returning to eden: bar harbor, maine

Finding food can be tricky when you venture outside vegan-friendly cities. But sometimes the trip you want to take isn't in New York or San Francisco, and then you have to do your homework.

When my agave and I got married in September 2008, we did the traditional "honeymoon immediately following the wedding" thing -- we got up the very next morning and drove several hours from the Berkshires to Bar Harbor, Maine. We had never been there before, but we had always loved Ogunquit and the southern part of Maine, so we decided to indulge our love of hiking and spend a week in and around Acadia National Park.

Internet searches had revealed very little in the form of vegan establishments. We had scoured Happycow and countless other sites in the hope of something special, but had come up empty-handed.

So we rented an adorable little cabin from Emery's Cottages on the Shore, which is a property that sits a few-minute drive from the park and has its own little beach; best of all, though, many of the cabins have kitchens or kitchenettes. We brought all kinds of foods to make ourselves -- pasta and sauce, cereal and almond milk, bread and peanut butter, fruits and snacks and so on -- and that really saved us.

Until the last couple of nights, when we discovered that Bar Habor actually did have a vegan restaurant. We were walking down the street when, lo and behold, we saw a sign announcing the presence of Eden, Vegetarian Restaurant. We went in for dinner that night, and oh, and it was fantastic: Gourmet but satisfying, starting with a delirium-inducing olive-fennel tapenade served with long crispbreads. The menu varied every night, but every dish we tried was infused with magic.

And then Eden closed. They were closed for renovations and then open again, and then closed again, and we never got to eat there after that trip. On our most recent Bar Harbor vacation, this past September, the restaurant looked like it might never open again.

But hurrah for good news: Now their website says they'll be open this June, so all you Bar Harbor-goers will be able to treat yourselves. I don't know when I'll next hit the good state of Maine, but I hope Eden is still around when I'm there. Get the good food while you can.

More to love
I just love the smell of a good natural foods store, and A&B Naturals not only smells great -- that combination of hippie teas, essential oils, herbs and nutritional yeast that you wear on your hair when you leave -- but it also offers up lots of tasty snacks, baked goods, smoothies and more. Great spot to pick up vegan moisturiser if you forget yours. Not that I would know.

As a natural café and market, Tamarind is laid-back, and the separate vegan menu is a welcome addition to the rustic town; Mt Desert Island Ice Cream makes amazing sorbets in cool flavours like blueberry-basil and peach-prosecco; Siam Orchid has drool-worthy fare that can be made vegan; and Café This Way does a good tofu scramble for breakfast, though tofu scramble is kind of a boring option. Reel Pizza Cinerama is supposed to be good for a vegan pizza (if only they would ever show anything I wanted to see on my trips to Maine so that I could check it out). Morning Glory Bakery is supposed to have vegan and gluten-free options, but when my agave and I were there in September 2010, they never had anything vegan any of the times we stopped in.

BAR HARBOR, MAINE
Best Bets:
* Eden: Completely vegan restaurant. 321 Main St, Bar Harbor, ME. Web: http://www.barharborvegetarian.com/.

* Tamarind: Natural foods café and market, separate vegan menu. 16 Mt Desert St, Bar Harbor, ME. Web: http://www.tamarind.me/.

* Mt Desert Island Ice Cream: Offers vegan sorbets. Two locations: 325 Main St and 7 Firefly Lane, Bar Harbor, ME. Web: http://www.mdiic.com/.

* A&B Naturals: Health-food store. 101 Cottage St, Bar Harbor, ME. Web: http://www.aandbnaturals.com/.

[Laur]

Image: Sorbet at Mt Desert Island Ice Cream; taken by me in September 2010.