A group of master power clashers mingle in The Abbey’s wide room. One twenty-something in an ensemble of triple tweed (tweed trousers, blazer, and newsboy cap) chats with another clothed in a bold blend of patterns beneath a twinkling disco ball. At the immense wraparound bar, a silver-haired boomer downs an ale and munches chorizo-dusted deviled eggs in a trapper hat as Culture Club booms. Over on a leather sofa, Bowdoin College students dutifully study with earbuds in, oblivious to the entire scene.
Fresh off a James Beard Foundation nomination for the just-introduced Best New Bar category, this buzzy outpost of experimental cocktails and contemporary ethnic dishes is bringing cheeky nightlife to Brunswick. But none of that, insist co-owners Connor Scott and Lainey Catalino, is behind what’s regularly filling the place. “We believe there’s no problem you can’t solve with friends and community,” says Connor. “The purpose of this life is to get together and take care of each other.”
Call that corny if you must, but Connor and Lainey—as well as their remarkably un-jaded band of young Millennial staff and friends—are steadfast in their mission to make The Abbey into a creation that’s part restaurant-bar, part nightclub, part coffee shop.
The concept percolated when the two friends were roommates, and a tradition of hosting potluck dinners and cocktail nights for friends before eventually deciding to make a living at it. In December of 2023, with the help of that same group of friends who’d been at their apartment for dinners, they opened in the space formerly belonging to Little Dog Coffee Shop.
There they roll out splashy events (the most popular of which is Cowboy Disco) as well as an ever-evolving menu served on mismatched vintage plates—think sultry barbecued Maine duck leg with pomegranate seeds, turnip chunks, farro, and hazelnuts. On the cocktail end of things, the ambitious innovations they’ve become known for are balanced out with a down-to-earth penchant for education. Nearly every type of spirit is represented on the bar menu (one favorite: the Boy From Jupiter—a heady mix of Aquavit, Caribbean rum, acid-adjusted grapefruit, ginger, lime, saline, and nutmeg). “We experiment, but we’re about keeping things approachable.” Says Lainey. Connor concurs. “The power of good food and drink to bring people together is undeniable,” he says.
