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06/14/2008
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Staff photo by David Leamingfrom the Kennebec Journal
Rep. Pingree hears varied proposals for health-care solutions
HALLOWELL Fire that cut communications labeled arson
MONMOUTH Police defended after slim budget rejection
State's schools chief to parley
Wasser will lead newsrooms at KJ, Sentinel and in Portland
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Hockey still in picture for Harrington
Portland boxer to face legend's son
All of today's:
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from the Kennebec Journal
from the Morning Sentinel
$1.3 MILLION FOR HEALTHREACH
Families Matter grows to meet special needs
Chellie Pingree listens to ideas on health care reform
FARMINGTON Rain alters plans for 4th of July
District regroups after budget failure
Vote on county budget hits snag
Burnham driver wins checkered flag at 2 tracks on same day
Maine boxer gets unique opportunity
All of today's:
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from the Morning Sentinel
MADISON -- There is an exception to the notion that too many cooks spoil the broth.
The exception is when there are three cooks in the kitchen and they all are brothers -- boys who grew up together and learned to play nice.
In this case, it's the kitchen at the historic Lakewood Inn Restaurant off U.S. Route 201. It was built in 1927, opposite Lakewood Theater, the State Theater of Maine, now into its 108th season of summer stock.
The three brothers are Josh, Burke and Noah Weston -- one brother for each stage of bringing gourmet meals from the kitchen to the restaurant table.
And much of the food is locally grown and raised, the brothers said.
So how do three brothers manage to work as a team in a hot kitchen serving 80 to 100 meals on a busy theater night?
Brotherly love?
Well, maybe.
"We seem to flow well, we grew up together," Noah Weston said.
Brother Burke agreed.
"What's good is that we get along well, we know what each other's likes and dislikes are," Burke said. "And we're not afraid to criticize. If there is something that one of us thinks is being done wrong, we're not afraid to say something.
"We know how each other thinks. We're very intuitive as to what we need, what each other needs."
Burke, 23, is the head chef, responsible for the entrees, sauces, appetizers, vegetables that need to be grilled and the menu. He is one butcher's class shy of his culinary arts certificate from New England Culinary Institute in Vermont.
Among Burke's popular entrees is duck confit, in which the bird is cured in salt overnight and then washed and cooked in its own fat 3-4 hours to make it tender and juicy.
Noah, 25, is the baking and pastries chef. He graduated in March from the same culinary institute, where he learned how to make artisan breads and French and breakfast pastries.
All of the bread, rolls and pastries are made right there in the Lakewood kitchen, he said.
Rounding out the three-brother staff is Josh, 29, the sous chef, or under chef, who works as the "expediter," keeping the orders flowing, garnishing the plates and organizing "the pass," where the ready dishes are placed for the waitresses.
The restaurant is owned by Jeff and Susan Quinn.
The brothers are all part of the founding Weston family of Madison. Westons first came to the Madison-Skowhegan area in 1771 from the Lexington-Concord area of Massachusetts.
The family home on Weston Avenue, along with the old farm homestead nearby, were built in 1817.
The three brothers said they only have been working together for just over a month.
And when it gets busy, it gets very, very busy, they said.
Dinner is served Wednesday through Saturday nights, with buffets every other Wednesday and every other Sunday.
"Whenever there is a show, we have meals," Burke said. "Any day that the theater is open, we're open."
The brothers said on a busy night there will be a hostess, four waitresses, three bussers, a kitchen worker and dish washer.
"Everyone that will come to eat will be going to see the show -- we'll get maybe 15 or so that are just coming for dinner -- so they will all come at once," Burke said. "They'll all come about 5:30 or 6, all within an hour."
The three brothers said the key to serving so many meals within 15 or 20 minutes of guests being seated is productivity and efficiency in the kitchen.
"The kitchen has to be ready to go," Burke said. "We have to have all of our prep set up -- 'our mis en place,' if you will -- everything in it's place, without cutting down on quality."
This week the restaurant has five entrees, four appetizers and four desserts. Those change every two weeks.
On the menu this weekend will be free-range Angus beef from Caldwell Farms in Turner; citrus-grilled, fresh-caught swordfish; grilled quail with dried cherries, served with savory, goat-cheese bread pudding and Japanese panko-breaded sea scallops with a bacon cream.
"When the tickets are rolling in, you just have to keep moving, you just have to do it," Burke said of feeding so many people with a curtains-up deadline. "You just have to keep on thinking about what you've got coming up next. You've got to think really far ahead."
Noah said that's where the expediter, his brother Josh, comes in, keeping track of which orders come in when and which are ready to be delivered to the table. And when the menu is prepared, it is done knowing that the work is spread out to ensure the meals are delivered on time.
Along with the local beef on the menu, there are vegetables raised in Franklin County, strawberries from Athens and fresh Maine eggs. Other meats, cheeses and honey also are purchased locally.
"We're going as local as we can," Josh said. "More and more, as we make connections with farmers and purveyors in the area, we'd like really to avoid buying anything off the truck and use better local ingredients. It's cheaper and tastier.
"Right now, we have one or two local items on each dish. It's guilt-free dining. There's definitely the start of a movement going on."
Doug Harlow -- 474-9534, Ext. 342
dharlow@centralmaine.com
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