Little Fern

We ate at The Fern restaurant at the Claremont Inn. It was fantastic as always. They have a wonderful wine selection and two bars for before and after dinner drinks. Outstanding wait staff. Very well run front of the house. We had a halibut entree and a curry dish with noodles, shrimp and scallops, which was large enough for two! And blueberry bread pudding, OMG good.

We had a wonderful meal at Little Fern. Service started a bit slow; was about 10 minutes before anyone came to take our drink order, however our server was very apologetic and very attentive afterwards. Cocktails were on point. Courses had a fine dining presentation but still approachable with decent portions. Great views and not stuffy at all. Will definitely be back someday!

Lovely meal and a beautiful setting oceanfront excellent food. The chef was a little rigid about those green peas in the pasta dish, but there was a good alternative for this vegetarian. All the help seems to be imported.exceptional Roasted garlic bread.

This restaurant was fantastic. Clearly someone with serious talent is overseeing the menu and food preparation. Easily on par with high end places you would find in New York, Philadelphia and Boston. Excellent presentation, careful balance of flavors and interesting combinations make for an enjoyable experience. Several couples were there celebrating their birthdays and it was actually a nice break to hear the staff sign to each of them over the course of the meal. Service was attentive and very professional. Again, someone with an haute cuisine background has been training the staff well. Not cheap but definitely worth the money. The octopus appetizer was probably the most delicious I have ever had. The Thai curry seafood bowl was also out of this world. First time having Maine lobster mixed with coconut milk. Wonderful! The watermelon salad looked like a piece of art. Don’t miss the blueberry crème brûlée!

Quiet, elegant, and waspy w a twist of disco music playing during dinner, little fern was a delightful meal full of sophisticated entrees mixed with an eclectic palette inspired internationally. Our waiter Lancelot was a charming gentle man who saw that each item came exactly how we wanted. Our martinis were bone dry, our appetizers were timely, and our entrees superb. I asked for some kick added to my curry and boy did they ever. Combined w my deep red wine, I nearly broke a sweat! 😅 In all Little Fern is a little fantasy get away to where Missy and Bunny oft come for holiday w their beaus.

Hasan was a very nice waiter! We ate both breakfast and dinner here. If you have accommodations I recommend letting them know in advance. The mushroom was delicious!!!

If you're looking for a place with a nice ambience and for a romantic/quiet dinner, THIS IS NOT that place. The food was nothing to write home about, and the service nothing special. Indeed, our waitress was also serving as the restaurant's bartender! What was most disappointing though, was the atmosphere, which was equivalent to what you might expect in a rowdy Sports Bar on a Friday/Saturday evening. There appears to no managerial oversight, and the entire staff, from the restaurant to the front desk appear to lack any kind of enthusiasm to engage with their clientele. Perhaps they all think the location is sufficient to satisfy their guests, they definitely don't seem to care or bother about enhancing the experience, quite the opposite.

To start with a positive, the food here was very good. The waitstaff was also very nice. However, the prices are quite frankly outrageous for the amount of food being served along with the quality. Although the food was good, it left much to be desired. There are definitely better places. I would not come here again.

Was last at Little Fern two years ago and made a special trip for our anniversary! The restaurant has not missed a beat and if anything it has gotten better! They have an extensive wine cellar and we started with a nice California Sauvignon Blanc and enjoyed the ambience of a roaring fire and the view of the bay! I started with a bowl of Lobster Seafood Chowder which was absolutely decadent with large and small chunks of lobster and potatoes, bacon ,leeks, cream and a dash of sherry! My wife had seared Halibut over a bed of creamy lemon risotto! I had the Seared Scallop appetizer which was 3 diver scallops in a marvelous sauce with greens! We topped it off by sharing the Blueberry Crème Brulee! An amazing dinner from start to finish! The presentation was fantastic and the chef should be commended! Friendly courteous service!

Little Fern was a very cute restaurant, was very happy to have gone because the aesthetic was adorable BUT the food was mostly average with the exception of the pork belly and their delicious carrot cake. To start, our waitress was fantastic, she was very quick and attentive, zero complaints there. Our appetizers were great, we selected the pork belly and lobster bisque to start but then our entrees were not what we were expecting. I had the salmon and my boyfriend had one of their specials, the halibut, which we both found to be underwhelming. The star of the show turned out to be the carrot cake which was a ginormous slice and was perfectly moist. A must try! I don't know if maybe we selected the wrong entree dishes, not too sure if I would return for anything other than their carrot cake.

We drove over from Bar Harbor to get away from the touristy side of the island and to celebrate our anniversary with a nice restaurant. We made a reservation through Open Table at the only time available, 5:15. We mentioned in the reservation that it was our anniversary dinner and we would love a table with a view but we didn't get that. We were the only ones there for at least 20-30 minutes so I'm not sure why they couldn't give us a table on their balcony. Our service was friendly but as we heard others being served around us, we realized our server never told us the specials and they were out of the wine I asked for. The host stand wasn't super friendly when we walked up either but we were clearly the first people for dinner and they were kind of scrambling to be ready apparently. We started with the Garlic Shrimp, Tomato Salad, and Little Fern Salad. They were all delicious and our only complaint would be that we wish the shrimp came with more bread. We ordered a lot because we assumed the portions would be small since it's a higher end restaurant but we were very wrong. Our entrees arrived and were massive. The ribeye was gigantic and cooked perfectly. My wife loved her seafood pappardelle and neither of us could finish either dish. Overall, this is a high end restaurant but it seems the service is slightly lacking for the quality they are trying to provide. The property is immaculate and the restaurant is gorgeous. The food was all delicious and the portions are well worth the price.

We were not staying at the hotel but decided on dinner at their Little Fern restaurant. Pre-dinner cocktails were great at the small bar room. Bartender was a delightful chap named John, who was engaging and put us in a jovial mood for dinner. The restaurant was nicely appointed and Steve, our server was great, friendly and personal. While the staff exceeded expectations, the food unfortunately, did not. The Jerk style pork chop was good but over cooked/dryish. Overall, a good time and the staff made the experience memorable even if the food wasn't as much.

Great service, great food!! Loved the chocolate torte! Ribeye was excellent! We also had a dozen oysters that were great!

Pros: Delicious, elegant, beautiful presentation, incredibly welcoming staff, beautiful interior, comfortable seats. Cons: parking can be a challenge. Expensive. Definitely a date night kind of place. It felt special. My husband and I sat at the bar as we were walk-in's without reservations and it was fully booked. (the large bar offers supportive comfy chairs with back support). We split everything as we often do, started with mussels in white wine (his favorite), they had lots of delicious juice to sop up with bread. Shared a garden salad which was kind of small in size but beautiful with a couple fresh edible flowers, and a light yummy dressing. Finished with seafood fra diablo. Not spicy, delicious, and beautiful to look at. A few glasses of wine and a perfect dinner! The fog rolled in while we were there, nicely seen through large windows facing the coast. Ran about $140 before tip.

This was one of the worst dinner experiences of my life. Dinner there last year with my family was wonderful, and we were all looking forward to another great evening. We arrived on time to find that they had our name but did not have a table to seat us, despite the reservation being made two months in advance. We ended up being seated in what could best be described as the servants' table in Downton Abbey with no windows, next to the reservations desk, with people wondering in asking where the bathroom was. No tablecloth, no soup spoons, and not even a plate of bread for 35 minutes. While the food was good and the waiter tried so hard to compensate for the lack of follow up by management, we left sooner than planned and declined the offered dessert as compensation for an evening that was a complete disappointment. We heard excuses for why all this happened by a manager that we had to ask for, and were treated as though we didn't matter, so we canceled our reservations for the next week and will not be returning.

A very promising but ultimately disappointing experience. We were seated right away and service for the most part was fine. Our waiter was a bit distracted and didn't really check in on us too often. We ordered the halibut and the bass. While the fish did have a nice delicate and flaky texture, the taste was off. The bass especially seemed under salted. It was just bland and underwhelming. Low marks for the food. The ambiance was nice though and this hotel is beautiful. However, the price for the subpar food was just not really worth it. I am glad to have seen the place but the food will keep me from coming back

Excellent meals, although the soup appetizer of lobster bisque & the wine glass servings are alarmingly small. The service was impeccable (which it should be given the higher prices they command.) The dining area was quite loud (Fri. evening) and we were surprised to see a bar in the dining room. The staff we are very friendly & polite, & again: the food was perfect. We would return. PS: they need to expand the parking area!

Perhaps the best meal I've had on the island in decades of intermittent visiting, and the most beautiful dining room. Stunning views of Somes sound. Perfectly cooked halibut. Super creamy polenta. Al dente vegetables. Gorgeous dinnerware. Attentive and pleasant service. And a decent pot of tea with dessert, which is such a rarity.

Great modern update on a old school classic hotel. The views from the restaurant are stunning and the food is delicious. Recommend cocktails right on the beach at their Batson River Fish house and then a delicious dinner at Little Fern

Fresh cocktails that we loved, excellent fish entrees ~48$. Pricey but we enjoyed the experience and ambiance (defiantly costal grandma vibes). They did have the fires blazing but on the rainy day we visited this was appreciated. Wish we could have sat outside- but the weather made this impossible. Appetizers were too small for the price (everything ~20 even corn fritters and Brussels sprouts??) ... but our 3 shrimp tasted great. Giving 4 stars because it's overpriced for the portions. Service was fast and polite. Cocktails were the highlight for me- 10/10 for The Lady Claire. Gimlet was fresh and Lady in the Woods was also fantastic. The watermelon tequila drink was ok- but something we could make at home. We will be back for the cocktails tonight at Harry's Bar... and enjoy the company of the $$ octogenarians there

A fine dining experience was recommended to us at the Claremont Hotel. We showed up for our reservation and the host sat us at a two-person table between two other two-person tables. This is a very nicely decorated restaurant, and I was glad we dressed for the occasion. I was surprised that one of the people sitting next to us was in a hoodie, but you never know where they were coming from before getting dinner. It's a national park, after all. It was immediately obvious that the menu was different from what was online. The strongest selling factor was the whole lobster that was on the sample menu. We ordered a couple of drinks and a delicious shrimp appetizer, which we raved at how good it was. We decided on different main courses. I ordered steak and my partner ordered a seafood medley. When they arrived, the seafood medley had pasta, which my partner missed in the description, and couldn't eat. He told the waiter this, and the manager quickly came over and offered to get him a different dish. So he ordered salmon. I started eating my meal since it was getting cold. His meal didn't come out until after I was finished (I guess this was to be expected). I did tell the waiter that it's less than ideal that we're eating separately. It just wasn't our expectation. That all said, both meals were delicious! We ordered a second round of drinks and asked for the check. The bill was over $200, so my partner asked if they had charged for the first dish or given any sort of discount. I told him that they didn't charge us for the first dish, but there also wasn't any sort of discount. That's when things really took a turn. The man in the hoodie next to us turned to my partner and told him that he "had enough". This was "his restaurant" and he didn't want us to say anything bad about it. I told him he was rude for engaging in our conversation and asked if he was really the owner. He said he was and told us to leave. He wouldn't even let me pay the check, though I fully intended to pay. I've never been treated so poorly. This man made me feel like a criminal. If he really was the manager and felt the need to listen to our conversations, he should have stepped in and helped with the situation instead of making it our worst experience ever. The food was an A+. The service was a solid B. The "owner" was an F-.

Good service and would like to see the menu expanded to offer more options. The ambiance is wonderful (and convenient) - especially when staying at the property. On a foggy night it nice to tuck in and stay close.

Southwest Harbor has only two upscale restaurants, so we were glad when Little Fern opended because we eat out often during time spent on MDI in the summer. The overall ambience is fine and a few diners may have a window table looking out on the small harbor, but as a couple we choose to sit at the bar rather than at a row table for two. Our best choice was the lobster bisque which was delicious and accompanied by a lobster shaped puff pastry, but everything else was just O.K. and lacking much flavor. The list included scollops, and a pork tenderloin. Other diners seemed to be enjoying steak which we seldom order as is the case with Salmon (tiresome). Only a spicy version of one pasta entree was available but for some that may be a good choice. The choc. ice cream mousse was very good as were the wine selections. Little Fern is very expensive and based upon that alone needs more exciting options. Overall we were disappointed.

This was a magical dinner. The view at dinner with sunset coming over the harbor was spectacular. The salads were beautiful and unique. I had the cod as an entree which was fabulous. All of the other entrees at our table were excellent. The wine was a little pricy but the selection was varied. The desserts were spectacular; I had a delicious carrot cake. The service was attentive and not obtrusive. All in all this was a wonderful meal; the highlight of our vacation week.

Beautiful setting worst service!!! We had a reservation @7:30 and @ 9:15 had still not received our food. Unfortunately we drove 30 minutes from Bar Harbor to dine here and we ended up leaving w/ out eating. Never in my life have I ever got up and left a restaurant bc of horrendous service. Waitress was RUDE and did not even apologized for the meals not arriving. I would not recommend nor would I ever go back. TOTAL disappointment despite the rave reviews I've read about Hotel and Dining room.

The inn is gorgeous. No doubt. Servers were nice, but we were there for the food. That's where the rubber meets the road. When asking for recommendations on the appetizers, I got the impression that no matter what you ordered, they would tell you it was the best ever. Hmm. My husband's entree was divine, he tells me. Haddock. Well prepared. I'm vegetarian and ordered the veg. main, a sweet potato dish with mixed veg and tempura battered fried tofu. Sounded interesting and I was game to try it. The sweet potatoes were nicely done, the mixed veg was okay. Nothing special. The tofu was ridiculously poorly thought out. For a restaurant with such a high price point, I would expect the chef to put more effort into imagining a well balanced, flavorful dish. If you don't already know, tofu is neutral. It doesn't have much of a flavor. It's typically seasoned by/with whatever it's cooked with. You can steam it, bake it, blend it in desserts, fry it... If you are going to dip it in a batter to fry it, the batter should be seasoned and flavorful, otherwise it's completely unnecessary. This seems like cooking 101 to me. However, this batter was bland, as neutral as the tofu. For $30+ for the dish, I was disappointed with the lack of skill, effort, and creativity. I had a bite, as did my husband, and neither of us liked it. I ate the sweet potatoes and veg and left the rest of the tofu. When our server came around, I told her the tofu was poorly executed. She apologized but that was it. After the entrees, we split a dessert and she brought the bill. I was, at this point, angry that she didn't comp anything. When she came back w our credit card, she finally addressed the issue and said, "Since the tofu didn't work out, I owe you a dessert next time you're in." Are you kidding? We are visiting from out of state and won't be back. She said she'd pack it to go. We were leaving the next morning and had no interest in an extra dessert. We asked if they could figure something else out (cut the price of the meal, comp the wine or dessert), something we shouldn't have had to do if their servers were trained to really take care of their guests. About 5 minutes later a woman walked over and introduced herself as the manager. She said she had comped my entree and apologized that it was not satisfactory. Thank you. That should have been done immediately after I complained that it wasn't satisfactory. So... if you are a foodie- if flavor, balance, and texture matters to you, whether you eat meat or not- skip little fern. There's just better food out there. If you want a high priced meal in a beautiful setting give it a try.

Went to Little Fern for dinner on a very warm August evening. The dining room overlooks the head of Somes Sound and the view is hard to beat. The food was very good, albeit pricey. My only complaint is that, for reasons difficult to fathom, on this hot August evening, the large gas fireplace in the dining room was blazing, and we were seated right in front of it. Needless to say, we soon were uncomfortably warm despite the air conditioning. We asked if the fire could be turned off (or at least down) but were told by our waitress that it could not be. Aside from the environmental irresponsibility of burning a gas fireplace to warm an air-conditioned dining room on a hot night, why in the world was the fireplace on in the first place? It led to an uncomfortable experience and marred an otherwise enjoyable evening.

Situated inside the newly renovated and incredibly glamorous Clermont Hotel in quaint Southwest Harbor, Maine, Little Fern is a must eat when you are visiting Acadia National Park. I strongly recommend arriving early and lingering around the wonderfully designed bar that reflects the scenery outside. When we approached the entrance two nice hostesses led us to our table in the center of the dining room. Our waitress, Busi, was simply the best, she entertained us the entire night. We floated the sweet brussel sprouts and a Maine-style street corn, both of which were incredible. Next, we shared a fresh green salad with arugula and watercress to add bitterness. For my main course I had the best risotto on this lobster-claw-shaped archipelago. There were fresh cheeses and even fresher vegetables. To finish off this meal from heaven we all shared a homemade blueberry ice cream and a few petite tarts full with freshly harvested blueberries and raspberries. Overall this is one of the best (and newest) places on the island and I highly recommend this to anyone with a sophisticated palate.