Hank’s
150 Spurwink Rd., Scarborough
835-0091
hanksmaine.com
Part subdivided farmland, part industrial park, part strip mall, part marsh and part beach town — Scarborough isn’t the kind of place that screams “dining destination.” But when it comes to breakfast, the sleepy suburb truly punches above its weight.
I’ve written about a few standouts in the past, including Indy’s Sandwich and Honeycomb Cafe. Joining this rarified group is Hank’s, a breakfast-and-lunch spot that just opened for its sixth season.
I met a friend there on a recent weekday morning. We placed our order at the counter and found an open table in the bright, spacious dining room.
We started with mugs of excellent coffee ($3.95) from Rwanda Bean, along with a cinnamon roll ($4.95) from Portland’s Not a Bakery. This was my first experience with pastry from this bakery (yes, it is in fact a bakery), and based on the crisp crust, perfectly tender crumb and decadent cream cheese icing, it won’t be my last.
My friend ordered Hank’s Breakfast Sammy ($11 with meat, $8 without) with Vermont cheddar cheese. The English muffin from Not a Bakery was outstanding — airy, crisp and slightly chewy. The fried egg was expertly cooked, with lacy browned edges and a just-set yolk, and the irregularly shaped sausage patty was flavorful and well seasoned.
My Cali Breakfast Burrito ($12, plus $3 for choice of meat) came stuffed with buttery scrambled eggs, cheddar cheese, tater tots, corn, black beans, pico de gallo and sour cream, along with small chunks of griddled sausage. The flavors melded perfectly, though I would have loved another crispy element to break up the soft textures.
This eatery’s charming wood building, located on a particularly pastoral stretch of Route 77, has been around since the 1950s, when it opened as a seasonal cafe called Spurwink Country Kitchen. Seventy years later, there’s still no central heating, so Hank’s is open from late April until early November. Chef Hank grew up in Maine and is committed to sourcing ingredients from local farms whenever possible, so it’s fortuitous that their season coincides with Maine’s growing season.
Hank’s is open Wednesday to Sunday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
