said that her version is superior because of how fresh the seafood is and because they were all in shell and cooked separately, therefore, maintaining the unique taste of each type of seafood. She added that the traditional paella means you get the same taste for every bite as everything is cooked together (which I thought was the point with paella). I mean, if I wanted chicken fried rice, I wouldn’t expect to have a side of chicken breast resting on top of my rice. Anyway, the conversation went from slightly bizarre to crazy as at one point, she commented that the seafood in Florida (after learning that we are from Florida) is all frozen and not fresh.
We decided to make a quick departure. We quickly paid, didn’t want to bag our left overs (wouldn’t eat them anyway), and escaped before something crazier could happen… I mean, the place is secluded…
Two stars for the delicious bread and appey, oh and my brother-​in-​law did enjoy his swordfish dish. Otherwise, me thinks not…

If you find yourself within 60 minutes of deer isle, go here. If you’re within an hour of deer isle there is not much good eating around so eat come here.
The food is good the view is amazing. The grounds are amazing, I would love to go back and stay on the property. Such a nice cove. Anyway,
Calamari. Good. Good amount good taste.
Wine list, lacking but we had a nice red.
Dinner we had everything from portuguese style beef to swordfish, everything is good, fresh, and to be honest the best looking thing on the menu is the large portuguese style 40 dollar seafood dish, I don’t remember what it’s called but it has a little of everything and if I wasn’t paying its what I would have gotten it looks amazing. Anyway all and all good fresh food, good presentation, nothing blew my mind, the service was good.
And as far as the area goes for good food. It’s a standout location.

The map is wrong for this restaurant. It is not in Trenton. It’s on Deer Isle.

We had lunch here and what a disappointment. I had the mussels which were not farm raised but harvested locally, which would be okay, but they were gritty, and the broth was overly salty. My wife had the lobster roll which was certainly not what we expected. The lobster was warm and dry, and there was very little meat. Also, the place was dirty. The floors and chairs had not been cleaned from the previous evening.

We tried several specials but the dish I want to rave about is a menu standard, the Portuguese Kale Soup. Perfectly seasoned, with the freshest of kale, this soup itself is worth a trip the end of Deer Isle. The Service was attentive and caring and, as written in the previous review, the view is to die for. DO NOT MISS The Cockatoo!

My husband and I greatly enjoyed the restaurant for dinner twice during our visit to Deer Isle. The owners are so devoted to making your dining experience sublime. The setting is magnificent and we didn’t find anywhere else on the island with views like this from your dining table. You can sit indoors or out and gaze on a lovely Maine inlet opening out to the bay. The seafood is the very freshest as the owner is in the fish business. His Portuguese wife makes delicious dishes with flair. Their service was very attentive and we also enjoyed sitting at the bar talking to them. Their story about how they came to run this restaurant is really special so don’t forget to ask them for it. They also manage the cabins that are on this property. It is the most private location we saw on the island so if you love nature and want a cabin to yourself, Goose Cove is the place to stay!

Service was horrible. 35 minutes to get drinks and waters. After an hour and asking where the appetizer was. We were told they were out of what we ordered. We finished our drinks and wine at about one hour thirty minutes and our entrée still did not arrive.
On top of it all we had a reservation and they admitted to giving our table away.
We complained and the manager could have cared less. We left and ended up at fisherman’s friend where we had excellent service.
Cockatoo is not worth the trip!