Maine Hosts Scent Dinner with Perfume Expert Chandler Burr

Robert Doyle READ TIME: 3 MIN.

CAMDEN, Maine - Natalie's Executive Chef Geoffroy Deconinck is collaborating with the internationally known perfume expert Chandler Burr to present the restaurant's fifth Scent Dinner on Friday, October 21. This year's dinner, inspired by the Camden-based conference PopTech held over the same weekend, will focus on the theme of entering a new global era.

The reception will begin at 7:30 p.m., dinner at 8 p.m. The Scent Dinner, which includes an in depth session on perfume lead by Burr and a five-course dinner and wine pairing, is $250 per person. Seating is limited and the Dinner sells out quickly. A shuttle will be available from the Camden Opera House to Cellardoor Winery. For more information and for reservations, call the Inn at 207-236-7008.

In a new twist to the scent dinner this year, it will be held at Cellardoor Winery's Vineyard at 360 Youngtown Rd. in Lincolnville, and dinner guests will be able to watch and hear Burr and Deconinck interact and observe the chefs preparing the meal in the open kitchen.

The evening, which actually features two very different types of dinners, first an olfactory dinner, followed by a gustatory dinner, will unfold in a similar format to past years, with Chandler Burr leading an introduction to the scents by passing around raw materials and perfumes on blotters, followed by a meal that reflects the perfumes used in the olfactory dinner. A Scent Dinner is the intersection of fragrance and fine dining.

Natalie's Scent Dinner was cited as one of 50 Great Ideas by Restaurant Business Magazine. Burr, the New York Times perfume critic from 2006-2010, is the Director and Curator of the Center of Olfactory Art at the Museum of Arts and Design in New York City. He is the author of the two definitive popular books about the perfume industry, "The Perfect Scent: A Year Inside the Perfume Industry in Paris & New York" and "The Emperor of Scent: A True Story of Perfume, Obsession, and the Last Mystery of the Senses."

Burr's novel, "You or Someone Like You," was published in 2009. Burr hosts interactive Scent Dinners around the world with the world's best chefs, from Simon Lau Cederholm of Aquavit in Bras�lia, Vito Mollica, Ex. Chef of the Four Seasons, Florence, Samuel Benne of Lap�rouse, Paris, to Fabrice Guisset at Las Ventanas in Cabo, Mexico, and Nicholas Schearer, Ex. Chef of the Four Seasons, Bangkok.?

The nationally acclaimed Camden Harbour Inn consistently receives praise from publications such as Departures, Travel & Leisure, National Geographic Traveler, Yankee Magazine and Dispatches for its world-class service and amenities and unparalleled views. Awarded among "51 favorite splurges in the world" by Sherman's Travel, the Inn attracts an upscale clientele who return often to experience one of New England's most tranquil, inspired and treasured settings. ??The Inn's on-premise restaurant, Natalie's, has been called the finest gourmet eatery in Maine and was awarded Best French Restaurant in New England by opentable.com.

Executive Chef Geoffroy Deconinck was nominated by Food & Wine for People's Best New Chef Award 2011. ??Natalie's offers Modern French cuisine with an emphasis on Maine seafood. The Wine Spectator-honored wine list features more than 250 specialty wines.

The restaurant serves a four course Lobster Tasting menu in the summer and fall, in addition to extensive a la carte offerings and a Chef's Tasting menu.??The Inn and Natalie's have both earned the prestigious AAA Four Diamond Award and the Inn is a member of Cond� Nast Johansens.


by Robert Doyle

Long-term New Yorkers, Mark and Robert have also lived in San Francisco, Boston, Provincetown, D.C., Miami Beach and the south of France. The recipient of fellowships at MacDowell, Yaddo, and Blue Mountain Center, Mark is a PhD in American history and literature, as well as the author of the novels Wolfchild and My Hawaiian Penthouse. Robert is the producer of the documentary We Are All Children of God. Their work has appeared in numerous publications, as well as at : www.mrny.com.

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