Summerguide 2018 | view this story as a .pdf

Dinner and a Show

Ogunquit comes alive at Jonathan’s.

By Colin W. Sargent

Dare to live Summer Out Loud and go to Jonathan’s for a perfect date night. We pull into 92 Bourne Lane at 7:15 for dinner and an 8 p.m. live show. For $83 each, we have premium tickets with $25 credits toward our meal. Tonight, it’s the Kruger Brothers.

In 1976–forty-two years ago–Jonathan West bought his parents’ house and transformed it into a restaurant. Across many summers and many repeatable moments, Jonathan’s shines as both a bistro (he was named Maine Restaurateur of the Year in 2017) and significant entertainment venue. It also incites memories. The first time we ate here, our chanteuse was the big-band star singer Anita O’Day, who could swing with the best of bands from Gene Krupa and His Orchestra to the Nat King Cole Trio. It was a master class when Anita sang “Honeysuckle Rose” in such a knowing, heart-wrenching way my dining companion spontaneously walked up and hugged her after the show. Because art is personal here, the unexpected is always onstage at Jonathan’s.

How can they land acts this good? Silly question. Who doesn’t want to come to Ogunquit?

On July 20, it’s singer Melanie (yes, “the” Melanie who performed at Woodstock); headliner (and Cape Elizabeth resident) Jonathan Edwards arrives on July 28; actor Jeff Daniels (Ragtime, Terms of Endearment, the Purple Rose of Cairo, Something Wild, Dumb & Dumber, Gettysburg, Pleasantville) performs with the Ben Daniels Band on August 4; then it’s John Sebastian from the Lovin’ Spoonful on August 5; and Peter Yarrow from Peter, Paul, and Mary (Peter co-wrote “Puff the Magic Dragon”) sings by the sea on August 19. I could go on (Jonathan’s is also a hot spot for stand-up comics), but we’re hungry.

We dive into the VooDoo Coconut Fried Shrimp ($13.50) with papaya, apricot, dark rum, habanero sauce, and avocado lime puree; and the Baked Artichoke Hearts. For an entrée, I almost pick the King Lobster but at the last second switch to Eggplant Napoleon, while my dining companion is more dramatic: Steak Diane prepared with Black Angus tenderloin medallions, mushrooms, garlic, shallots, and sherry. We’re on fire! The house wine is La Vieille Ferme. With a premium ticket you get a table up-front for the performance, dessert and coffee included.

Shhh! The show’s about to start. The Kruger Brothers are an international act featuring exploratory waves of banjo, bass, and guitar that make us feel we’re in the sound canyons of a movie. They sweep us away.