The Lost Kitchen

“We insist on letting the ingredients of the season write the menu. Our produce comes from a tight radius. There is nothing more heartwarming then having one of our servers come to your table with a prepared platter of food that she grew from seed, helped prepare in the kitchen, and served on a plate, to then have the satisfaction of watching the fruits of her labor be enjoyed. For us, this is full-circle feeding. You cannot make good food without good ingredients.”

In a hydropower grist mill in the tiny rural town of Freedom, Maine, lies The Lost Kitchen, a restaurant that takes reservations by postcard only, which Erin French proudly says, “keeps our dying post office in our tiny community relevant and open.” French is also proud to employ local farmers, who not only supply her with exquisite heirloom produce, but often work second shifts at the restaurant, where stress is low and wages are fair. Her hyper-seasonal cooking is straightforward, yet nuanced, welcoming and extremely personal. Think chilled golden beet and buttermilk soup in summer, or black sea bass with summer beans and bee balm bread salad.

“The restaurant has turned tiny Freedom ... into an unlikely dining destination ... People come from nearby Winslow and Waterville, but also from every time zone, to eat here.” –Devra First, The Boston Globe