Floyd Cobb and his wife, Maudie, grew up on Maine farms during the Depression. To help his family put food on the table, Floyd learned to hunt and fish at an early age. Over the years, he developed a love and respect for these outdoor skills that contributed to his family's well-being. Little did he know, however, that his passion would eventually lead him and his family into a business venture that would change all of their lives forever.
As a young man, Floyd became a bush pilot, transporting "sports" into small lakes and ponds, and guiding them to hot spots where they could fulfill their catch. When he flew over Moxie Mountain in western Maine and in to Pierce Pond for the first time, Floyd knew that this was where he belonged. The beauty of the watershed, the remote setting, and the combination of water and mountains took his breath away.
In 1958, Floyd and Maudie purchased the sporting camps on Pierce Pond, 25 miles from the nearest town. While Floyd was thrilled to be guiding all day, Maudie went from cooking for her family of five to preparing three hearty meals a day for 50 hungry guests and guides. Pierce Pond Camps were remote, and there was no dashing to the store for bread and milk or special ingredients. Everything was made from scratch, including all of the camps' bread--from morning toast and sandwiches to the evening breadbaskets.
Maudie's recipe for Oatmeal Bread originated in the meager kitchen of an old-time guide from Bingham, Maine, who led sports to remote fishing holes. The Oatmeal Bread was a camp staple at Cobb's Pierce Pond Camps, and Jeannie learned to bake the bread early on at her mother's side.
The Cobb family lifestyle and tradition of catering to the public became ingrained in Jeannie and her siblings during their years at Pierce Pond. Home and work were all rolled into one, seven days a week, from dawn to nightfall, until the last dinner dish was done or the generator lights went out at 10 p.m., whichever came first. Dishes were washed by hand; laundry was done in a wringer washer and hung on the lines to dry. Guest cabins were cleaned every day, and then there were the kitchen chores, which took on a life of their own. Jeannie and her siblings never knew a summer of leisure like their friends. Life at the camps, however, was not all work and no play. In the afternoon, the kids would take off to go swimming and canoeing, or go fishing in the evening after dishes were done. The Cobb children didn't know any other lifestyle. The family business was their way of life.
Jeannie's husband, John, comes from a long line of people who share the same work ethic and family traditions. His parents, and many of his relatives, worked in the sardine factories on the western side of Mount Desert Island (MDI). The Merchant Family home is located nearby at Hall Quarry, which is known for its granite. John's ancestors, like many of the stone carvers and cutters who migrated to the Maine coast from Europe in the late 1880s, worked in these quarries. At the time, Hall Quarry had a work force of over 2,000 men. Jeannie and John live in one of the old boarding-houses at Hall Quarry that housed many of these men and their families. The standard boarding house fare, as at the sporting camps, was hearty homemade meals.
Jeannie and John opened Jeannie's Breakfast & Chowder House to pay tribute to all of these working families, their work ethic, and the down-home culinary traditions inherited by Jeannie and John.
The couple began their foray into the restaurant business in 1985 when they owned a convenience store in Trenton, Maine. Gradually, Jeannie began introducing her family recipes to the public, and they literally "ate it up." Before long, the convenience store grew into a popular breakfast and lunch eatery, known for Jeannie's homemade fare and hearty portions.
Jeannie and John are delighted to bring Maudie's Oatmeal Bread to Bar Harbor and to share their family's down-home culinary traditions and hospitality. The Merchant Family is glad you dropped in, and we are pleased to have served you and your family some of the best home-cooked food around.