Courtesy / The Island Agency
A 1031 exchange made possible the purchase of the nearly turnkey restaurant on the waterfront.
Updated: October 23, 2023
Waterfront restaurant in Stonington sells to long-time Bar Harbor restaurateurs
Courtesy / The Swan Agency, The Erica Brooks Group
From left, Mike Brennan and Laura and Erik Johnson will open 27 Main St. in Stonington as 27 Fathoms Waterfront Grille.
A long-time restaurant on the waterfront in Stonington has sold to Bar Harbor restaurateurs who have been in the business for nearly 50 years.
Laura and Erik Johnson bought 27 Main St. from Rudi Neumayr of Nereus Investments LLC for an undisclosed price.
The list price was $1.195 million.
Erica Brooks of Swan Agency Real Estate represented the buyers and Morgan Eaton of The Island Agency represented the seller in the deal. The buyer’s lender was Vicki Hall at Machias Savings Bank.
“We are excited to start over the winter with occasional pop-ups and take advantage of the off-season to get our feet wet and plan for the 2024 season,” said Laura Johnson. “We love Stonington and look forward to becoming a part of the year round community.”
The restaurant was marketed as a nearly turnkey opportunity with a large dock system, including a dining dock that seats 72, on Stonington Harbor. The interior dining room seats 35.
The 4,268-squre-foot building on three stories was built in 1950 and renovated in 2003, according to listing materials.
On the third floor, there’s an apartment with two bedrooms and two-and-a-half bathrooms, two waterside balconies, a “gourmet” kitchen, and an “entertaining area” with a bar and a propane fireplace.
Custom details throughout the structure include oak flooring, lighting and upholstered seating. The location has visibility along the downtown’s Main Street.
“This building is so prominent and we’re excited to add them to the community and the restaurant culture, Morgan Eaton said of the buyers.
Eaton’s brokerage office is across the street from the restaurant. In its early years, she said, the building’s uses included a variety store with an ice cream and sandwich bar in back.
It was later modified to be a full restaurant.
Neumayr acquired the property in 2003, said Eaton.
“He was conscientious about keeping the building in great shape,” she said.
In the early 2000s, she said, he renovated the dock and building and operated the Maritime Café.
In recent years, the restaurant was leased to other operators.
Most recently, it was leased to Chicago chef Ryan McCaskey, who operated Acadia House Provisions there for three years.
The Stonington restaurant has been vacant since 2022, said Erica Brooks, who represented the buyers.
“I can’t wait for the community to see what Laura and Erik have planned for this truly extraordinary space,” said Brooks.
Courtesy / The Island Agency
The buyers have over 45 years of experience in the food service industry.
John McVeigh — a business owner at nearby J. McVeigh Jewelry, board member of the Stonington Opera House and member of the local economic development committee — said Stonington would embrace a new restaurant.
The buyers
The buyers have over 45 years of experience in the food service industry, including catering and events, and fine dining and fast-casual restaurants.
Laura Johnson’s background began at age 15, working for a restaurant in Bar Harbor called the Mary Jane.
Erik Johnson has been in the restaurant business for over 30 years.
The couple has owned Mainely Meat BBQ on Dreamwood Hill in Bar Harbor for the past 14 years.
The name of the Stonington endeavor will be 27 Fathoms Waterfront Grille. The menu will include seafood, steaks and burgers.
Johnson said the decision to buy the Stonington property was inspired by her mother, Helen Douglas, who passed away in 2021.
Douglas was an artist who was well known in the Bar Harbor community.
“My mom loved Stonington,” said Johnson. “If anyone came to visit from out of town, she took them to Stonington. I think it was because it was such a quaint village and reminded her of the old Bar Harbor. The drive over there is beautiful.”
The Johnsons loved to visit Stonington, too.
Last year, they drove there on a day trip.
“We looked at the building back then and said, ‘We can’t do that,’” she recalled.
But after they sold a commercial property in North Carolina, they decided to invest the proceeds into the Stonington property through a 1031 exchange.
The 1031 is a “like-kind,” real estate exchange, named after its IRS section code, that allows an investor to put off capital gains tax from a sale by investing the money into a similar property.
They recruited a longtime mentor, Michael Brennan, as a business partner to bring back food service to the location.
The property needs some light maintenance and the Johnsons plan to restock the restaurant’s small wares.
The goal is to open in November and operate through December with a short menu for locals, then to open back up in the spring with a full menu.
“It was pretty much turnkey and it comes with a two-bedroom apartment above it,” said Johnson. “We hope to make it a wedding destination venue.”
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