// Workers AI · dad joke modeWho's Harding Lee Smith? Smith to be a blacksmith.
Harding Lee Smith | |
|---|---|
| Born | Brunswick, Maine, U.S. |
| Education | Boston University |
| Spouse | Sarah Smith |
| Children | 2 |
| Culinary career | |
Current restaurants
| |
Harding Lee Smith is an American restaurateur from Portland, Maine. He owns three restaurants in Portland—The Front Room, The Corner Room and The Grill Room―collectively known as "the Rooms".[1][2] He also owns The Mountain Room and The Last Run Room, both of which are at Sunday River Ski Resort. The Annex, adjoining The Grill Room, is his most recent venture.
Early life
[edit]Smith was born in Brunswick, Maine, and grew up in West Bath.[3] He attended Deering High School in Portland, Maine. He went on to study hotel management at Boston University and took classes at the The Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in St. Helena, California. After working at restaurants in Boston, California, Hawaii and Italy, he returned to Portland around 2003.[4]
Career
[edit]
Smith worked at Mims Brasserie in Portland before becoming sous-chef at Back Bay Grill.[4]
Smith opened The Front Room,[5] on Munjoy Hill in Portland, in December 2005.[6] He followed this in May 2008 with The Grill Room, on Exchange Street, becoming the first chef to open multiple independent restaurants in the city.[7] In 2009, he opened The Corner Room,[8] a few doors further north on Exchange Street.[4]
In 2017, he expanded his enterprise to Sunday River Ski Resort, in Newry, Maine, where he opened The Mountain Room in 2017 and, in 2023, The Last Run Room.[9]
The Annex, a function space adjoining The Grill Room, is Smith's most recent venture,[10] opening in 2024.
Personal life
[edit]Smith married Darcy Paige Smith in 2011, but they separated in 2014 and divorced in 2016. They had a daughter in 2008 and a son in 2013.[3][11] The couple opened Portland's Boone's Fish House & Oyster Room, on Custom House Wharf, together in 2013. Harding sued Darcy in 2023, claiming she owed him $150,000.[11]
In 2010, several of the Smiths' employees sued the couple over wages and working conditions.[4]
In February 2013, Smith fell into the waters of Casco Bay, beside DiMillo's Floating Restaurant, during a blizzard. He was hospitalized with hypothermia.[12]
He married his second wife, Sarah,[13] in 2017.[3] She is the co-owner of The Mountain Room.[14] As of 2025[update], they live in North Yarmouth, Maine.[3]
References
[edit]- ↑ Wells, Alexis (November 1, 2023). "Portland's Grill Room & Bar has reopened after a major fire in June". Mainebiz. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
- ↑ "Thirty-one Number Ones | The Maine Mag". www.themainemag.com. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 House, Sprout (September 5, 2025). "Episode 66: Featuring Chef Harding Lee Smith, Owner of The Front Room, The Corner Room, The Grill Room, The Mountain Room, and The Last Run Room". The Boulos Company. Retrieved May 15, 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 Busby, Chris (July 1, 2013). "Satan's Sous Chef". The Bollard. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
- ↑ Donnelly, Sara Anne (April 7, 2014). "The Cool on the Hill". Down East Magazine. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
- ↑ "The best breakfast and brunch spots in Greater Portland". The Portland Press Herald. March 19, 2026. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
- ↑ "Timeline: A modern history of Portland as a food city". The Portland Press Herald. April 29, 2021. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
- ↑ "Eatland | The Maine Mag". www.themainemag.com. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
- ↑ PFM (September 8, 2025). "Interview with Harding Lee Smith". Portland Food Map. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
- ↑ Harty, Brit (January 13, 2023). "Longtime Portland Restaurant The Grill Room is Expanding into Former Swiss Time Space". Portland Old Port. Retrieved May 15, 2026.
- 1 2 "Portland restaurateur sues ex-wife over payment for Boone's Fish House". Press Herald. September 15, 2023. Retrieved April 26, 2025.
- ↑ "Maine chef survives icy plunge into Portland Harbor during blizzard". The Portland Press Herald. February 14, 2013. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
- ↑ Citizen, Rose Lincoln, Bethel (March 3, 2026). "Portland restaurateurs open 2nd Bethel-area eatery". Bangor Daily News. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ↑ Valentine, Miranda (October 11, 2022). "Reaching New Heights". Decor Maine. Retrieved May 14, 2026.