Abel’s Lobster Pound in Mount Desert
On the edge of Somes Sound, the only fjord on the East Coast, sits a restaurant that defines the Maine summer experience. For more than 80 years, Abel’s Lobster Pound has been a gathering place for visitors and locals, where wood smoke drifts from the traditional cooker and the sunset paints the harbor in gold.
When owner Mandy Fontaine took over six years ago, she reimagined Abel’s for a new generation while preserving its timeless charm. The outside remains the same, but inside, she brought new life to the menu and atmosphere, creating a place where everyone feels welcome, whether you’re celebrating an anniversary or stopping in straight from the trail.
That spirit carries through every detail. The menu celebrates comfort food with refinement, featuring lobsters handpicked daily from the same local fisherman, halibut with fresh corn gremolata, spicy mussels, and hearty burgers. Nearly everything is made in-house. “We make everything in-house except the ketchup,” Fontaine says. “Even most of our bread.”
Abel’s stands apart for its full beverage program, where longtime bar director Nick Reynolds has crafted a list of inventive cocktails, including the “Daily Martini” garnished with a lobster claw. The wine list is small but curated with care, pairing beautifully with the coastal menu and laid-back setting.
Guests can dine inside or spread out across roughly 18 picnic tables outside, each with a front-row view of the water. Fontaine calls it “upscale food on a picnic table,” an experience that captures the dual nature of coastal Maine: refined yet unpretentious.
Abel’s is a proud member of the Gulf of Maine Research Institute’s Taste Makers program, with a goal to reach 100 percent locally sourced seafood this year. “It’s important that what we serve reflects this place,” Fontaine says. The only exception is the caviar, which comes from Italy.
Each afternoon, the crew takes a short break between lunch and dinner to share a meal before resetting for the night ahead. By evening, the sound of crackling fire and the low hum of conversation fill the air, blending into the steady motion of the boats across Somes Sound.
There’s a certain calm that settles in here, the kind that only comes when good food, good people, and the Maine coast intersect. Abel’s is the rare kind of restaurant that manages to feel both timeless and alive, a place where the day lingers just a little longer.
FAMOUS FOR:
The sunsets, the wood-fired cooker, and the hospitality.
ADDRESS:
13 Abels Ln, Mt Desert, ME
WEBSITE:
abelslobstermdi.com
photos by Peter Logue
