Natalie’s is Cooking at New York Rooftop Garden
Camden is starting to buzz with people returning to Mid-Coast Maine for hopefully another memorable summer.
Natalie’s Restaurant has been busy enjoying the return of old friends and the fun of making new ones. The first guests have dined on our heated porches overlooking Mount Battie and Camden Harbor.
I often wish I could step out of the kitchen and dine under the Camden Harbor sunset shining with the most beautiful shades of blue, orange and pink on the sail boats gently floating with their mountain backdrop. Sure enough I’ll dine on Natalie’s deck on one of my days off. It’s surely one of the most beautiful places to dine and in my humble opinion the best place to eat.
Besides executing Natalie’s kitchen, I have been cooking for special events, delivering cooking demos and culinary presentations.
It’s a challenge mixing the events into my hectic schedule but for a good cause or special occasion, I’m on board.
For instance, I prepared a special soigné’ Maine picnic on a Fifth Avenue Manhattan garden rooftop. The event was organized by Natalie’s PR firm Gbritt to promote Camden as the great destination it is. Also promoting Mid-Coast Maine were Cellardoor Winery, Swan Island Blankets, Leucadia’s Brewster Point and members of the Lincolnville-Camden- Rockport- Chamber of Commerce.
The picnic lunch was served in a stylish Bento Box with beautiful plates for each course. Each box included a green salad accented with seared lardon, a Maine lobster salad flavored with an elegant truffle aioli and sugar snap peas on fresh baked brioche and a delicate French crepe filled with rhubarb purée and crème fraiche. The picnic was paired with a Cellardoor Vineyards’ Dry Riesling.
The evening before the picnic, we enjoyed a dinner at Artisanal Bistro, a chique Manhattan French restaurant. Their cheese selection was delicious. It inspires me to offer a broader range of cheeses for Natalie’s guests than we already do. Combined with Natalie’s delicious list of dessert wines, ports, the expanded cheese menu is sure to be a tasty hit.
For Camden Harbour Inn’s owners’ Raymond Brunyanszki and Oscar Verest, the evening was especially memorable. They were the first to see the July issue of Travel and Leisure Magazine which includes a special feature titled,” 23 Coast-to-Coast Seaside Inns We Love.” The best surprise was a multi-paged photo spread filled with pictures of Camden Harbour Inn, Natalie’s Restaurant and the awesome views of Camden.
It’s bitter-sweet that word of the Inn’s fabulous views are getting out, because I’ll have to plan ahead and reserve that table on the porch soon to dine under the glowing Camden summer sunset. However, at the end of cooking for the evening, I step out of the kitchen; greet our guests and enjoy the glow of their smiling faces and I know I’m on the right path. Savoir Gourmand!