Mainely Meat BBQ - Bar Harbor, Me

For the longest time I've wanted to go to Maine. I'm not sure what sparked the desire. I've not known anyone from there, or who had even visited. It just seemed like some far off, magical forest. Once I got there, it certainly showed that it was that. The weather was pristine. The first few days it was very foggy with highs in the low 70's, the last few days were sunshine and mid-to-high 70's temperatures. Given we've had such a hot August back in the midwest, this was quite the reprieve. We had beautiful coastal AirBnB about a half hour from Bar Harbor. It was so nice to havce a private escape from all the toursits in Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park. There was a wharf in the rain, where we bought a whole, live lobster for about $15. Grilled it and had that with steamed mussels. Acadia National Park had beautiful views, and more topography than I had anticipated. We found The Thunder Hole and a huge, soft sand beach. That seemed like one of the more popular destinations. There was whale watching. A big boat. Through the Gulf of Maine and miles out into the ocean. We saw dolphins, seals, sharks, and finback whales. My wife saw me get seasick and throw up in a garbage can. That's what you want to read in a food blog, right? Along with all the sites and seafood, there was also great craft beer at Atlantic Brewing and Fogtown Brewing. We even took an evening ghost tour of Bar Harbor, where we finished it by stopping into the Thirsty Whale Tavern for a drink. We were finally able to see the real Bar Harbor. The folks that make this tourist destination go 'round. Not the folks with the mansions on the water, but the cooks, the bartenders, the ships crews, and a psychic. There will be a song coming from this, I assure you. The chorus is already done. So, we had seafood galore, took a ghost tour, went whale watching, hiked trails and summitted small mountains, sampled craft beer, and even got to each the on thing that Northeast is probably most famous for...

That's right Maine barbecue.

Situated just north of Bar Harbor on the Mt. Caramel Desert Island is the operating center for Atlantic Brewing Company. Their production facility and a taproom are here. They're also host to Mainely Meat BBQ. An unexpected treasure if you're looking for a break from lobster rolls and blueberry pancakes. I didn't know what to expect with Maine barbeque, naturally I got the smoked meat sampler so I could try a little bit of everything, and I had to include the baked beans on the side. 

These beans were served up in their own dish. Something that I appreciate, but isn't done as often as you'd think. I am a big proponent of keeping your foods seperated on the plate, and despite some spillage, this was accomplished with it's own bowl. I always start out by digging through the sidedish with my spoon to try and determine how many, and what sort of bean (s), we're working with. Best I could tell, this side was made up of one type of beans, but those things have been cooked to perfection. They were soft enough to give under your teeth, but they weren't mushy either. My preference for the consistency of baked beans runs closer to a stew, and less like a soup. Unfortunately, for me, these beans were very saucy and you definitely needed a spoon to ladel up this thin sauce and the beans that were with it. However, the gravy these beans were cooked in was very tasty. It was mostly sweet, but had a nice punch of acid on the back end. The bit of tang was balanced nicely with the sweetness of the sauce. There were, what I assumed to be, pickled jalapenos in this dish, so there was a nice heat factor mixed in with the sweet and tangy sauce. The kitchen also included chunks of their smoked sausage in the beans and that addition gave you a stronger mouth feel and helped build in a little bit of the smokiness I'm looking for in a barbecue side dish. The jalapenos and sausage chunks also helped bolster up the final score of the apperance and mouthfeel of this dish. When you're serving a single bean dish you need these sorts of things to keep the bites exciting. 

Ratings (On a scale of 1-5)
Appearance: 4
Flavor: 3
Mouthfeel: 3

Total Score: 10

For what it's worth,
Vacationing with your best friend: 5