Lost Kitchen

On August 3, my girlfriend Kate, members of her family and I journeyed to Freedom, ME, population approximately 747, for an extraordinary meal. How is 747 considered an approximate number? Well, 47 of us were lucky enough to secure a reservation at Chef Erin French's rustic temple of farm-to-table cuisine, The Lost Kitchen. Lucky and coveted, because reservations are drawn at random from a pile (around 10,000 per season!) of 3 X 5 inch cards mailed (not emailed!) to  the restaurant back in April. From the opening of their season on May 11 to its closing on New Years eve, about 5,000 reservations will be fulfilled. The restaurant operates Wednesday through Saturday, serving dinner only in a six course format, lasting about four hours, in its dining room in a refurbished mill building. Confirmation of our reservation was conveyed with a phone call from a member of Lost Kitchen's staff of local farmers and artisans who, besides supplying much of the local and seasonal raw ingredients, moonlight at the restaurant, assisting as cooks, servers and reservationists. Chef Erin curates her menus daily by choosing only what is available to her from the surrounding farms and the nearby ocean (seaside Belfast, ME is 17 miles away). Her experience prior to opening the Lost Kitchen in 2014 of hosting pop-up dinners, with a set menu, informs the dining experience. As a diner, you merely choose your wine from the wine cellar below the restaurant (or bring your own as the restaurant does not have a liquor license), and put yourself in the capable hands of Chef Erin and her staff. Our menu that night featured St. John's river oysters with cucumber, a chilled beet soup, a delicately fried squash blossom stuffed with goat cheese, served with a tomato salad, a romaine "wedge" salad, seared scallops with creamy polenta and potato salad, and a butter cake with almonds, fresh cream and berries. Seasonal, local, charming and exquisite only begin to describe this experience, enhanced by Chef Erin's introduction of herself, her restaurant and her community to our group of 40-odd diners, strangers and family alike. With passion, gratitude, pride and humility she offers her statement of where she is from through the offerings of her table, and takes the time to greet us individually to thank us for the effort of our visit. The pleasure of receiving the hospitality offered by the Lost Kitchen was all ours.
Lost Kitchen Article