Erin and Michael’s celebration included personal touches from family and was was self-catered by bride, who is chef and owner of the Lost Kitchen.
Erin and Michael met on match.com and became pen pals, writing to each other while living miles apart in two different worlds—Michael in Manhattan and Erin in an old Airstream on her parents’ property on a dirt road in Freedom. “We had both been married before and broken by divorce, ” says Erin. A month after falling in love over the phone and through letters, they met for the first time over dinner in Portland. “We never looked back, ” says Michael. They bought an old farmhouse in Freedom and began building a life together. Four years later as they sat in front of their stone fireplace on a quiet Sunday evening after dinner, Michael asked Erin to marry him.
“We just wanted to binge on oysters and ice cream with our boys and dance barefoot in the barn with our best friends.” ERIN
Erin French, Acclaimed Maine Chef, Sells Story Rights To Major Hollywood Producer
Their wedding on August 24, 2018 was relaxed and freeform, a simple, backyard ceremony followed by a casual, colorful, late-summer feast self-catered by Erin—the chef and owner of the Lost Kitchen in Freedom—and friends. “We wanted to get married at home on a Friday afternoon with our chickens running wild and free around the yard while we sipped champagne and binged on oysters followed by hot fudge sundaes, ” says Erin. Her 16-year-old son, Jaim, walked her down the aisle to the ceremony in their barn, where she and Michael said the vows they wrote themselves in front of Michael’s closest friend, Rev. Shawn Amos. Afterwards, guests gathered around picnic tables in the yard for the wedding feast.
“For us, happiness is breathing new life into old things so there was really no other place to get married than at home…in the barn at our 200-year-old, simple, work-in-progress, Maine farmhouse surrounded by family, friends, and fried clam deliciousness.” MICHAEL
The Menu Wooden tables set out on the lawn held John’s River oysters on the half shell, cheeses, charcuterie, bread, and pickles, served on vintage china. Guests also dined on fried Maine clams with frites and coleslaw, served in wooden berry baskets; heirloom tomato salads with mozzarella, basil, and marigolds; and tiny lettuce head salads. Uproot Pie Company’s mobile pizza oven offered a variety of wood-fired pies. In lieu of a cake, there were peach galettes from Tinder Hearth Bakery in Brooksville, and Erin’s Airstream was turned into a dairy bar serving hot fudge sundaes. Drinks included gin and tonics with cucumber and blackberries, nectarine and basil lemonade with Cold River Vodka, Lanson Champagne, and wine from the Corbières region in southern France.
Indianwood Golf And Country Club
Friends & Family Erin and Michael enlisted friends and family to create a deeply personal celebration. Michael’s dad painted the postcard wedding invitations, which were calligraphed by the couple’s friend, Nancy Buckley. “We had friends help us build out our barn and perennial gardens, and friends helped us build the tables and benches from wood that came from our friend’s land, ” says Erin. “Friends grew our flowers, made our rings, sewed our napkins, shucked the oysters, fried the clams, and foraged for ferns and moss in the woods.”
Join our email list to stay updated on all things Maine; food & drink, events & festivals, home & garden and much more!From Erin French, owner of the critically acclaimed The Lost Kitchen, a TIME world dining destination, a life-affirming memoir about survival, renewal, and finding a community to lift her up
Long before The Lost Kitchen became a world dining destination with every seating filled the day the reservation book opens each spring, Erin French was a girl roaming barefoot on a 25-acre farm, a teenager falling in love with food while working the line at her dad’s diner and a young woman finding her calling as a professional chef at her tiny restaurant tucked into a 19th century mill. This singular memoir—a classic American story—invites readers to Erin's corner of her beloved Maine to share the real person behind the “girl from Freedom” fairytale, and the not-so-picture-perfect struggles that have taken every ounce of her strength to overcome, and that make Erin’s life triumphant.
One Couple Brought A Little New York City Style To Their Texas Hill Country Wedding
In Finding Freedom, Erin opens up to the challenges, stumbles, and victories that have led her to the exact place she was ever meant to be, telling stories of multiple rock-bottoms, of darkness and anxiety, of survival as a jobless single mother, of pills that promised release but delivered addiction, of a man who seemed to offer salvation but in the end ripped away her very sense of self. And of the beautiful son who was her guiding light as she slowly rebuilt her personal and culinary life around the solace she found in food—as a source of comfort, a sense of place, as a way of bringing goodness into the world. Erin’s experiences with deep loss and abiding hope, told with both honesty and humor, will resonate with women everywhere who are determined to find their voices, create community, grow stronger and discover their best-selves despite seemingly impossible odds. Set against the backdrop of rural Maine and its lushly intense, bountiful seasons, Erin reveals the passion and courage needed to invent oneself anew, and the poignant, timeless connections between food and generosity, renewal and freedom.
Erin French is the owner and chef of The Lost Kitchen, a 40-seat restaurant in Freedom, Maine, that was recently named one of TIME Magazine’s World’s Greatest Places and one of 12 Restaurants Worth Traveling Across the World to Experience by Bloomberg. A born-and-raised native of Maine, she learned early the simple pleasures of thoughtful food and the importance of gathering for a meal. Her love of sharing Maine and its delicious heritage with curious dinner guests and new friends alike has garnered attention in outlets such as The New York Times (her piece was one of the ten most read articles in the food section the year it was published), Martha Stewart Living, Wall Street Journal, Boston Globe, and Food & Wine. She has been invited to share her story on NPR’s All Things Considered, The Chew, CBS This Morning, and The Today Show. Erin was featured in a short film made by Tastemade in partnership with L. L. Bean, which won a James Beard Award, and The Lost Kitchen Cookbook has been named one of the best cookbooks by The Washington Post, Vogue.com, and Remodelista and was nominated for a James Beard Foundation Award.
Editorial Reviews 03/29/2021 In this affecting debut memoir, chef French unflinchingly chronicles the victories and failures that led to her establishing The Lost Kitchen, her renowned restaurant in Freedom, Maine. She shares vivid memories of growing up in Freedom, whether foraging alongside her grandparents or enjoying hot fudge sundaes at her father’s diner. She artfully describes her growing passion for cooking, which began when she started helping out at the diner at age 12 and intensified after she dropped out of college due to an unplanned pregnancy. While waitressing as a single mom, she married the charming if troubled Tom, though the marriage predictably turned toxic: Tom had a drinking problem and was dismissive of French, and French was diagnosed with anxiety, was briefly committed to a psych ward, and got hooked on prescription drugs. During their messy divorce, French slowly began rebuilding her life with the help of her mother, friends, and food. Readers will root for French and will be fascinated by her efforts at survival, redemption, and rejuvenation. Notably heavier on insight and lighter on hubris than the average chef memoir, this will speak to both the brokenhearted and those with kitchen dreams of their own. Agent: Janis Donnaud, Janis Donnaud & Assoc. (Apr.) Publishers Weekly
A Vintage Silk Brocade Jumpsuit, Flower Dog In A Bow Tie + Just Married Pedalo Ride For A Modern Couple & Their Off Beat Battersea Park Wedding
With extraordinary honesty and humor, Erin French's incredible memoir takes us on a profoundly personal journey through her highest highs and her lowest lows. It was her love of cooking and bringing people joy that gave her the strength to build the life she’d always dreamed of. I’ll never forget this book and neither will you. —Ina Garten “Erin is an overcomer and a risk-taker. She’s the kind of person who, when faced with a setback, pushes forward and makes beauty out of hardship. Her story is full of passion and courage, and when you read this book, you will walk away feeling inspired and encouraged in your own life.” —Joanna Gaines, Co-Founder, Magnolia Erin French is a talented chef, a successful entrepreneur, a beautiful young woman, and a passionate promoter of living the 'good life.' This book chronicles the incredible ups, and relatable downs, of building a life and a business. Congratulations, Erin! You have done it! —Martha Stewart, Founder Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Women everywhere will respond to Finding Freedom, a story of the triumph of true passion against all odds. With grit, honesty, and lyrical writing, Erin French takes us on her journey: working the line at her father’s diner, surviving addiction, toxic relationships, raising her son as a single mother, to finally
In Finding Freedom, Erin opens up to the challenges, stumbles, and victories that have led her to the exact place she was ever meant to be, telling stories of multiple rock-bottoms, of darkness and anxiety, of survival as a jobless single mother, of pills that promised release but delivered addiction, of a man who seemed to offer salvation but in the end ripped away her very sense of self. And of the beautiful son who was her guiding light as she slowly rebuilt her personal and culinary life around the solace she found in food—as a source of comfort, a sense of place, as a way of bringing goodness into the world. Erin’s experiences with deep loss and abiding hope, told with both honesty and humor, will resonate with women everywhere who are determined to find their voices, create community, grow stronger and discover their best-selves despite seemingly impossible odds. Set against the backdrop of rural Maine and its lushly intense, bountiful seasons, Erin reveals the passion and courage needed to invent oneself anew, and the poignant, timeless connections between food and generosity, renewal and freedom.
Erin French is the owner and chef of The Lost Kitchen, a 40-seat restaurant in Freedom, Maine, that was recently named one of TIME Magazine’s World’s Greatest Places and one of 12 Restaurants Worth Traveling Across the World to Experience by Bloomberg. A born-and-raised native of Maine, she learned early the simple pleasures of thoughtful food and the importance of gathering for a meal. Her love of sharing Maine and its delicious heritage with curious dinner guests and new friends alike has garnered attention in outlets such as The New York Times (her piece was one of the ten most read articles in the food section the year it was published), Martha Stewart Living, Wall Street Journal, Boston Globe, and Food & Wine. She has been invited to share her story on NPR’s All Things Considered, The Chew, CBS This Morning, and The Today Show. Erin was featured in a short film made by Tastemade in partnership with L. L. Bean, which won a James Beard Award, and The Lost Kitchen Cookbook has been named one of the best cookbooks by The Washington Post, Vogue.com, and Remodelista and was nominated for a James Beard Foundation Award.
Editorial Reviews 03/29/2021 In this affecting debut memoir, chef French unflinchingly chronicles the victories and failures that led to her establishing The Lost Kitchen, her renowned restaurant in Freedom, Maine. She shares vivid memories of growing up in Freedom, whether foraging alongside her grandparents or enjoying hot fudge sundaes at her father’s diner. She artfully describes her growing passion for cooking, which began when she started helping out at the diner at age 12 and intensified after she dropped out of college due to an unplanned pregnancy. While waitressing as a single mom, she married the charming if troubled Tom, though the marriage predictably turned toxic: Tom had a drinking problem and was dismissive of French, and French was diagnosed with anxiety, was briefly committed to a psych ward, and got hooked on prescription drugs. During their messy divorce, French slowly began rebuilding her life with the help of her mother, friends, and food. Readers will root for French and will be fascinated by her efforts at survival, redemption, and rejuvenation. Notably heavier on insight and lighter on hubris than the average chef memoir, this will speak to both the brokenhearted and those with kitchen dreams of their own. Agent: Janis Donnaud, Janis Donnaud & Assoc. (Apr.) Publishers Weekly
A Vintage Silk Brocade Jumpsuit, Flower Dog In A Bow Tie + Just Married Pedalo Ride For A Modern Couple & Their Off Beat Battersea Park Wedding
With extraordinary honesty and humor, Erin French's incredible memoir takes us on a profoundly personal journey through her highest highs and her lowest lows. It was her love of cooking and bringing people joy that gave her the strength to build the life she’d always dreamed of. I’ll never forget this book and neither will you. —Ina Garten “Erin is an overcomer and a risk-taker. She’s the kind of person who, when faced with a setback, pushes forward and makes beauty out of hardship. Her story is full of passion and courage, and when you read this book, you will walk away feeling inspired and encouraged in your own life.” —Joanna Gaines, Co-Founder, Magnolia Erin French is a talented chef, a successful entrepreneur, a beautiful young woman, and a passionate promoter of living the 'good life.' This book chronicles the incredible ups, and relatable downs, of building a life and a business. Congratulations, Erin! You have done it! —Martha Stewart, Founder Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Women everywhere will respond to Finding Freedom, a story of the triumph of true passion against all odds. With grit, honesty, and lyrical writing, Erin French takes us on her journey: working the line at her father’s diner, surviving addiction, toxic relationships, raising her son as a single mother, to finally
0 comments
Post a Comment