Date Night: Our Story of Going to Yeto’s, a Zelda Themed Restaurant in Maine!

Skip and Kevin met as rivals on the set of the 2019 Zelda Dungeon Marathon. Losing to Skip in The Legend of Zelda race left a lasting impression on Kevin. They’ve been together ever since. To celebrate almost one year of being together, they decided to go to a Yeto’s – a Zelda themed restaurant that seemed to be the perfect place for the two’s date. This is their story.

Around the time that we were planning my first trip to Maine to visit Skip, an article dropped on Zelda Dungeon that piqued our interest: Maine Has a Restaurant Inspired by Yeto from Twilight Princess. Skip found it funny that it took seeing an article on the site for her to realize how close she actually lived to this Zelda-themed restaurant, so quickly we promised each other that the next time I was in town, we had to go.

Several months later, I made good on my promise, driving up from the World’s Longest Island (Long Island to all you guys outside of NYC) to take Skip to the restaurant that had put Maine on the map for Zelda fans everywhere. The goddesses were on our side that fateful, winter weekend. It had been consistently stormy for weeks prior, but remained cold and clear for our trip.

Finding parking that evening was a little rough. Main St. and its surroundings in Biddeford has become a popular hangout for locals, and we later learned that the town is currently undergoing the development of a parking garage. The street was beautiful and decorated with white lights for the winter season. Yeto’s was easy to spot and well advertised from the street, but we had to pass it and drive a little ways before finding a spot.

We arrived a little shy of 7 on a Saturday night, which turned out to be great timing as the restaurant bustle seemed to be dwindling. A table in the center of the room that boasted a cozy orange couch (orange being a color theme throughout the establishment) seemed like the perfect space to claim.

Walking in, we were first struck with the colorful backlit mural that ran the entirety of the left wall. The mural screamed Zelda to even the most casual observer of the series. It boasted scenes and characters from Twilight Princess, The Wind Waker, and Breath of the Wild.

Donning a vintage Batman tee, co-owner Jackie sweetly greeted us as we were seated and was quick to bring menus. Our seat granted us a great view of the place and we appreciated the shelves of board games, comfortable mismatched furniture, and the deck of playing cards left on our table. Despite the welcoming atmosphere, the establishment was small and could only comfortably seat about 25 guests. Takeout menus were a thing.

We had a lot of fun perusing the creative drink menu. I’m allergic to dairy, so Skip took one for the team and ordered a “Lon Lon Milk”, which also featured Amaretto and Southern Comfort. It was mildly sweet, a good option for fans of subtle flavors, and a far cry from my own order. “The Great Fairy” was the winning beverage of the night, and Skip might have stolen a few sips while I was busy searching for the Korok’s that were hidden throughout the restaurant.

Both of us have since gone back to the online drink menu to plot what fun drink we might order next time. Yeto’s proudly features some local Maine beer options, which are a must for visitors of the area to try.

Just like the drinks, we knew that we wanted to order a Zelda-themed dish off of the menu, because that’s what we came for! In lieu of “Yeto’s Superb Soup”, we channeled Twilight Princess in a different way and went for the boss right out of the gate. “The Beast Ganon” was too irresistible a challenge to pass up; a generous helping of spicy pulled pork and red cabbage slaw piled high on a brioche roll. It comes paired with Yeto’s signature mac n’ cheese and a dill pickle. Unsure of how to tackle the thing, we split the sandwich down the middle as if to share, but it was too overwhelming so both of us just ate with our forks. And we split the pickle, per usual.

Along with “Beast Ganon”, we went for the “Chicken Riggies” since they are a New York import, like myself. This chicken and pasta dish was a lot of fun and we enjoyed the olives and generous chunks of chicken in the sauce. It felt like a home-cooked meal.

Yeto’s features a versatile espresso bar that Skip was more than happy to order from towards the end of the night. Yeto’s also collaborates with Maine Coast Roast to create their own signature coffee blend that can be purchased on site or online.

“Southern charm marries Italian comfort” is Yeto’s proud slogan and it rang true. We were struck by the welcoming hospitality of the owners and small staff along with the generous portion sizes of the home style cooked food.

While Skip sipped her double espresso as I piled the abundant amount of leftovers into takeout boxes, co-owner Jackie (AKA ‘Yeta’) generously granted us a few minutes of her time to chat. Her and her husband Bryan’s (AKA Yeto) passion for this place and The Legend of Zelda series as a whole was apparent, and she spoke about things like the opening of the doors in 2018, the backlit mural painted by a local artist named Kaminsky, and the devotion of their tiny staff: Bryan, Miki, Taylor and herself. With a flick of her hand, she revealed a fresh Zelda tattoo that had been hidden under her hair the entire night and showed off her Zelda inspired engagement ring that her husband designed and had custom made for her.

All in all, our trip to Yeto’s was amazing, not only for the food and drinks, but the amazing atmosphere. May the goddesses bless Yeto’s. We can’t wait to go back for another taste of The Legend of Zelda. If you’re a Zelda fan in the Maine area, we can’t recommend Yeto’s enough!

Check out Yeto’s Menu here, and visit their official website here.

Ashley “Skip” North is a Zelda Dungeon Social Media Coordinator; Kevin O’Rourke is the Director of the Zelda Dungeon Social Media Team. Catch them both as they face off in the 2020 Zelda Dungeon Marathon and follow them on Twitter at:

Skip – @thelovelyskip
Kevin – @Shabazzle