4 Best Restaurants in Acadia National Park and Mount Desert Island, Maine

Ogling the assorted goodies makes for a fun wait in the often long line—likely running out the door—at this cheeky, old-fashioned candy and ice-cream shop. Most of the candy, including numerous varieties of fine chocolates and fudge, is made right here, as is the ice cream (60-plus flavors) and gelato (8 flavors). Folks congregate, generously scooped cone in hand, by the large "lobster" out front. Be forewarned: kids will clamor for "penny candy" and a cone.

This large year-round café features coffee from a local coffee roaster, but you can get much more than a cup of joe—for breakfast, grab a breakfast sandwich or avocado toast; for lunch or dinner, a salad, wrap, or taco. In a town without a lot of quick-bite spots, it's a good choice for picking up lunch to enjoy in the park, at your lodging, or at a table inside or, come summer, out front.

Breakfast and lunch can be full-on carnivore or vegan at this downtown café, also a go-to for coffee, tea, cookies (some are gluten-free), and pastries, including sweet or savory croissants. Breakfast sandwiches have a choice of meat or veggie sausage, while lunch offers soups, salads, and inventive hot and cold sandwiches—the Vietnamese banh mi with pickled vegetables, cilantro, cucumbers, jalapeño aioli, and pork, chicken, or tofu on a demi baguette is popular.

Madagascar Vanilla Bean has specks from beans scraped from vanilla pods—just one example of the prep work that goes into creating these heralded artisanal ice creams (there are also a few sorbets) at a nearby production facility using as many local ingredients as possible. The shop's French doors open along the sidewalk, welcoming passersby right in; grab a seat or head across the street to the Village Green to savor every bite.