Rick McLaughlin carries on his family’s recipes

Sun, 05/03/2026 - 4:59pm

Ed O'Brien

McLaughlin’s at the Beach. Best onion rings anywhere. (Photo by Ed O’Brien)

Friday evening found us with a very quiet house. All three kids were off on an overnight trip with the Camden Hills High School band. What is a middle aged, temporarily childless couple to do? We headed down the hill to McLaughlins, which had just opened for the season.

I have written about McLaughlin’s before. Rick McLaughlin’s grandparents owned the Lobster Pound, that Lincolnville Beach icon which was badly damaged in the storms of 2014. Back in 1980, the then very young Rick established the Lobster Pound Takeout, across the beach, serving many of the Lobster Pound favorites to a more casual crowd of beach goers and visitors waiting for the ferry to Islesboro.

Hot dogs, lobster rolls, and pints of fried clams, not to mention thick frappes and hand scooped ice cream. I spent at least four summers of my teenage years breading the seafood, prepping the chowders, cutting into the shells of bright red lobsters to make it accessible to the tourists.

The loudspeaker, broadcasting across the beach, is sure to be in the brain of any visitor to Lincolnville Beach in the 1980s or 90s. “Order 54. 54.”

The Lobster Pound was sold. And in 2024, Rick sold the property where the take-out stood to the state, which is, as I write this, converting the land into additional parking for the ferry.

Rick was not done, and he moved the operation across Route 1 to he prior site of Chez Michelle, previously the Beach Inn.

Rick had been experimenting with a more complex menu for years, and his new location allowed him to fully embrace the sit-down ambiance of his grandparents’ restaurant, no more passing hot dogs and clam chowder through the window.

Friday night, my wife and I ordered a fried seafood platter to share, green salads, and a couple cocktails. We sat in a booth, watching the sky over Penobscot Bay turn pink/purple as the sun set.

The shrimp, scallops, clams and haddock tasted the same as they always have — a delicate breading of cracker meal, just waiting to be dipped in tartar sauce or the horseradish spiked cocktail sauce.

Rick McLaughlin carries on his family’s recipes, and a time traveler from the 1950s would find familiar sustenance. His commitment to the freshest ingredients remains intact, reminding me how he instilled food safety rules so strongly into my 15-year-old head.

It made me think just how rare such restaurants have become on the Maine coast. A place where you can get a steak, a perfectly prepared lobster, a creamy bowl of simple clam chowder, a salad of leafy greens with your choice of dressing. Our culinary options have expanded in the Midcoast, but there is nothing like biting into a hot onion ring, and have it taste like memory.

My time in the restaurant business is long behind me, but my older two children will soon begin their second and fourth summers working under Rick’s tutelage. They will seat guests, serve tables, run food, and bread seafood using the same system I learned 35 years ago. They will learn from a man who has spent the last 46 years showing teenagers how to work, how to take pride in serving good food.

Should the hankering strike for a bowl of steaming chowder or just a burger and a beer, McLaughlins at the beach is now open, every day but Tuesday.

Library Happenings

Needleworkers will meet Tuesday at 3 p.m. Wednesday May 6 join author W.C. Wells for a discussion of his book Half Shelled. Friday at noon is the weekly MahJongg group. Also on Friday, grades K-2 will hike the nature trail from the school to library for stories and exploration of our library. Finally on Saturday bring your little ones, from 2 to 7, for a special program at 10 a.m., “Hats, Hats, Hats”. Wear your favorite hat, hear stories about hats, and use your creativity to make a hat. Hats.

Sympathy

For the family of long time Lincolnville resident Sonja Staples.

Okay Lincolnville, I know I am not alone in missing the sun, but we are still in a drought, and all this water is needed to help green up our little town. Try to make the most of it, and don’t let it get your spirits down. Share your Lincolnville news with me at ceobrien246@gmail.com.

Municipal Calendar

Monday, May 4

School Committee, 6 p.m., Walsh Common, LCS

Tuesday, May 5

Library open 3-6 p.m. 208 Main Street

AA Meeting 12:15 p.m., Community Building, 18 Searsmont Road

Wednesday, May 6

Library open 2-5

Comprehensive Plan Review Committee, 6 p.m., Town Office

Thursday, May 7

Library open 2-5 p.m. 208 Main Street

AA Beginner’s Meeting, 7 p.m., Lincolnville Historical Society, 33 Beach Road