The Groton Inn, rebuilt after a 2011 fire, opened May 3, 2018, in Groton, Mass. courtesy photo
GROTON, Mass..—Once America’s oldest inn, The Groton Inn is the newest addition to the Migis Hotel Group. The original hotel, dating from around 1678, was destroyed by fire in 2011.
History begins anew for The Groton Hotel
Rebuilt as a 60-room boutique hotel, it takes its cues from classic New England architecture and colonial history. Of course there’s a working fireplace—a roaring fire is a Migis signature that began with its Migis Lodge property on Maine’s Sebago Lake. Other period details include hand-hewn hickory floors and brass fixtures.
History yields to comfort in the guestrooms. Amenities include bathrobes, Wifi, a fitness center, landscaped courtyard with fireplace, and the Forge & Vine restaurant, slated to open this summer on the shared 8.5-acre property. In keeping with the hotel’s theme, the menu will offer seasonally inspired, contemporary New England fare.
The Groton Inn is open year round. Rates start at $169/night including a full buffet breakfast.
About the Migis Group
Other properties managed by Migis Hotel Group include Migis Lodge on Sebago Lake, Maine; Black Point Inn on Prouts Neck, Maine; The Inn at Ocean’s Edge, Lincolnville, Maine; The Sparhawk Oceanfront Resort, Ogunquit, Maine; 250 Main, Rockland, Maine; The Emerson Inn, Rockport, Massachusetts; Higgins Beach Inn, Scarborough, Maine; and Hotel Domestique, Travelers Rest, South Carolina
The family owned Meadowmere Resort puts the best of Ogunquit within footsteps. That’s not the only reason to stay here. The Meadowmere’s facilities make it as enticing for a family vacation as for a romantic escape. Not many accommodations can pull that off, but it does, and does so quite well.
The Meadowmere sold out of family ownership so expect different experience than mine.
Another plus: The resort is especially green. It was Ogunquit’s’s first certified eco-friendly green hotel. Among its programs: ozone laundry system, solar hot-water system, and 100-percent environmentally friendly cleaning products. Learn more about the resort’s green policies, here.
The resort is sited on Route 1, between Obeds Lane and Bourne Lane, about two blocks from Shore Road. The location allows you to park your car and forget it; no need to deal with permits or traffic congestion. From here, it’s an easy walk 5- to 20-minute to Ogunquit’s restaurants and shops, the Ogunquit Playhouse, Perkins Cove, the beach, and the Marginal Way cliff-hugging footpath. Even better for families heading to the beach: The hotel offers wagons for toting beach gear. Don’t want to walk? Catch the seasonal trolley that connects with other trolley routes from York to Old Orchard Beach.
Another location plus: Jonathan’s Restaurant is next door. Go for dinner or better yet, dinner and a show in the intimate upstairs theater.
Accommodations are spread among five buildings on a nicely landscaped campus. Room categories include resort rooms, various luxury suites, honeymoon suites, family suites, and, of course, ADA rooms. I’ve experienced two different accommodations: a luxury fireplace suite in the West Meadow building, and a Resort Room in the East Meadow building.
The luxury fireplace suite was, of course, more spacious and included a nice sitting area as well as a balcony overlooking the outdoor pool. The Resort Room, was perfect to share with a friend and it also had a small balcony. Both rooms had large TVs, individual temperature control, Wifi, and a refrigerator.
The Meadowmere’s campus offers a full range of resort amenities, and it doesn’t charge those ridiculous resort fees. Enjoy indoor and outdoor pools, an outdoor hot tub, an indoor Roman spa, a barbecue area, nicely tended gardens, a well-equipped fitness club, sauna and steam rooms, massage rooms, a theater-style TV room, a games room/arcade, a library, and more. In short, even when the resort is fully booked, you usually can slip away to a quiet spot, either inside or outdoors.
The Meadowmere’s West Meadow Pub, with a fireplace, TVs, and full bar, is open year round. I popped in with a friend for a glass of wine, and found it quite comfy. During summer season, a complimentary continental breakfast buffet is offered every morning. There’s also a full menu for lunch and dinner. Year round, it’s open late afternoon and evenings, offering drinks and a light menu. There’s live entertainment in the pub most weekends.
What to know: The Meadowmere Resort is open year round. It is not pet friendly (except for certified service dogs), but the friendly, helpful staff can recommend area boarding facilities (do make plans well in advance during summer and vacation weeks). Rates (2018) begin at $99 off season, $219 peak season.
This map shows the locations of the various buildings on the Meadowmere Resort Campus.
The new edition of At Home at Sea, Annie Mahle’s first cookbook augments many of the original recipes with variations.
Anne Mahle, chef/captain aboard the Maine windjammer J&R Riggin kindly shared three recipes from At Home At Sea, the new edition of her first cookbook. Read more about Annie Mahle in my Five Questions series, here.
Baking Powder Biscuits
Makes 12 biscuits
This is a recipe my grandma passed on to me through my mom. My grandmother used shortening, and maybe even lard. Currently, shortening is out and butter is in, but to honor the history of the recipe, I’ve left shortening as an ingredient. It is a one to one replacement to substitute butter.
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1/4 cup shortening
3/4 cup whole milk
Preheat oven to 450°F. Measure the flour, baking powder, and salt into a sifter set in a medium bowl. This is an important step because you want to add air to the mixture so the biscuits are as fluffy as possible. Use a pastry cutter to cut the shortening into the mixture until it resembles a coarse meal. Stir in any additional dry ingredients here (page xx). Add milk and any additional wet ingredients, stirring until a soft dough forms. It is important to not overmix; you’ll hard tack instead of fluffy biscuits. Turn out onto a floured board and knead 10 times, then STOP! Roll or pat out the dough until it is 1/2-inch thick. Cut with a floured 2-inch biscuit cutter. Transfer the biscuits to an ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown.
Variations
• Lemon and Herb Biscuits
To the basic recipe add:
1 tablespoon lemon zest; about 1 lemon
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons of fresh herbs such as chives, chive blossoms, lemon thyme, thyme, rosemary, and/or lavender
• Parmesan and Black Pepper Biscuits
To the basic recipe add:
several grinds fresh black pepper
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 ounces grated Parmesan cheese; about 1 cup lightly packed
1 large egg
a little extra milk if needed
• Roquefort and Walnut Biscuits
To the basic recipe add:
4 ounces crumbled Roquefort cheese; about 1 cup
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts or pecans
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
1 pinch paprika
1 large egg yolk
2 tablespoons heavy cream
• Jack and Jalapeno Biscuit
To the basic recipe add:
2 ounces grated Monterey Jack cheese; about 1 cup
1 tablespoon seeded and minced jalapeno pepper
• Poppy Seed and Orange
To the basic recipe add:
2 tablespoons poppy seeds
2 tablespoons orange zest; about 1 orange
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Chicken, Roasted Red Pepper, and Couscous Salad
Serves 4 to 6
3 strips bacon, sliced crosswise
2 cups water
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup couscous
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
several grinds fresh black pepper
1 large red pepper, roasted, peeled, seeded, and diced
1/4 cup thinly sliced scallions
4 ounces baby spinach
Heat a small skillet over medium heat and cook the bacon until crisp. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon to a paper towel. Bring water and salt to a boil in a medium sauce pan over high heat. Add the chicken and reduce the heat until the liquid is ever so slightly simmering and cook gently for 15 minutes or until just cooked through. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside to cool. Reserve 1 1/2 cups of the liquid and save the remaining liquid for another recipe. Bring the reserved liquid to a boil and remove from heat. Stir in the couscous, cover, and let it sit for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk the olive oil, mustard, soy sauce, vinegar, and black pepper in a small bowl. Slice the cooled chicken and combine with the vinaigrette mixture, red pepper, scallions, and bacon in a medium bowl. Fluff the couscous with a fork. To plate, layer the spinach, couscous, and then the chicken mixture and serve immediately.
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Tomato, Mascarpone, and Kalamata Olive Fettuccine
Serves 4
8 ounces fresh or dried fettuccine
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic; about 3 cloves
2 cups peeled, seeded, and diced plum tomatoes; about 4 to 5 tomatoes
1 1/2 cups Kalamata olives, pitted
8 ounces Mascarpone cheese; about 1 cup
2 tablespoons white wine
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
several grinds fresh black pepper
2 ounces grated Parmesan cheese; about 1 cup lightly packed
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook until al dente according to the package instructions. Meanwhile heat a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the olive oil and garlic and sauté for about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and olives and toss lightly, sautéing for a minute or so. Add the wine, Mascarpone, salt, and pepper and sauté until the cheese is melted. This whole process should not take long at all, maybe 1 minute. The point is not to stew the tomatoes, but have them retain their fresh taste. Arrange the pasta on a platter, sprinkle with Parmesan, and spoon the sauce on top. Garnish with the parsley.
Annie Mahle uses the freshest ingredients possible, often harvesting produce from her own garden. courtesty photo
Meet Annie Mahle, chef aboard the J & E Riggin, a wooden schooner built in 1929 as an oyster dredger and now listed as a National Historic Landmark. Annie owns this Maine windjammer with her husband, Capt. Jon Finger (see my Q&A with him, here).
An accomplished chef, Annie’s also an author, and her books include a new edition of At Home At Sea, her first cookbook, and two Sugar & Salt cookbooks, Book One, The Blue book, and Book Two, The Orange Book. Mahle works most of her cooking magic in a two-square-foot space defined by a wood-burning cookstove, a woodblock counter, and open shelving, and she does so without electrical power.
I first met Annie a few years back, when writing an article about cooking in tight spaces for BonAppetit.com. I caught up with her recently to chat about Maine windjammers and the new edition of At Home At Sea.
Maine windjammers sail mostly in and around mostly Penobscot Bay and are self-defined as offering multi-day sailing trips. The experience is at once exciting and an adventure; something that’s away and different from everyday life. These are all reasons why people go on vacation.
Why specifically a windjammer? We’re talking about discovering some of the most pristine and special waters in the world. You can’t find this collection of historic vessels anywhere else in North America, if not the world.
The wonderful thing about being technologically disconnected, unplugged, is that someone else is nurturing you with amazing local food. The day goes by and you literally do not have a care because someone else tending things for you. Do I want to read my book, watch scenery, help out in the galley, be still and knit? Your time is all about you; not beholden to all the demands, multitasking, needing to get back to people.
It’s nurturing in the food and also just being outside in nature. You connect to a different rhythm; the heartbeat of nature rather than that of technology.
Captains Jon Finger & Annie Mahle share a laugh aboard the schooner J&E Riggin. @Hilary Nangle
The reasons why 70 to 80 percent of the people who sail with us come back are: Jon & I, the food, and the music. We pay a lot of attention to the hospitality piece, the relationship piece, and the food piece of those who come to sail with us. We’re delighting and educating, offering so many choices in the food, all of which grown in my garden or from our CSA (Community Supported Agriculture), it’s local in one way or form. Sometimes the simplest of things can be super flavorful.
We’re a husband and wife team, so we’re both in hospitality. I’m in the galley, Jon runs the boat, and we’ve both been doing that for years and years. You get all of this amazing food, and you’re safe. We’re visiting places that are going offer the best possible experience.
Don’t let your fear of seasickness or what might get in the way of your adventure. We’ll take care of you. You’re going to be safe, well, happy, rested and nourished, and go home having had an amazing experience. Don’t let your worries stop you from something so cool.
Sailing aboard a windjammer is a cross between a B&B and camping on the water. Know yourself, and delight in the weather we have rather than what you wished we had.
Pulpit Harbor is a favorite of mine, one that we see often cause it’s close to home and safe with wind directions. I love coming in with osprey nest on one side, a field of lupine, another of rosa rugosa—that you can smell those off land is really amazing. It’s a really picturesque harbor.
I like anchoring off of Warren Island. I love circumnavigating that island on foot. It’s comfortable for people to walk around, and it’s a good distance of people to be able to walk.
I also like anchoring off of Marshall Island. The steep beech with smooth multi-colored stones is so unusual.
And I love Burnt Coat off of Swans Island. I like the sounds of the lighthouse and the horn off of Hockomock Ledge.
We grow a lot of food in our own garden and order big animals— lambs, cows, pigs—for the freezer. I do a lot of canning and freezing of fruit so I can use it when it’s not in season the following year. At the same time, it’s all about the freshest ingredients.
I love taking whatever comes out of the garden that morning and turning it into something special for passengers, and walking up to the refrigerator, pulling out ingredients, and creating something special with what I have on hand. Have some leftover this or that and something fresh from garden over here. I love pulling the together of ingredients to create burst of flavor in people’s mouths.
Really, I don’t do a lot ahead of time. There is no work-ahead; I have to make it all right now, that’s why it tastes so good: That bread came out of the oven an hour ago, that soup I just mad this morning. It’s as fresh as can be.
I love to make bread and to work with different vegetables. As we began to grow more and more in my own garden and get CSA shares, I realized a lot of people think of vegies as an afterthought. To me the vegies are just as harmonious, center stage, and just as important as a main protein. When you add vegies you’ve really thought about, it can make a meal sing.
Three people, Annie and two helpers, often share the tiny galley aboard the Riggin. Hilary Nangle
Special diets used to be a challenge, but I’ve changed my menu a ton over the course of years. It used to be fewer dishes, with all ingredients all in one dish. Now, if I’m going to make something, Asian tacos for example, everything is separate: meat/vegies/gluten etc. The challenge is making sure none of the utensils touch anything else, especially for an allergy. It’s one thing if it’s a sensitivity, another if it’s an allergy.
I’ve really started to look at the desserts I serve so I can have a naturally, gluten-free ones, such as pavlovas and flourless chocolate tortes. I’m not in love with a lot of the gluten-free flours; they always feel like a poor substitute. There are really good recipes, but I don’t like the texture of some of those flours.
Honestly, cooking aboard a windjammer has some of the same challengers as a regular kitchen—timing, resources, ingredients—but then you add a wood stove, a source of heat that fluctuates and requires more tending than just turning on a burner; dealing with the wind and what it does to the heat source; and then tilt your kitchen to a 10- to 20-degree angle so things start rolling around.
You’ve got roasts prepared and out on the table ready to go and are just waiting to come into anchorage on a breeze that’s been pretty stable for better part of day. You’re in trusty mode—that’s the first mistake. Then an anchoring breeze picks up at about the time that you have the most food possible laid out and ready to put on the table. Dinner ends up on galley floor. And in those circumstances, of course when the roast ends up on floor, it’s a huge challenge: Nobody panic, what are we doing now? Guests rely on us to create something fantastic.
There’s a phrase on a schooner: Always bring extra, because you never know. It’s not like you can just zip off and re-stock, run to the grocery store, or call Domino’s pizza. The response is part of the skill set of cooking in galleys: Do your best not to have it happen; when things do go wrong, spend a fraction of time on what didn’t go as planned, instead concentrate on what to do now; improvise. Improvising goes for everything, it’s a major skill: If we don’t have it, we don’t need it.
The new, updated edition of At Home At Sea, Annie Mahle’s first cookbook, The Red Book, augments the original recipes with variations.
Speaking of improvising, what drove you to update and release a second edition of your first book?
The reason we did a second edition is that the way I cook has changed so much. My first impetus for doing it was: How did you do that? I use the book all the time, but so often I make changes. The basic recipe is in first book, but in this edition, I take the base recipes and do all kinds of variants on that base. I explain what I created instead, such as turning a bar into a pie to create something swankier, or five different variations of a biscuit.
Especially if you know a recipe, you might think about how you could make a substitution and have it be okay or even better than the original. Recipes are a guide; this helps readers understand how to use them as a guide.
I often ask returning passengers if they want something that they had on a previous cruise. They always reply: “Anything you make, I want you to make it.” I’m honored by that trust in that “whatever comes out of your galley I want.“
Annie Mahle kindly shared three recipes, find them here.
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You can order Annie Mahle’s cookbooks through the Riggin’s website.
A typewriter art installation in downtown Portland’s Press Hotel spirals between two floors and sets the Marriott Autograph property’s design theme. photo courtesy Press Hotel.
The Press Hotel, on the corner of Congress and Exchange Streets, is within easy reach of most of downtown Portland’s must-see sights, must-eat restaurants, and must-do experiences. Once home to the state’s largest newspaper, the Press Hotel, this Marriott Autograph Collection member honors its past while giving guests a comfy, contemporary, yet retro arts and letters newspaper-themed experience.
A letterpress art installation fills the wall behind the front desk at the Press Hotel. It sets the tone for the overall decor theme. photo courtesy Press Hotel
Sited at the head of Exchange Street, which connects the Olde Port and Waterfront with downtown, the Press Hotel works equally well for business travelers as vacationers. City Hall, home to Merrill Auditorium, is across the street. And it’s an easy walk west on Congress to the Arts District or east to Munjoy Hill, and all the restaurants, breweries, distilleries, coffee/tea houses, and independent shops now populating that area.
Valets make parking a cinch, and the daily rate includes as many ins and outs of the garage as you wish. (You usually can find overnight parking on the street, with no charges between 6 pm and 8 or 9 am, but read signs carefully for any restrictions. Day parking requires feeding a meter or pay station or opting for a garage).
The ghosts of the Portland Press Herald linger inside the Press Hotel but in a good way. The newspaper-themed decor with an artsy edge begins in the lobby. Here you’ll find a letterpress relief artwork behind the front desk, a typewriter case piece adjacent to it, and a spiral of typewriters installation filling an open stairwell wall.
The lobby lounge, called the Inkwell, continues the theme. A typewriter is set up for guest usage, and tabletops display old newspaper pages with appropriate headlines. These include Goodbye, about the last edition of the long-ago Evening Express.
Inkwell does double duty: In the morning, it’s a coffee bar with house-made pastries until noon. At 4 pm, it morphs into a cocktail lounge. The cozy seating areas, especially by the fireplace, invite relaxing with a glass of wine, beer, or a cocktail and perhaps choosing a nibble or two from the snack menu.
Elevators access guest rooms on the second to sixth floors. When you step off the elevator, read the walls. The directional signs are in a typesetter relief like the one in the lobby. And the wallpaper comprises old Portland Papers headlines. Among my favorites:
Elderly lobster set free,
This time, dogs all dressed up with someplace to go, and
Honest warden, the doereally had an antler.
When reading from the ceiling to the floor, the headlines and type get closer together before the type spills out in a jumble on the hallway carpet.
Room chair detail at the Press Hotel. photo courtesy Press Hotel
Guestrooms in The Press Hotel continue the theme, although it’s more subtle. For example, on the back of desk chairs is the classic learn-to-type exercise: The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.
I’ve stayed here a couple of times, once in a king and another time in a junior suite, and I’ve toured the splurge-worthy penthouse suite. The guestrooms are comfortable and well-equipped. They’re soothingly decorated in navy, white, and beige and display art from contemporary Maine artists.
Among the guestroom amenities are Frette linens, Cuddledown comforters, bathrobes, large flatscreen TVs, marble bathrooms with rain showers, mini refrigerators, bottled water, and coffee makers. A few rooms have wet bars and rooftop terraces.
The newspaper and writing theme is also present in phrases posted here and there. For example, on the Inkwell’s morning menu: “I had some dreams, they were clouds in my coffee,” Carly Simon; inside the closet: “Clothes mean nothing until someone lives in them,” Marc Jacobs; by the in-room Keurig: “We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give,” Winston Churchill; on a sign noting complimentary ice delivery: “Don’t skimp on the ice. I prefer beautiful, big squares for my cocktails,” Jost Andres.
From the lobby, walk down the stairs to the hotel’s lower level, where there’s a fitness room, art gallery, and meeting rooms. The typewriter art installation fills the back wall. Photo courtesy Press Hotel.
The rest of the story
The hotel’s lower floor houses a fitness center, a hallway art gallery, and meeting rooms titled Editorial and Composing.
Other amenities include complimentary airport and transportation center transfers, free Wifi, guest bicycles, and concierge and evening turn-down services.
Union Restaurant, in the Press Hotel, features an open kitchen where diners can watch Executive Chef Josh Berry work his magic. photo courtesy Press Hotel
Union rules
The hotel’s Union Restaurant serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The New American menu draws heavily from local, sustainable farms, fisheries, and foragers.
Just the facts
If you can swing the stratospheric room rates, consider staying here. The service is friendly and efficient, the location superb, and the rooms are nice to return to after a day of exploring. Be forewarned that some rooms are quite small and feel cramped.
A double room, above, standard king room below, at the Press Hotel in downtown Portland, Maine. photos courtesy Press Hotel
Now you can zip from London’s St. Pancras International rail station to Rotterdam in three hours and a blink (one minute) or Amsterdam in three hours 41 minutes via Eurostar.
Eurostar trains, which have WiFi and 300 hours of onboard entertainment streamed to personal devices, depart London twice daily at 8:31am and 5:31pm. Rates for the new service start at roughly $55 one way.
When sunshine and a hint of spring greeted my awakening, I decided to loop out to South Portland for breakfast with a friend. It proved to be a brilliant idea, even if a brisk breeze fought off any illusion of warmth. (Updated March 9, 2024)
Whenever I’m in the ‘hood, Scratch is on my must-stop list. I have friends from New York who come to this Willard Square shop to purchase bagels, which gives you an idea of the quality. On this trip, I picked up a dozen, along with some English muffins and bread. Somehow I managed to escape without buying a croissant, cookie, or other temptation.
Sure, Bug Light Park is a great place to walk off breakfast and take in the Portland skyline, but it also offers a few history lessons. In season, May 1-late October, the South Portland Historical Society and Museum is open near the park’s entrance.
The park’s lighthouse is officially known as Portland Breakwater Light, but due to its diminutive size, it earned the nickname Bug Light. You can walk out to and around the rather elegant, cast-iron lighthouse, which was constructed in 1875 and modeled on an ancient Greek monument.
During World War II, New England Shipbuilding Corp. built 236 Liberty Ships on two yards, here. The first ship constructed, the John Davenport, launched in 1941. Honoring that history is the Liberty Ship memorial, a 35-foot-tall by 65-foot-long open replica of a Liberty ship bow. Walk through and read the interpretive signs.
At sunset, the views over Portland’s skyline from Bug Light Park are fabulous.
Getting to Spring Point Lighthouse requires walking or driving through the Southern Maine Community College campus. If I had attended college here, I likely would have spent all my time gazing out the windows or beachcombing, rather than studying. We arrived at low tide, perfect timing for combing the beach for sea glass and other treasures.
Spring Point Ledge Lighthouse’s 54-foot-tall brick tower was built on a cast-iron cylindrical caisson in 1897. In the 1930s, it was encircled with granite blocks to protect it from ice damage. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built the 900-foot, 50,000-ton breakwater connecting the light to the Fort Preble shoreline in 1951. It is the only caisson-style (or sparkplug) lighthouse accessible by land. In season, you can actually enter the lighthouse for $5.
After admiring the lighthouse from afar (it was too cold and windy to navigate the breakwater without a heavy coat and hat), we prowled around the remnants of Fort Preble, which guarded Portland Harbor from 1808 to 1947.
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Note: For a nice walk or pedal, you can connect Bug Light to Spring Point Ledge Light and beyond to Willard Beach with the Spring Point Shoreway.
Got tix for the Sox at Fenway? Go early and order one of the specialties at Eventide Fenway, such as an upscale Fenway Frank or a luscious brown butter lobster roll. Courtesy photo
Hot dogs go upscale at Eventide Fenway, the casual offspring of Portland’s James Beard Award-winning Eventide Oyster Co. sited just steps from Fenway Park. The gussied dog may not be as American as baseball and apple pie, but it’s sure to gain the attention of Red Sox Nation’s foodie fans when the season opens on March 29.
Eventide Fenway’s version of the classic frank comprises house-made knackwurst, with your choice of sauerkraut and maple-mustard or baked beans and kim chee relish.
Not a frankfurter or knackwurst fan? Not a problem. Eventide Fenway is serving signature dishes from its Portland menu. These include the brown butter lobster roll and the tuna cruda with tare, ginger-scallion, and radish.
Rick and Robin Littlefield, cousins of the late Jim Littlefield, have acquired Oakland House Inn and Cottages from Jim’s wife, Sally. Rick and Robin are the ninth generation of Littlefields to operate this property, a king’s grant to the family back in 1765 (see my 2008 story). This year, 2018, marks the 129th season the Littlefield family has welcomed guests to the property.
Rick and Robin also own Robin Hood, the international summer camp across the road. They plan to operate the old hotel, eight cottages (Sally kept two as rental properties, Lone Pine & Crows Nest), and the Hostel@Acorn and to reopen the restaurant.
Here’s an excerpt from their welcome letter:
Our intention, in this first summer, is to continue to welcome guests in the seaside cottages. We have started renovations on the inn’s restaurant, which has been shuttered for the past several years, and expect to open by the end of June. The Oakland House is its own entity and will be separate from our other business, Robin Hood Camp. However, because we do specialize in fun and adventure, we will offer guests more opportunities for outdoor activities, such as powerboat excursions, kayaking and sailing, hiking and horseback riding, to name a few.
Oakland House oozes classic Maine. The comfy, rustic cottages salt the woods and shoreline edging Eggemoggin Reach.
Andrew Chadwick, Executive Chef at Sea Glass restaurant at Inn by the Sea, will serve a special Maine-made menu at Manhattan’s James Beard House on Apr. 5 and at the Inn April 13-20. Courtesy photo
Executive Chef Andrew Chadwick, of Sea Glass restaurant at Cape Elizabeth’s Inn by the Sea, will pay homage to Maine’s farmers, foragers, and fishermen at Manhattan’s James Beard with a five-course Maine-made menu on April 5, 2018.
Each course will be paired with a selection from the inn’s wine cellar by Sea Glass Sommelier Donald Linscott. The cellar won the Wine Spectator’s Best of the Award of Excellence 2017.
“I am thrilled and honored to be invited to cook at the James Beard House in New York,” Chadwick said. “To be even a small part of that amazing legacy is a life goal for most chefs.”
Make reservations for the New York dinner through the James Beard Foundation at 212-627-2308; proceeds help support the foundation’s work
Can’t make it to New York? No prob: After his return from New York, Chef Chadwick will recreate the James Beard dinner for the Sea Glass restaurant. It will be available April 13 to 21; call 207-799-3134 for rez.
