After November 1, Ogunquit's Evenings Are Booked by Its Restaurants

The two cultural venues at the center of Ogunquit's season both close on Sunday, November 1. The Ogunquit Museum of American Art ends a season that began April 10. The Ogunquit Playhouse also ends its Ogunquit season that day, with the final performances of Small Town, which opened October 1. Five days later, at 7:45 p.m. on November 6, an Eagles tribute band takes the stage at Jonathan's on Bourne Lane.

That handoff shapes the next six weeks. From November 1 until the 40th Christmas by the Sea on December 11 through 13, nearly everything on Ogunquit's evening calendar happens in a room that also serves dinner. The dining rooms, bars and farm restaurants are now the venues. Several of them also sponsor the December festival that closes out the stretch.

Sunday closes both doors, and the Playhouse leaves town for the holidays

The Playhouse is still putting on a holiday show this year, just not in Ogunquit. Mary Poppins runs December 2 through 20 at The Music Hall, presented by the Ogunquit Playhouse. So the town's best-known stage brand spends December out of town, and the museum's galleries stay dark until spring.

The library takes up some of the daytime calendar. Ogunquit Memorial Library lists a book club on Tuesday, November 17, from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m., and a Fiber Arts Group on Saturday, November 21, from noon to 2 p.m. After dark, the dinner places take over.

Jonathan's has the fullest stage calendar in town

Jonathan's has posted dated shows for fall and winter that run straight through the gap between the Playhouse closing and the festival. It is the closest thing Ogunquit has to an off-season theater, and it comes with a kitchen.

Look at how the dates fall. Shows land on Friday and Saturday nights almost every weekend in November. Thanksgiving week gets the most, with the buffet on Thursday, Paula Poundstone on Friday and a Fleetwood Mac tribute on Saturday. The Thanksgiving buffet starts at 11:30 a.m., with live jazz from noon. Most of the November shows start between 7:30 and 8 p.m., early enough for dinner beforehand. The last show on the list, It's Christmas! on December 13, falls on the final day of Christmas by the Sea. So the stage that fills in after the Playhouse closes is still running when the festival ends.

Weekend music has moved into the dining rooms

Jonathan's has the ticketed shows, but other places fill the weekends. The Ogunquit Chamber of Commerce calendar shows a pattern that repeats almost every Saturday from mid-November into December:

• CREW lists live music every weekend, with Chamber listings on November 14, 21 and 28, and on December 5 and 11.
• Clay Hill Farm has Curt Bessette and Jenn Kurtz on November 1 and 8, then Katherine Mayfield on November 14, 21 and 28, and on December 5 and 11.
• The Creative Soul holds open studio sessions for pottery painting, sea glass art and other crafts on November 8, 14, 21 and 28, and on December 5 and 11.

The first Clay Hill Farm date stands out. Curt Bessette and Jenn Kurtz play on November 1, the same Sunday the museum and Playhouse close.

CREW's place in this goes back to last winter. In March, the Portland Press Herald reported that Scott Vogel's all-day bar and restaurant had stayed open through the winter for visitors and for the town's roughly 1,200 year-round residents. Vogel also owns The Front Porch Piano Bar & Restaurant and Coastal Alchemist at The Trident Inn. CREW's website lists brunch daily and closing at 9 p.m. Sunday through Wednesday and 10 p.m. Thursday through Saturday. Those hours don't name a season, so call ahead on a weeknight in December.

The new dining rooms are on the year-round streets

Several of this year's openings sit on Shore Road and Main Street, which stay busy after the Perkins Cove season winds down.

Chophouse Grille opened on August 21 at 50 Shore Road, in the former Five-O Shore Road space. The Portland Press Herald reported that partners Zach Crosby and Donovan Fraser both cooked at Five-O years ago, and that they have owned Caffé Prego next door since 2020. The restaurant's own site lists dinner from 5 to 9 p.m. on Mondays and Thursdays, and 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday through Sunday. Tuesdays and Wednesdays aren't listed. With Caffé Prego beside it, the same two owners now run a short stretch of Shore Road.

Azul Agave opened its second location at 414 Main Street at the end of July, in the former Food for Thought space. Seacoastonline named the owners as Luis Valadez and Cesar Tostado. This will be its first November in town.

Mornings in Paris at 246 Main Street hasn't changed, and that is why it belongs here. The café says it is open 365 days a year. Posted hours are 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday through Sunday, with crêpes daily from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Its French hot chocolate is back from October 6 through February 28. That window covers the whole quiet season, and then some.

Perkins Cove follows a different calendar. In October, Seacoastonline reported that Foot Bridge Lobster, whose takeout window in the Cove is a summer stop, is opening a year-round location. The new spot is in Kittery and is expected in spring 2027. So a Cove business found its year-round customers by opening outside Ogunquit, while the in-town restaurants stretching into winter are clustered along Shore Road and Main Street.

The Cove's best-known structure is also due for change. A June 15 Town of Ogunquit notice describes a HUD-funded project to replace the Perkins Cove footbridge and the Harbormaster House at 98 Perkins Cove Road. It cites the bridge's poor condition and pedestrian safety. The notice gives no construction schedule. So the drawbridge will most likely be in its usual place when it's lit for the holidays this December.

The festival at the end is paid for by the same rooms

Christmas by the Sea reaches its 40th year on December 11 through 13. The Ogunquit Chamber of Commerce lists tree and bridge lightings, holiday concerts, craft shows, children's activities, a parade, a bonfire, fireworks and Santa, plus extra touches for the anniversary. The 2026 schedule and map are listed as "out soon."

The sponsor list connects the festival to the rest of the season. Village Food Market and Spoiled Rotten are the premier sponsors. The fireworks are sponsored by The Front Porch and The Trident Inn. The Front Porch, Jonathan's Ogunquit, The Colonial Inn, Dunes on the Waterfront and Nikanos are among the supporting sponsors. Several of the businesses keeping the lights on in November also help pay for the December weekend.

What can go on the calendar now:

1. Sunday, November 1. Last day at the Ogunquit Museum of American Art and the last Small Town at the Playhouse. Curt Bessette and Jenn Kurtz play at Clay Hill Farm.
2. Weekends, November 14 through December 5. Music at CREW and Clay Hill Farm, open studio at The Creative Soul, and the Jonathan's shows in the table above.
3. Thursday, November 26. Thanksgiving buffet at Jonathan's, with seating from 11:30 a.m.
4. December 2 through 20. Mary Poppins, presented by the Ogunquit Playhouse at The Music Hall.
5. Friday, December 11. Holiday Story Hour at Ogunquit Memorial Library, as the festival weekend begins.
6. December 11 through 13. The 40th Christmas by the Sea, with the full schedule to come from the Chamber.

The Chamber's Sip & Stroll page still shows last year's 39th-edition times, so wait for the 2026 version before planning that evening around a particular shop.

The agents at Legacy Sotheby's Intl Realty spend November in Ogunquit too, when the town is quieter and easier to get to know. If you'd like to talk about the house you already love here, or one you're considering on Shore Road or near the Cove, we're glad to start that conversation over hot chocolate on Main Street. Work With Us.