{"id":13033,"date":"2017-06-09T12:39:16","date_gmt":"2017-06-09T16:39:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/?p=13033"},"modified":"2017-06-09T12:39:16","modified_gmt":"2017-06-09T16:39:16","slug":"tasting-maine-with-barbara-lynch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.portlandmonthly.com\/portmag\/tasting-maine-with-barbara-lynch\/","title":{"rendered":"Tasting Maine with Barbara Lynch"},"content":{"rendered":"

Summerguide 2017 | view this story as a .pdf<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cErudite bad girl\u201d Barbara Lynch<\/strong> talks to blind journalist (& self-confessed lobster rookie) Nina Livingstone<\/strong> about Maine lobster<\/strong> and experiencing our state through the sense of taste. <\/span><\/h3>\n

Interview By Nina Livingstone<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"SG17-Barbara-Lynch-Hungry-Eye\"World-renowned chef Barbara Lynch\u2019s latest achievement among many was to be named among Time magazine\u2019s \u201cTop 100 Most Influential People of the Year\u201d in recent weeks, making it clear this South Boston native has more than a simple story to share.<\/span><\/p>\n

As Lynch tours the East Coast doing readings and signings of her just-released memoir, Out of Line: A Life of Playing with Fire, she\u2019s opened up her private life for public scrutiny. As a blind journalist, I listened to her book and felt there were still areas to explore, so I made arrangements to meet with her in person.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

At Home With Lynch<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Barbara Lynch has invited me to her Massachusetts home on a Saturday in early summertime. It\u2019s a beautiful, sunny day, and we sit at a table on a porch adjacent to her kitchen. We\u2019re joined at the table by Charlie Petri, whom she married in 1997 (they are currently separated) and their daughter, Marchesa, who was born in 2004.<\/span><\/p>\n

Because I\u2019m blind and hard of hearing, the details of my surroundings are absent until Marchesa introduces me to her dog and then begins describing the yard in vivid detail\u2013giving special mention to her trampoline\u2013granting me a cool sense of sight.<\/span><\/p>\n

This and the positive energy felt from around the table ease my pre-interview anxieties, born from the fact that my knowledge of food is limited and how my lack of sight can make me feel awkward.<\/span><\/p>\n

Fortunately all present extend themselves, quickly establishing a comfortable rapport with me as we embark on Lynch\u2019s stories of her career, Camden, and cooking for the Kennedys.<\/p>\n

The Maine Connection<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Maine has played a role in Lynch\u2019s life throughout her starry professional career. When I ask her about her connection to the state, Camden crops up first. \u201cI\u2019m\u00a0 <\/span>doing a dinner at the Camden [Harbour] Inn in the fall. I was supposed to do one in June, but it conflicted with an event held by another restaurant up in Rockport called Nina June.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Nina June is one of three restaurants owned by Sara Jenkins, a close friend of Lynch\u2019s\u00a0 <\/span>who joined Lynch on her first trip to Tuscany.<\/p>\n

\u201cI went for two weeks with Sara to her parents\u2019 holiday home. I went back a month later and cooked for her wedding,\u201d Lynch says.<\/span><\/p>\n

With Nina June being Jenkins\u2019s first restaurant in Maine (her two others are in New York City: Porsena and Porchetta), Lynch told me she didn\u2019t want to infringe on Jenkins\u2019s event. \u201cSo we decided to just do Camden in the fall,\u201d she says.<\/span><\/p>\n

On its website, the Camden Harbour Inn describes Lynch\u2019s dinner as a \u201cone-time only event in honor of her new book Out of Line.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

But it\u2019s Lynch\u2019s longstanding fondness for Portland that prompts her to dub it\u00a0 <\/span>\u201ca great city\u201d based on connections stretching from videos she\u2019s done for Jay Loring\u2019s popular Congress Street eatery, Nosh, to buying premium seafood from Browne Trading Company in the Old Port. \u201cWe use them a lot,\u201d she says of the\u00a0 <\/span>supplier to New England\u2019s top-tier restaurants.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOh, and I\u2019m an ambassador for the lobster\u2013Maine lobster!\u201d Lynch adds,\u00a0 <\/span>recalling Caroline Kennedy\u2019s request for her to cater a Fourth of July party after Kennedy was appointed U.S. ambassador to Japan by Barack Obama in 2013. \u201c[Maine] donated 600 pounds of lobster for Caroline Kennedy.\u201d Without being asked, she answers the obvious question: Why not serve Massachusetts lobster to the Commonwealth\u2019s \u201cFirst Family\u201d?<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBecause Maine lobster is better than Cap<\/span>e Cod lobster\u2013at least that\u2019s how I feel.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cColder water,\u201d Petri offers in explanation.<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s obvious Lynch\u2019s support of Maine lobster hasn\u2019t waned since a 2012 interview in Portland Monthly, when she weighed in on the branding controversy about calling any lobster a \u201cMaine Lobster.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve actually done the taste test: Maine versus Cape Cod,\u201d she told us. \u201cMaine won. You should hold onto it [the Maine-caught brand].\u201d<\/p>\n

The Maine lobster contribution to Caroline Kennedy\u2019s Fourth of July event in Japan did not go unmentioned in Lynch\u2019s memoir.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhenever Caroline had eaten in my restaurants, I felt deeply honored,\u201d Lynch writes. \u201cSo I planned a classic New England meal, the kind that I knew she had to be missing: seafood chowder, lobster rolls, and apple tarts for dessert. An all-American spread for Independence Day.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

But there was an added bonus to the visit. Although Lynch knew Kennedy didn\u2019t do a lot of television, \u201cShe stunned her staff by agreeing to do a food show with me,\u201d Lynch recalls in her book. \u201cAt the end of the show, [Kennedy] said, \u2018Will you wrap up this food for me and stick it in the fridge? I want to finish it later on.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHell yes! I thought,\u201d Lynch writes. \u201cI found that so endearing. Girl, I\u2019ve got you covered. Then I finally felt that I could breathe\u2013I\u2019d satisfied my hostess and I\u2019d earned the right to relax.\u201d<\/em><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Although Lynch agrees she doesn\u2019t get to Maine \u201cenough,\u201d she quickly lists her favorite places: Portland, Rockport, Acadia, adding, \u201cI like Freedom, Maine.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

My Lobster Encounter:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Spiky, Elusive, Delicious<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Inspired by Barbara Lynch\u2019s reverence for Maine lobster, Nina Livingstone sets herself the task of eating a lobster dinner with only her senses of touch and taste to guide her. <\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Despite my New England roots, I\u2019ve never faced a fully shelled lobster, let alone had to crack it myself. My college education didn\u2019t teach me anything about the importance of handling a lobster\u2013and I had eyesight back then!<\/span><\/p>\n

Seventeen years ago, I completely lost my sight, having had it for half of my life. During those earlier years, I\u2019d seen lobsters but never studied the art of cooking them, taking them apart, and savoring what each part had to offer. Instead, I opted for something less arduous to tackle, such as devouring steamers or slurping oysters from their shells.<\/span><\/p>\n

But here I am, headed to Boston for my first lobster engagement\u2013without eyesight. I wasn\u2019t quite sure how to prepare myself, but I resist the urge to detour via the local hardware store to purchase tools en route.<\/span><\/p>\n

Once I\u2019m served my first full lobster, I roll up my sleeves and touch the crustacean resting on the plate in front of me. I need my fingers to learn its various parts. Navigating the lobster, I work to pull the tail apart from the body. I try not to yank too hard, for fear I\u2019ll send the rest of it flying across the room and onto someone else\u2019s table\u2013a classic scene for sure, but not what I\u2019m aiming for.<\/span><\/p>\n

The entire process takes some time. I have to figure out what I\u2019m holding; how to use the lobster cracker to break the shell; which instrument is designed for delicately pulling meat from the legs (you actually suck it out); and how to retrieve the knuckle meat. Perhaps I should have stopped at the hardware store after all!<\/p>\n

Once I make a successful separation, my work has just begun. I\u2019m nervous about my lack of experience, particularly as I probe for the lobster meat. Without eyesight, it\u2019s a mystifying endeavor to say the least.<\/span><\/p>\n

I discover that I like the claws and knuckles better than the tail. This comes as a surprise, since the tail is typically the most coveted part of the lobster\u2013and it\u2019s certainly the easiest to get to. But without sight\u2013relying totally on taste, texture, and the tactile experience\u2013I find the claws and limbs more delectable, making all that work and exploration worthwhile.<\/span><\/p>\n

Next time, I\u2019ll ask Barbara Lynch to recommend a Maine lobster tour. After all, she says Maine has the best lobster around. I just hope they\u2019re the easiest to take apart, too!<\/span><\/p>\n

Writer Nina Livingstone, who is blind and hard of hearing, covers a wide range of topics in her work, which includes columns, film, and public speaking. To learn more, visit her website Destination Mirth or contact her at nina@destinationmirth.com<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Summerguide 2017
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