{"id":10803,"date":"2015-07-23T11:01:44","date_gmt":"2015-07-23T15:01:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/?p=10803"},"modified":"2015-08-04T18:23:40","modified_gmt":"2015-08-04T22:23:40","slug":"floating-a-concept","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/floating-a-concept\/","title":{"rendered":"Floating a Concept"},"content":{"rendered":"

July\/August 2015 | view this story as a .pdf<\/a><\/p>\n

Will this schooner be reborn as a Kennebunk restaurant? Dwight Raymond dreams so.<\/h3>\n

By Claire Z. Cramer<\/p>\n

\"JA15-Hungry-Eye\"<\/a>“She\u2019s beautiful,\u201d says owner Dwight Raymond of his 125-foot schooner Spirit of Massachusetts<\/em>. The sleek white yacht is presently sparkling in Kennebunk\u2019s Lower Village, sharing Raymond\u2019s Performance Marine dock with his Pilot House Restaurant and First Chance whale-watching and lobster-touring fleet.<\/p>\n

If all goes according to plan, the Spirit of Massachusetts<\/em> will open as a floating restaurant any day now.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve had to jump through some zoning hoops,\u201d says Raymond. He goes from meeting to meeting with regulatory boards. \u201cIt\u2019s driving me very<\/i> nuts. The problem is, it\u2019s not like DiMillo\u2019s. The town doesn\u2019t know where we fit, if we\u2019re under their jurisdiction or the Coast Guard\u2019s. Nobody wants to stick their neck out, but they say they\u2019ll make it happen. And I know they will.\u201d<\/p>\n

Long Voyage to Kennebunk<\/strong><\/p>\n

The transformation from schooner to restaurant has been proceeding meticulously since Raymond acquired her in Portland last year. Spirit<\/em> is a Gloucester fishing schooner replica built at Charlestown Navy Yard in Boston 30+ years ago. She was used as a school ship, along with the schooners Westward<\/em> and Harvey Gamage<\/em>, by the old Ocean Classroom Foundation, then based in Boothbay Harbor, which ceased operations last summer. Ocean Classroom has since been reincarnated under new leadership. Now based in Portland, OC is offering school semesters aboard the brand-new, three-masted tall ship Oliver Hazard Perry<\/em> beginning in 2016. (See \u201cSummer of the Tall Ships,\u201d Summerguide 2015 for more on Oliver Hazard Perry<\/em>.)<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been looking to do a floating restaurant for 30 years,\u201d says Dwight Raymond. \u201cI wanted a schooner. I have old photographs of all the old schooners that used to moor here around the bridge.\u201d<\/p>\n

Perhaps Raymond worked as a schooner deckhand in his younger days? \u201cYou know, I never did,\u201d he says. \u201cI\u2019m a boatbuilder.\u201d<\/p>\n

And as such, he\u2019s honored the schooner\u2019s original purpose. \u201cWe didn\u2019t destroy the sailing features\u2013she\u2019s fully sailable. The sails are aboard. The idea is if we want to haul her for the winter in Portland or Gloucester, we can sail there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Becoming a Restaurant<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ship\u2019s carpenter Robin Muir spent the spring fashioning a 60-seat restaurant and bar belowdecks. \u201cNow when you go below you really feel like you\u2019re in a restaurant.\u201d Muir says he\u2019s also built \u201cthe bar and tables.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe work is absolutely beautiful,\u201d says Raymond. The tables are made of salvage decking \u201cwith black walnut compass roses on each one.\u201d On deck, there\u2019s also a bar. \u201cWe held a cocktail party on deck for 145 in June and it didn\u2019t feel crowded. She\u2019s a deceivingly big boat.\u201d<\/p>\n

A custom awning with detachable glass panels will protect on-deck patrons from inclement weather.\u00a0 \u201cWe plan on staying open into the fall, when the tour buses come. We\u2019re building a very long ramp, directly to where you board the boat. It\u2019s ADA compliant.\u201d<\/p>\n

The compromises involved in turning a sailboat into a restaurant have been carefully considered, including the plumbing\u2013the rest rooms are are real bathrooms, not marine heads. Raymond says, \u201cThere\u2019s a 3,000-gallon holding tank. And with the disposable dishware, we\u2019ll only be washing pots and pans. The plating is bamboo\u2013biodegradable, very low impact.\u201d<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s Eat<\/strong><\/p>\n

The menu posted on the Spirit<\/em>\u2019s website is upscale casual. Starters include a raw bar selection followed by chowder, lobster stew, and classic salads. There are tasty-sounding small plates such as pan-seared scallops and shrimp spring rolls. And the must-haves\u2013shore dinners, lobster rolls, and hamburgers\u2013are there.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are a lot of places with the same menu in this town. We will not have fried food,\u201d says Raymond.<\/p>\n

Despite scheduling delays, he does not seem stressed about getting his floating restaurant open. \u201cOh, it\u2019ll happen,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Please click here to comment on this story<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

July\/August 2015
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