Big moves in Castine’s restaurant scene

When renovations are completed, Dennett’s Wharf will sit seven feet higher with a new deck. Photo courtesy of Brooke Parish.

By John Boit

Dennett’s Wharf, the popular waterfront restaurant in Castine that was battered by storms last year, is being picked up and temporarily moved so that it can eventually be repositioned on new granite cribbing.

Like much of the local area’s waterfront, the restaurant had severe damage from two back-to-back storms in January of 2024. The storm destroyed Dennett’s outdoor seating and flooded its interior with three feet of seawater, said Kip Oberting, who owns the restaurant with his wife, Judy. 

“Our plan is to make it more resilient than it’s ever been,” said Oberting, a resident of New Hampshire who spends time in Castine. “We’re putting it on granite ribs, which are much more durable than wooden pilings.”

The Obertings have owned the building since 2017 and have rented it out to a string of four different restaurant operators. It is now run seasonally by family members, whose pared-down menu is a formula Oberting says has worked well.

When completed, the restaurant will sit seven feet higher and have a new deck, albeit slightly smaller than the previous one, Oberting said. The owners also plan to eventually create a retail food space with sandwiches and baked goods for takeaway customers, a move that will create additional revenue streams during the busy summer months, as well as lengthening their pre-and post tourism season dates. They also plan to add dockside floats to welcome smaller boats to tie up at the restaurant for a meal.

The work to move the building is being overseen by Fallow Building Services of Castine, which serves as general contractor on the project. Islesboro Marine is constructing the granite cribbing. Jordan Building Movers of Waltham is in charge of relocating the structure, which has now been moved more than 30 off its foundation.

The building will be moved onto its new foundation in December, Oberting said. After that, interior work will tajke place over the winter and spring.

Oberting said that, “fingers crossed,” the restaurant will be open for business in late June of 2026.

“It’s going to be a race, just like it was in 2024,” Oberting said. “It’s going to be a sprint.”

The building now rests on steel beams and cribbing during reconstruction. Photo courtesy of Fallow Building Services.

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