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The most common cause for dental composite failures is secondary caries due to invasive bacterial colonization of the adhesive/dentin (a/d) interface. Innate material weakness often lead to an insufficient seal between the adhesive and dentin. Consequently, bacterial by-products invade the porous a/d interface leading to material degradation and dental caries. Current approaches to achieve antibacterial properties in these materials continue to raise concerns regarding hypersensitivity and antibiotic resistance. Herein, we have developed a multi-faceted, bio-functionalized approach to overcome the vulnerability of such interfaces. An antimicrobial adhesive formulation was designed using a combination of antimicrobial peptide and a &#949;-polylysine resin system. Effector molecules boasting innate immunity are brought together with a biopolymer offering a two-fold biomimetic design approach. The selection of &#949;-polylysine was inspired due to its non-toxic nature and common use as food preservative. Biomolecular characterization and functional activity of our engineered dental adhesive formulation were assessed and the combinatorial formulation demonstrated significant antimicrobial activity against <i>Streptococcus mutans.</i> Our antimicrobial peptide-hydrophilic adhesive hybrid system design offers advanced, biofunctional properties at the critical a/d interface.