Update: Lucerne Inn Deck Addition Almost Complete

Anyone driving to-or-from the Ellsworth area, along Route 1A, has no doubt passed by the iconic Lucerne Inn. If you've ever spent time on the grounds of the Inn, chances are you have experienced the scenic view of Phillips Lake that sits off in the distance behind the building.

It is this view that owners Dave and Jayne Silverman are hoping to share with more folks when they first bought the Lucerne six years ago. And now, they are turning that plan into a reality.

This past April, the Silvermans began construction of a new deck off the side of the Inn, hoping to provide a spacious outdoor seating option for patrons.

"We've been wanting to do it for a while. Covid reinforced the idea that outdoor dining is a viable alternative and something that's in demand. The fact that we have the view that we have; outside of Bar Harbor or Moosehead or something like that, I'm not sure that there's a nicer view for dining anywhere in the general area around here."

Dave Silverman says that the plan is to separate the restaurant, The Lucerne Inn, from the pub that's on-site, Rian's Pub, and offer fine dining in one spot and pub fare in the other.

"Three years ago with Covid, what we had to do was consolidate the menus from the pub and the restaurant, into one menu. But now we really want to differentiate the two; one more casual dining, and then the other fine dining."

Silverman says The Pub and the Deck are going to be a pub menu, while inside, the restaurant will offer fine dining.

"The Inn, for years, has been known as a celebratory location; anniversaries, birthdays, graduations and weddings, all that sort of stuff. And it's still all of that, but you know, the nearest casual dining is Ellsworth or Brewer/Bangor, and our pub food is the same high-quality, prepared in the same kitchen as our regular food, but we're not really known for that casual atmosphere. Hopefully, this gives us that option."

Aside from the addition of the deck, passers-by will also notice a new billboard of sorts, in the form of Lucerne's new Food Truck, which will be permanently parked nearby.

"Because of the volume of the restaurant and weddings, we felt there might be some restraints on kitchen on the amount of food we could produce. So what we've actually done is we bought a brand new food truck with a brand new kitchen. It's going to be parked in the lot. At the current time, we're not going to be using it for outside events or anything. The food truck will service the pub and will also be a way for people driving by to stop in, get a to-go order, and be on their way."

"If they want to eat on the deck and have waitress service, or they want to sit in the parking lot and have a burger or a lobster roll, or if they want to grab something on their way, for the road, they have all those options."

This week, they posted a photo of the almost completed project on their Facebook Page, and it looks impressive.

"DECK ALMOST COMPLETE IT LOOKS LIKE WE HAVE ONLY A FEW MORE DAYS OF CONSTRUCTION —CAN’T WAIT!! Be on the lookout for other new surprises and improvements!!!!"

Silverman says they will be open 7 days a week, starting at 11 AM for lunch and running till about 9 PM nightly, so as not to disturb guests at the Inn. He expects The Deck @ Rian's Pub to be open by Memorial Day weekend.