Bred in the Bone
133 Main St., Damariscotta
563-6124
bitbmaine.com
After 16 years in Maine’s largest (and hippest) city, I have officially traded the crowds and sirens of the West End for roosters, black flies, and church bells. My serotonin levels are up and my blood pressure is down. And when I take the 10-mile drive to the nearest town, I know I can walk through both Renys and not know a soul… yet.
So imagine my surprise when, on my first fancy dinner night out, the host/owner of the restaurant greets me with, “Hey! It is you! You and your husband stayed at our inn eleven years ago on the weekend before you opened your restaurant in Portland. How are things?” I immediately recognized her and remembered the freshly churned mint ice cream she first greeted us with over a decade ago.
Suffice it to say that she, Beth Polhemus, and her husband, co-owner Warren Busteed, have had much more staying power than I in both business and marriage. The couple, along with executive chef Florin Ungureanu (a Romanian immigrant who started as their dishwasher over 15 years ago, when the couple owned the Bradley Inn in New Harbor), opened Bred in the Bone in downtown Damariscotta in 2023. With a market-driven, ever-evolving menu executed by chef de cuisine Sarah Begin, this rustically elegant jewel of a restaurant is shining.
On my aforementioned first visit, I dined with my folks visiting from Missouri. We were seated at a cozy window table where they could watch the locals stroll and I could watch the open kitchen. Our gracious and patient server helped my parents find a white wine to take the place of their routine California chardonnay while I selected some apps.
Grilled artichokes with Calabrian chiles and lemon aioli ($12) were a perfect reminder that it was spring somewhere, and a dozen Pemaquid oysters ($38), served simply with mignonette, put a smile on my landlocked parents’ faces. The sautéed calamari ($20) with cherry tomatoes, capers and homemade focaccia made the “tastes so nice, we had it twice” list — we enjoyed it as an appetizer and an entrée.
Other main dishes that evening included halibut ($42) with creamy white beans, sautéed kale and fried leeks, and a glisteningly rare duck breast ($38) with celeriac purée and fennel. Both were perfectly hearty in portion and flavor for a May evening in Maine.
Subsequent visits led me to the intimate backroom bar. By now it was almost summer, so my guest and I started with some refreshing mocktails: a cucumber ginger spritz ($5) for her and a gin (alternative) and elderflower tonic ($12) for me. We ordered the fava Santorini ($12), a creamy purée of split peas with capers, olive oil, and more of that delicious focaccia, and the mussel toast ($22) with saffron and crunchy ‘nduja bits that reminded me of Bac-Os in the best way possible.
Our main courses on this night were the sausage rigatoni ($36) with vodka sauce, roasted garlic ricotta and herb bread crumbs, and the skate wing ($40) with crispy potatoes, grilled baby zucchini, capers and citrus. I would have put both dishes on my menu back in my cheffing days. It’s so much better to be on the receiving end!
The owners and staff here are firmly rooted in their community, which also means giving back. Bred in the Bone works with groups like Veggies to Table, in nearby Newcastle, which fights hunger in the Midcoast, and supports Rockland’s ScrapDogs Community Compost operation.
Oh, and if you get that “tastes so nice, we had it twice” feeling, there are rental units above the restaurant where you can stay the night and return the next day. Expect to be recognized.
Bred in the Bone is open Wednesday through Sunday for lunch (11 a.m. to 2 p.m.) and dinner (5 to 8 p.m.). Reservations for dinner are recommended.
