I can't tell you how many hours I have wasted devoted my life to food-oriented television programming. Whether it's realty shows, game shows, travel shows, or holiday shows, the concept doesn't matter. If it's about food, I'll give it a shot.

One of the shows that always held my attention is the Travel Channel's 'Food Paradise' series. The show has a simple premise: seven or eight restaurants connected by a certain theme are highlighted, and typically feature one or two dishes.

It's a very fun watch. The audience is given the opportunity to see creative concepts and unique recipe preparations from across the country. It's cool to see what and where the restaurants come from. It was also the kind of show that you could watch from the middle, and it didn't matter if you saw one episode or 10.

The other unique aspect of watching was hoping to see a Maine restaurant pop up. It took a little while, but it did eventually happen. The crown went to the Kennebunk Inn, which was featured in the 4th season in 2012.

The gates would open after that. Two more Maine restaurants, Mabel's Lobster Claw and Dysart's Restaurant and Truck Stop, were also featured in the 4th season. Another 18 Maine establishments would follow over the years.

Not surprisingly, Travel Channel has picked mostly seafood establishments. And why wouldn't they? Maine has world-class seafood, and is, of course, home to the lobster. However, some spots with iconic bites have been featured, like Slab Sicilian Street Food and The Holy Donut.

Below is a closer look at those 21 Maine restaurants that have proudly been featured nationally on the popular food program.

21 Maine Restaurants That Have Been Featured on Travel Channel's Food Paradise

This is a list of the Maine restaurants that have been featured on the Travel Channel show, 'Food Paradise.' This is quite a representation for a state that's relatively small in stature.

Data was used from the Travel Channel website and tvfoodmaps.com

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