Peekytoe Provisions — Restaurant in Bar Harbor

Restaurants aren't just about the food. I visited Bar Harbor as one of my cruise destinations. After searching the web, walking up/down Main st and reading Google reviews we decided to stop at Peekytoe Provisions. We had a party of 12. The male waiter said that they don't take resevavations and told us to sit in the garden which was more like a waiting area (given the amount of bugs crawling on the table height garden box). The area was directly in the sun and offered no shade. After waiting 30 minutes a table opened up. We proceeded to sit at the table since the waiter said its open seating (no reservations).The male waiter said there was a waiting list and the table was reserved for another group. This group came long after we arrived. The waiter was rude in addressing us and told us to sit back in the garden area. I questioned the difference between a reservation and waiting list but he could not provide a response other than you can sit at the bar area inside. Initially he told us that the inside tables/bar area was full when we first arrived. Suddenly the inside bar area was available. 😒 Everyone in the party wanted to leave as it was clear we were not welcomed nor was the waiter going to accomodate us As we prepared to pay and leave, i hear the waiter say to another waitress "now they're trying to pay separately in a snide manner. He says this right in front of me as if I wasnt standing there. I tried to explained to him what our issues were including his dismissive attitude. Instead of taking time out to explain his 'logic' for not putting us on the waiting list or to offer an apology, he began to raise his voice at me. At that point, i told him we would need to go boxes and would be leaving. He then says to me "peace out then". I walked away to request the manager/owner. My brother said "that's no way to talk to a woman". My brother also questioned the reasons for not extending an offer to be placed on the waiting list once a table was available. As my brother is talking to waiter, the waiter is trying to over talk him and yells at my brother as well. The owner gets between them because her waiter's actions became quite threatening. My brother walked away and I spoke with the owner. I again explained that we did not feel welcomed despite having such a large party who spent well over a hundred dollars at their establishment. She apologized and told me she would deal with the waiter. Ultimately my experience of having a fresh Maine lobster roll had been ruined. We were embarrassed and disrespected. If we treated the restaurant staff the same as they treated us we would have walked out before the food came. My money is green just as everyone else and I would never eat there again nor would I recommend anyone else to do so. I did not eat my food until I got back to the ship. My food lacked luster. I could have gone to Panera bread and had the same lobster roll at...

I want to say something about this review and response as I was with my friend Thomas during this experience.

On August 14, we docked in Bar Harbor and really wanted lobster. We went to this restaurant because of the reviews. While I do not recall the waitress who served us, she was about 5'8", brown hair, white and about 40. I will call her Becky for purposes of this post.

When we ordered from Becky, we waited an hour while we sat and watched everyone who came in after us and who was already there be served. When I asked Becky after an hour if our food was on the way, she said, "I'm sure it is." Approximately 20 minutes later, the two sandwiches arrived.

It's clear Becky didn't put the order in until I reminded her at the one hour mark as it's not in my usual course of business with the service industry having worked in it myself to bug the servers unless a serious issue has occurred. I considered this a serious issue.

So, yes, once Becky put the order in which she had forgotten about for an hour, it arrived approximately 20 minutes later.

That the owner of this establishment would call my friend a liar shocks the conscious. I would never go to this place ever again based off of the owner's response and Becky.

Thomas Hancock Local Guide · 23 reviews · 1 photo a week ago CRUISERS BEWARE: This restaurant is NOT able to get you out in a quickly!

Went on a slow day. Our order of lobster rolls got lost. After an hour we had to follow up. We just received a snarky response and another 30 minutes of waiting. We almost missed our boat. 1 Response from the ownera week ago Hi Thomas, thanks for your feedback. We'd like to point out a few discrepancies in your story. First of all, there is no such thing as a slow day in August in Bar Harbor. We are confused as to how you personally are able to assess wether or not it was a busy day for our little restaurant. Secondly, we told you the moment you sat down that our very small kitchen was backed up and that all orders would be about a 20 minute wait. You then insisted on trying to order at the counter instead of your table, which is against our policy, and also will not speed up the process of receiving your food. Your order of Lobster Rolls was not lost. Because of technology we are able to find out when your ticket went to the kitchen, which was time stamped at 1:24 pm. This is the absolute busiest time of day for every restaurant that serves lunch! We are also able to find out when your check was paid. This was time stamped at 1:46 pm. This means that from the moment your order was placed in the kitchen until you paid your tab, you waited a total of 22 minutes. We hope you realize that reviews can make or break a small business and that in the future you choose to be more truthful about...

Haddock tacos - no seasoning, no sauce, very dry. Lobster roll and Lobster panini - was below average. I have had lobster rolls in Maine before but this was not the best I’ve had.

[Edited to add my response to the comment] I appreciate your response to the google review. I’d like to clarify a few things:

Taste is subjective, and my comments reflected my personal experience. I’ve had lobster rolls at various places, including Blaze right next door, and found theirs more palatable. While I appreciate that you prepare your lobster fresh daily, freshness is only one element of a dish’s overall flavor profile. In my case, the combination of seasoning, texture, and flavor just didn’t meet expectations.

Regarding the haddock tacos, although there may have been aioli and salsa included, the overall impression was still dry and under-seasoned to my taste. Presentation doesn’t always translate to balanced flavor.

When I was asked how the food was, I said it was “not bad” — which to me indicates an average to below-average experience. If that wasn’t clearly interpreted, that’s unfortunate, but I did respond when asked.

As for the tip, it was based on my overall dining experience — particularly the food — which is a fair and personal decision. Tipping is discretionary, and publicly calling it out feels unprofessional and detracts from a respectful dialogue.

I hope this feedback is helpful to you in understanding a diner’s perspective.

REPLY TO THE ESTABLISHMENT’S LAST RESPONSE - I find it increasingly unprofessional that instead of accepting feedback gracefully, you’ve chosen to publicly scrutinize and attempt to discredit my experience based on assumptions and sarcasm. That’s not how respectful customer relations are built.

To clarify once again: I shared an honest, balanced review based on my personal experience — including both positive and negative aspects. That’s the purpose of google reviews. You’re welcome to disagree, but trying to invalidate my perspective because it doesn’t align with your expectations — and dragging tipping into a public forum — is inappropriate and unprofessional.

If clean plates are your barometer for satisfaction, that’s flawed logic. Diners often finish meals out of politeness, hunger, or cost, not necessarily satisfaction. More importantly, no business should weaponize that observation in a response meant for public discourse.

Rather than attempting to “rate” your customers and retaliate against feedback, a more constructive approach would be to acknowledge differing tastes and move on professionally. That’s what top-tier establishments do.

This will be my final comment. I hope future patrons are treated with more respect, regardless of how many stars they leave or how...