The Lobster Shack - 110 Perkins Cove Rd., Ogunquit, ME 03907 - 3.5 Forks
Day 2 of our Maine lobster tour had us in the very cute but very crowded town of Ognunquit. It's a lovely beach side town about 20 minutes south of Kennebunkport and the streets are lined with tons of adorable B&Bs, brunch spots and cheesey tourist boutiques. I can see why it's a popular family destination. At the end of the main road is Perkins Cove, which is home to 2 of the town's famous lobster places: The Lobster Shack and Foot Bridge Lobster. They are next door to each other and literally at the foot of the bridge. We were initially going to try both places but we only ended up being able to make room for 1 place and The Lobster Shack won out. We, of course, got the lobster roll ($15), which during lunch time, you also get a free cup of fish chowder! Then Janet also got a cup of the lobster stew ($10), a corn on the cob ($2) and I got an order of the steamers ($15). Given all the lobster I ate yesterday, I was most excited for the steamers and they did not disappoint. There was a huge pile of them and it was served with the traditional hot water and butter sides. I understand why not everyone likes them but I was a huge fan of them and these had a nice briny, sea salty taste to it that I really enjoyed. The lobster roll here was also 1/4 lb of meat served with light mayo on a toasted bun. At this point, all the rolls were kind of blending together but Janet had mentioned that this one was her least favorite. I also tried a bite of the lobster stew and there was almost another 1/4 lb of lobster chunks in there. Janet felt like it need more salt and pepper to it - meanwhile I was indulging in the free fish chowder and it was also very meaty and filling. I didn't think mine needed any extra seasoning but I generally don't add to much extra S&P to my dishes. The corn was beautiful and clearly freshly picked but it didn't quite have the sweetness that I typically like in corn. Overall, it was still a nice sit down place for lunch (this place was an actual restaurant vs. a shack on the side of the road) and it's a good end point for when you are down exploring Ogunquit. It wasn't our absolute favorite of the trip but it wasn't a bad choice necessarily. Total bill: $55
Eventide - 86 Middle Street, Portland, ME 04101 - 4.5 Forks
This review will be for the one place where we did NOT get lobster! Gasp. Plus it's the one really nice sit down meal we had on the entire trip. I was excited to check out Portland because of it's burgeoning food scene. It's really got some serious restaurants in town and I was bummed I couldn't try them all. But Janet and I were originally suckered into Eventide based on their gorgeous website. It's a very clean and aesthetically pleasing site. We were also excited because it sounded like they had the best oysters in town. So of course, there is a long wait to this place, even at 6pm. We ended up waiting about 45 minutes for a seat. There are actually only 3 tables inside and then several bar seats by the window and then 3-4 tables outside, so it's not a very big place. When we sat down, we asked the people next to us if they liked their lobster roll and instead of saying "YES!" they said "We really liked the fried Hake - so not a real rousing endorsement. Plus I was sick of lobster at this point and was up for trying something new. So we ordered a dozen oysters ($29) which were mostly local Maine selections, the crab roll, the fried hake, and the tuna crudo. Surprisingly the fried hake and crab roll came out first. The crab roll was amazing! It was served on this delicious bread that was kind of like the mantou buns you get in Chinese restaurants. It was super soft and pillowy and the crab inside was fresh and had a lot of seasoning and flavor to it. It kind of made me think if we should have gotten the lobster roll because I'm sure it would have been just as good. Next we moved on to the fried hake. Oh my was this an outstanding fried dish. It was basically 4 big balls of hake but the outside had a nice light flakey batter and it was served with a fantastic homemade tartar. The fish was moist and tender on the inside. Delicious. Next came the oysters and honestly I can't remember the names of them but they were all great and it was served with a red onion ice and horseradish. Lastly we moved on to the tuna crudo which was served with ginger scallion and radish. Another winning dish. The tuna was clean and melted in your mouth while the ginger scallion really helped to round out the taste of it. And for dessert, we couldn't help ourselves and we got the ice cream sandwich which was homemade vanilla ice cream sandwich in between two soft chocolate chip cookies It had the right balance of softness but also it wasn't super melty or messy. The cookies really held up well against the ice cream.
I'll also do a plug for the waitstaff here. I'm not sure if it's a Maine thing or what, but all the waitresses were beautiful in this Earthy crunchy way but also super nice and friendly. I really enjoyed my meal here despite the long wait and would totally come back to sample the rest of the fantastic sounding menu. I should also note that they have a fantastic wine and cocktail menu as well. Total bill: $112 with tax, tip and wine
Sob - our last meal of the trip was in Kennebunkport and also very famous for winning lots of awards for best lobster roll. It's located in the middle of the town square and it's also a very unassuming shack. We got there right when it opened and unlike at Red's there was hardly any wait and the service was fast and very efficient. We had our last lobster roll ($17) and ordered a 1/2 pint of fried shrimp ($13) and a small order of fries ($3) - which I am shocked that we managed to make the whole weekend without ordering once. They have a market where you can buy your own lobster or raw fish and next to that they have a small outdoor area with several benches.
My first impression of the lobster roll was that it wasn't in a roll but rather a hamburger bun. It really should have been called a lobster bun. I thought the lobster meat here was the best and most flavorful of all the shacks we tried on the trip. It was clearly still fresh and they didn't fuss too much with the meat but there was just something about it that I just really enjoyed more than the others. There was also a touch of mayo to this one as well. I personally enjoyed the bun bread while Janet would have preferred that it was more toasted. It was very similar to a potato roll bun which I love! The fried shrimp were nice and tasty - very similar to a popcorn shrimp texture but they weren't too greasy or overbattered. They were really easy to keep popping in your mouth. As for the fries - I loved them because they are the thick krinkly kind that sort of reminded me of elementary school. But they were crisp and light but I was glad this was the only place we got them because othewise, I would have spent the whole weekend shoving fries in my mouth. The whole experience was great until I heard the owner of the restaurant berate this couple sitting behind us. It sounded like while the guy bought food from the shack the girl had gotten take out from another restaurant. I get that the owner would be a bit peeved for having them bring outside food but instead of just politely asking them to leave, he proceeded to tell the girl how the restaurant where she got her food sucked and that they use frozen lobster and why would she come to Maine to not eat at their place and have frozen food instead? Eventually he "convinced" her to let him throw her entire meal in the garbage and for her to try one of his lobster rolls (hopefully it was free of charge). Obviously, it's his space and he can do what he wants but I just felt really bad for the girl who was clearly a tourist and being food shamed for simply making a different choice. While I would absolutely eat here again, I would just make sure to only have their food while sitting on the bench to avoid being yelled at in public. Total bill: $41
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