World's Best Lobster Roll Is Found in ... Utah????

[Pat AKA mustski]

Since this thread has been bumped I have to admit that we had an excellent lobster roll from a small restaurant in Big Bear, CA this past winter. Paging @Pat AKA mustski .

And yes, I'm from New York and have eaten lobster rolls all over New England.

It really is surprisingly good. The owners are from Maine.

 

[x10003q]

This is a 3 pack from Stew Leonard's, a regional supermarket/7 stores that started out as a dairy. These are consistently excellent. I could only eat 1, my wife and daughter split one and the 3rd was had as an appetizer with dinner. It is usually $24. One is usually $11.

 

[ScottB]

No one in NE is going to admit that lobster will taste as good in the Rocky Mountain West. (Yeah, they'll come ski our snow, but pooh-pooh our food. Keep it to yourself. ) And it might not, but it was still fairly amazing.

OK, I haven't been following this thread, but I will step to the plate and admit that as a die hard NE'lander, its quite likely lobster in the Rockies will taste the same as lobster in ME. You have to cook it while its still alive. I assume it is still alive when cooked in Utah. If it is still fresh, healthy and active, it won't have changed its taste at all. Its really about how much time its spent in the tank after being caught. If it gets to Utah (from Maine) a few days after being caught, no difference. They can live up to a week in air if keep cold and moist. The taste of a lobster roll is also very dependent on what you do after the "bug" is cooked, meaning seasoning and roll prep. Lobsters are very different from fish, which is dead before it is unloaded off the boat and starts to "don't want to say rot" ummm, get older and must be preserved as soon as its pulled from the water.

I consider myself a lobster expert. I have had a lobster license for over 30 years. I can walk out my front door, catch lobster, and walk back to the house to cook it, which I do regularly. I am a scuba diver and live across the street from the ocean. I have caught and eaten thousands of lobsters in my life time. Just justifying my expert claim. I have also read books and done lots of research papers on lobsters. In my experience, the biggest factor in the taste of the meat is where the lobster is in its molt cycle. Hard shells taste the best, until within one week of molting. They molt about 7 times a year when young. They chemically grow their own shells from their outer skin, so when the chemicals are flowing, the meat is not that tasty. Picking the best fresh lobster out of the tank is probably the most important thing for a good tasting lobster roll. The lesson is "squeeze your lobster before picking it, but don't let it squeeze you back, they have powerful claws". When I catch them in the "wild" they don't have rubber bands on. My biggest lobster was 16 lbs and after cooking him in a restaurant's steam chamber, he tasted pretty good. Had a nice hard shell. Here's a pic (OK, now I am bragging a bit).

 

[tch]

whoa! That's one big, friggin' lobster!

And while we're on the topic of size... please shoot anyone who wants to tell you that smaller lobsters taste sweeter. It's all just a marketing scam to get folks to buy the barely-legal chix they are catching. When they're that small, there's just a huge shell-to-meat ratio. Highly inefficient meal -- any yet folks keep repeating the BS.

 

[dan ross]

Don't shoot the messenger...the voting took place in Portland Maine.

So where was the winning lobster roll made? Maine?
I can assure you that the lobster is different after a flight across the country. I know several lobsterman and have been making my own lobster rolls for 25 years. Fresh caught and picked ( that means removing the meat from the shell for those of you from “away”) has no substitute. Nothing against these people in PC but I can assure you the roll made in Portland tastes different than the roll does in Utah. I vote for Redds in Wiscasset or Beals in S.W. Harbor or my friend Sean , a lobsterman who one can occasionally convince to make you the best lobster roll you've ever had. Do I take lobster rolls seriously? Hell yeah.

 

[Pat AKA mustski]

Growing up, my family went camping in Small Point Beach, Maine every summer. The only time my dad went to church was in Maine! The church had bingo and all you can eat lobster night!

 

[Philpug]

So where was the winning lobster roll made? Maine?

The Lobster Rolls are made in Utah but the voting was done in Maine.

 

[dan ross]

The Lobster Rolls are made in Utah but the voting was done in Maine.

Yes, but the winning Lobster Roll was made in Portland if I read you correctly, meaning that the lobster was not flown anywhere. In that case, I might quibble with a difference in the lobster meat after being flown even if it’s still live. The point is they were judging the recipe. Nonetheless they won and congratulations but I’m skeptical the roll the judges tasted in Portland tastes quite the same as it does in Park City. That may be provincial Maine pride on my part and I admit it but I would also try it in Park City -unless it’s $30.

 

[James]

You have to cook it while its still alive. I assume it is still alive when cooked in Utah. If it is still fresh, healthy and active, it won't have changed its taste at all. Its really about how much time its spent in the tank after being caught. If it gets to Utah (from Maine) a few days after being caught, no difference.

Heh. Some years ago I was up in Rockland, Me. Driving on the way back, I figured I would get some fresh Maine lobsters so I stopped in Portland. I got three or 4 packed in a cooler with ice and some seaweed for ambience. Then started the drive back to Nyc. Well it was summer, and damn hot at that, even in Maine. The cars ac was not top notch
By the time I got back, the lobsters were barely moving. One may have died, I forget.

Anyway, I realized there was almost no point to buying lobsters in Maine when I could just buy better Maine lobsters in New York. Except it sounds better when you tell your friends you brought back lobsters from Maine than from across town.

 

[x10003q]

OK, I haven't been following this thread, but I will step to the plate and admit that as a die hard NE'lander, its quite likely lobster in the Rockies will taste the same as lobster in ME. You have to cook it while its still alive. I assume it is still alive when cooked in Utah. If it is still fresh, healthy and active, it won't have changed its taste at all. Its really about how much time its spent in the tank after being caught. If it gets to Utah (from Maine) a few days after being caught, no difference. They can live up to a week in air if keep cold and moist. The taste of a lobster roll is also very dependent on what you do after the "bug" is cooked, meaning seasoning and roll prep. Lobsters are very different from fish, which is dead before it is unloaded off the boat and starts to "don't want to say rot" ummm, get older and must be preserved as soon as its pulled from the water.

I consider myself a lobster expert. I have had a lobster license for over 30 years. I can walk out my front door, catch lobster, and walk back to the house to cook it, which I do regularly. I am a scuba diver and live across the street from the ocean. I have caught and eaten thousands of lobsters in my life time. Just justifying my expert claim. I have also read books and done lots of research papers on lobsters. In my experience, the biggest factor in the taste of the meat is where the lobster is in its molt cycle. Hard shells taste the best, until within one week of molting. They molt about 7 times a year when young. They chemically grow their own shells from their outer skin, so when the chemicals are flowing, the meat is not that tasty. Picking the best fresh lobster out of the tank is probably the most important thing for a good tasting lobster roll. The lesson is "squeeze your lobster before picking it, but don't let it squeeze you back, they have powerful claws". When I catch them in the "wild" they don't have rubber bands on. My biggest lobster was 16 lbs and after cooking him in a restaurant's steam chamber, he tasted pretty good. Had a nice hard shell. Here's a pic (OK, now I am bragging a bit).

View attachment 135065

In Maine, you have to throw these big lobsters back in when you pull one out if you have a license. There is a measuring key that is 3-1/4 " on one side for the minimum size and 5" on the other side for a maximum size. It is used to measure the carapace. Females get their tails notched and thrown back so they can continue to breed.

 

[graham418]

The best lobster roll that I've had to date ( continuous never ending taste testing going on) is from the hippie dude in the truck at Peggys Cove NS. All killer, No filler, as they say

 

[James]

The best lobster roll that I've had to date ( continuous never ending taste testing going on) is from the hippie dude in the truck at Peggys Cove NS. All killer, No filler, as they say

How does that “UCook” work?

 

[graham418]

^^^ I think you get to put the lobster in the pot yourself. I never asked

 

[KingGrump]

View attachment 135098

Congee? In NS?
Who wouda thunk?

 

[James]

Congee? In NS?
Who wouda thunk?

What is a Congee roll?? All those gringo articles about drinking fish sauce, and they never mentioned it!

 

[skibum4ever]

This is a 3 pack from Stew Leonard's, a regional supermarket/7 stores that started out as a dairy. These are consistently excellent. I could only eat 1, my wife and daughter split one and the 3rd was had as an appetizer with dinner. It is usually $24. One is usually $11.
View attachment 135054

We really enjoyed Stew Leonard's when we lived back East.

 

[KingGrump]

What is a Congee roll??

I am sure many have tried over the years. AFAIK, none have succeeded so far.

 

[aveski]

We had pretty good lobster rolls last night. Lobster and rolls from Shaw's. We assembled them after pulling the meat out of the shells.

 

[Crank]

We really enjoyed Stew Leonard's when we lived back East.

I Still shop there sometimes. Often grab a couple lobster rolls to bring home.

Best I ever had though was at a place called the Wequasset Inn in Harwich, MA (Cape Cod). It was more of a generous portion of lobster salad served in a bread bowl.

 

[SBrown]

The world's best lobster roll is the one right in front of you.