Fore Street Lobster Roll: Maine Lobster Shack

The Maine Lobster Shack opened last summer on Fore Street in Portland, a few doors down from the Five Guys (or for you old folks like me, where the Blue Moon used to be!!) I've been wanting to try it since I first heard about it but could never seem to get my lazy ass in gear – until a few days ago when I finally made it! I walked in at lunchtime and immediately got nervous at the lack of other customers. Ohhhhh crap... what had I gotten myself (and my lunch companions) into? I'm hoping it's just a lack of knowledge causing the emptiness.

The first thing I noticed was the beer list because that's usually my first order of business. They get extra points for having a sour on tap - Oxbow's Moon Rocks - which was delicious, by the way!

And then I started in on the menu. They offer three different Lobster Rolls:

Maine Lobster Roll - $19
Lobster meat mixed with mayo, a hint of celery, lemon, salt & pepper.
"Hint of celery" – WTF? I almost got up and walked out.

Brown Butter Lobster Roll - $19
Warm lobster meat w/ brown butter.
No way – I've been burned by the promises of brown butter before so unless your restaurant name begins with Even and ends in Tide, cut the shit.

Umami Lobster Roll - $21
Lobster meat, smoked oyster kewpie, crispy shallots, lemon zest.
I'm sorry, come again? Kewpie? WHAT THE HELL IS KEWPIE? All I could picture was little creepy doll heads staring up at me from my plate. Pass.

I decided to go with the Maine Lobster Roll and in an unprecedented move since I started blogging about lobster rolls, I asked them to leave that evil celery off. Normally, I'd just grin and bear it and then completely chastise them for it, but I just friggin' hate celery. So I told the waitress that putting celery on a lobster roll is sacrilege and to tell whoever was making these rolls they should never put celery on them... ever. If you take a look at their website, it actually says "Welcome to the Way Rolls Should Be" which made me roll my eyes so far back into my head, I'm pretty sure I saw my brain. Celery is for amateurs.

The celery incident caused dread to fill every crevice of my soul as I wondered if this thing could possibly be any good... And then it arrived. I inspected the roll – possibly brioche but buttered and grilled to my standards. The lobster meat was plentiful, although all claws and knuckles which sometimes isn't a good thing. If you don't cook those lobsters right, the tips of the claws get all chalky tasting which can seriously torpedo a perfectly good sandwich. As for the dressing, light mayo, chives and a dusting of lemon zest rounded out this Maine Lobster Roll.

I squeezed my eyes shut and dove in, not sure what to expect. On the outside, it looked like a tasty offering. And guess what? It WAS! The brioche roll was not overpowering and the amount of lobster was enough to offset any breadiness. The lobster was properly cooked and flavorful with no chalky claw tips (bonus!) The dressings were subtle and the addition of the lemon zest was an enjoyable surprise.

Honestly, if you're looking for a really good, traditional lobster roll in Portland's Old Port, this is the best one I've had so far! (For those of you who are rolling your eyes because I didn't say it was Eventide, I said "traditional.") Give 'em a try... the fries are good too!

Webhannet Drive Lobster Roll: Wells Beach Lobster Pound

Oh man... Memorial Day Weekend... the official start of summer. And naturally, the official start of lobster roll season! Mainers have been struggling with the will to live this spring with below normal temperatures and buckets of rain, but the holiday weekend gave us a jolt of sunshine and warm temps for three consecutive days (with only a little rain mixed in for good measure, or to keep us on our toes.) I was heading out of town for a couple days so I felt the need to kick the weekend off with a lobster roll.

My destination: Wells Beach Lobster Pound. It was 72° when I left my house and I had grand visions of grabbing my roll and sitting on the retaining wall overlooking the water in front of the lobster pound. But as usual with this time of year, the ocean water temperature was so much colder than the air, keeping the temp a chilly 58° at the coast. Whatever, the view was still nice and it wasn't snowing so I call that a win.

I ordered my lobster roll the only way it comes - Lobster Roll - $16.99.

I was pleased with the initial appearance of my lobster roll.
Traditional split top roll... ✔
Acceptable amount of lobster meat... ✔
No stupid lettuce... ✔
Light mayo... ✔

The roll was toasted but not buttered and grilled. I never quite understand this approach since, for me, the state of the bread component is crucial. Of course, toasting is better than nothing but definitely second to buttery, grilled deliciousness.

Dressed with just a touch of mayo, the lobster meat tasted so oceany, it was clearly cooked in sea water. And the saltiness of the lobster made the mayo taste almost seasoned – I was so confused I actually had to back into the lobster pound to ask about it. Don't get me wrong, I really liked it. There's just something about being able to taste the ocean in a lobster roll that makes me so happy. I'm not saying it was perfect, but I definitely didn't want to throw it on the ground so that's a plus.

For you traitors non-lobster-roll-lovers, there's a bunch of other stuff on their menu - fried and otherwise. Also, I love a place that has those big, shallow lobster tanks so you can gawk at all the future lobster rolls crawling all over each other. There was one dude in that tank with a claw the size of my fist. It's not the most quaint looking place, but there's a pretty view and good lobster rolls... so if you're down that way, give it a try.