Lobster Roll in CT

[Jimmy Serrano]

Another mind corrupted by Big Mustard.

Ketchup is the superior condiment.

Says the guy who is eating cereal for dinner tonight.

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

Last few Glenwood stops over several years time, I walked away with a similar view: "Wow, same basic dog, same dubious all-lobster lobster roll, and one time great rings went downhill, inexplicably even higher greasy spoon prices, and how'd they Spartacus mess that up ... not sure I'll be back".

A year or so later, I return again. Saving grace still, the sorta sanitary 'kraut and other condiments to dress up the dogs. Bottom line: beauty and memories remain in the eyes and taste buds of the beholders.

 

[huskymedic]

I'm glad you like them because they're what, $5? lol. Most expensive rings I've seen in the state and it's not a huge portion. .

$4.00. Go for an order of the Frings (1/2 onion rings - 1/2 fries).

 

[Lefty2one]

Last few Glenwood stops over several years time, I walked away with a similar view: "Wow, same basic dog, same dubious all-lobster lobster roll, and one time great rings went downhill, inexplicably even higher greasy spoon prices, and how'd they Spartacus mess that up ... not sure I'll be back".

A year or so later, I return again. Saving grace still, the sorta sanitary 'kraut and other condiments to dress up the dogs. Bottom line: beauty and memories remain in the eyes and taste buds of the beholders.

Agreed, their prices are absurd for a greasy spoon. Their food really isn't all that great anymore either though maybe I'm just remembering my childhood trips there through rose-colored glasses. I haven't gotten anything there besides a lobster roll in years.

 

[Ewekon]

Bryac in Black Rock does a real good one for a bar. Has a raw bar also. $12 for the roll with fries on Tuesdays. A steal. Definitely not a "settled for".

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

Agreed, their prices are absurd for a greasy spoon. Their food really isn't all that great anymore either though maybe I'm just remembering my childhood trips there through rose-colored glasses

Bingo, memories of yesteryear's Glenwood trips also shade my glasses.

 

[8893]

I am sorry to hear about the Glenwood going downhill in recent years. I usually try to get there once a year, but I think it's been at least two years at this point. I was thinking of heading out there today for lunch after it entered the discussion, then I remembered the uptick on the scale this morning after a weekend of a little too much indulgence and decided to walk out for a falafel wrap instead. Pretty sure I sweated out the added pounds in water weight by the time I got back to the office. So soaked that I changed into my running clothes already.

 

[wethyhusky]

I'm seriously not embellishing, that's how much they cost. From just looking around at menus around Maine the average going rate seemed to be around $23, Red's was $27.

That place is overrated. I drive by there every year on the way to Damariscotta Lake, and always a huge line. Stopped once and it is pretty standard for every Maine seafood location

 

[Excalibur]

Chaupwalving is back. Red's is an 1.5 hour wait for a $27 lobster roll.

And an overrated tourist trap to boot . . .

 

[Duncan Idaho]

Three pages and no one has mentioned Ford's yet? The best lobster roll in CT, but why settle for that when you can opt for the Lobster Bomb! The lobster BLT is also worth a second trip.

Ford's Lobster: From Hot Dog Cart To Upscale Seafood On The Waterfront

It is byob and there is a local package store you can call and have alcohol delivered.

They will bring the order to your boat too. Tie up around Harings marine.

 

[Mokum]

A $49 lobster roll? A recent shortage has lobster prices soaring. - The Boston Globe

This is as insane as the prices here in Europe.

 

[Huskyforlife]

So have we settled on @8893 suggestion for best in the state?

 

[methodology]

So have we settled on @8893 suggestion for best in the state?

I don't think it's much of a debate. The one guy giving the bad review either never ate there or is just making things up.

Anyone and everyone i know that has ever gone there (200+ people) firmly put at or towards the top of their list based on preference. Thing is if you aren't familiar with shoreline area you would never know about it or where it is and there a chance of passing by it and not even realizing you did

 

[8893]

I don't think it's much of a debate. The one guy giving the bad review either never ate there or is just making things up.

Anyone and everyone i know that has ever gone there (200+ people) firmly put at or towards the top of their list based on preference. Thing is if you aren't familiar with shoreline area you would never know about it or where it is and there a chance of passing by it and not even realizing you did

For me, it's a matter of proportionality. At the risk of being Goldilocks, the Lobster Landing roll is just right. Not too big, not too small, not too much butter, and the right kind of roll. Just right. Some people may like the attraction of a larger one, or the taste of one with more butter. You hit the main point imo, which is that Bacci has the freshest and the pick of the litter because he has so many lobster pots and sells them through his wholesale business, which supplies most of the restaurants in the area, his retail seafood store on the premises and the lobster rolls. There is a reason that the guy always has a twinkle in his eye (and houses in Italy and Florida).

 

[methodology]

For me, it's a matter of proportionality. At the risk of being Goldilocks, the Lobster Landing roll is just right. Not too big, not too small, not too much butter, and the right kind of roll. Just right. Some people may like the attraction of a larger one, or the taste of one with more butter. You hit the main point imo, which is that Bacci has the freshest and the pick of the litter because he has so many lobster pots and sells them through his wholesale business, which supplies most of the restaurants in the area, his retail seafood store on the premises and the lobster rolls. There is a reason that the guy always has a twinkle in his eye (and houses in Italy and Florida).

Not sure if he still does but for a few years Bacci would work in the seafood department are stop and shop in Madison during the winters. He's one of those undercover multimillionaire. You see him and would never know it. Great guy

 

[8893]

Not sure if he still does but for a few years Bacci would work in the seafood department are stop and shop in Madison during the winters. He's one of those undercover multimillionaire. You see him and would never know it. Great guy

Yep, he is definitely part of the attraction for me. I had no idea he was a multimillionaire until the guys at Meadow Meats clued me in. I think I recall hearing of him and/or his wife working at Stop & Shop, but I don't remember the details; I think they just go to Florida now, from when they close on New Year's until sometime in April or May.

A few weeks ago my wife one of our daughters went out for dinner but they felt like having more options so we opted for Shanks, across the street from him. They had been there before but I hadn't. As we parked Bacci was standing outside in the road and we felt sheepish walking past him and on to Shanks, because he's always been very welcoming to us--and especially to our daughter (the only one of our three who looks Italian). But he seemed fine; and when I thought about it later I figured that he probably supplies their lobster anyway. In any event, I couldn't bring myself to get a lobster roll there, but we got a bunch of other stuff and the place is fine for anyone looking for more options (and also byob, with a nice deck overlooking the harbor).

 

[Husky1972]

That place is overrated. I drive by there every year on the way to Damariscotta Lake, and always a huge line. Stopped once and it is pretty standard for every Maine seafood location

I’m late to this lobster thread, and though I haven’t eaten any lobster in 40+ years, I thought I’d chip in. Growing up in Mystic, my first job was at Abbott’s in Noank. I remember Ernie Abbott the founder and owner hiring me and saying “the government says I have to pay you a man’s wage of $1.25 an hour, so I expect $1.25 an hour worth of a man’s work”. I worked the retail deck where I was treated to smelling lobster being cooked and served day after day. Fortunately, I met my still lobster eating wife there that summer of ‘67, and we’ll have been married 47 years come September.

Fast forward to today, where we now we travel to and from our summer home mid-coast Maine several times a year, passing Red’s in Wisscassett each time. My wife longed for one of their “famous” lobster rolls ever since we bought the summer place in 2014, but the equally famous lines snaking down the street kept us from stopping and giving it a try. Finally, last Spring, on our way up to our place the day after Memorial Day, it was so chilly and rainy that there was no line! My wife finally got her Red’s lobster roll.

Didn’t like it at all. “A massive amount of cold lobster, with a little hot butter, just gross”, she said. Her favorite was always Cappy’s in Camden, but they went out of business and is now a Seadog Brewery, where she says the rolls are OK. Likewise the Seadog in Topsham if you want a decent lobster roll and OK beer. For me? Pat’s pizza in Orono! But that’s another story.

 

[Jaker]

Spicy tuna roll is the only way to go

 

[Mazhude]

Weathered Seaside Charm At Clinton's Lobster Landing

"A native of Italy, Enea Bacci is Lobster Landing's most recognizable figure. His bespectacled face is framed by a wild, silvery beard, and he's often sporting a red cap or bandanna in photos on the restaurant's Facebook page, as he confidently wields oversized live crustaceans..."

And a nice video of them making a lobster roll, for the multimedia fans among us.

 

[8893]

Weathered Seaside Charm At Clinton's Lobster Landing

"A native of Italy, Enea Bacci is Lobster Landing's most recognizable figure. His bespectacled face is framed by a wild, silvery beard, and he's often sporting a red cap or bandanna in photos on the restaurant's Facebook page, as he confidently wields oversized live crustaceans..."

And a nice video of them making a lobster roll, for the multimedia fans among us.

FYI, I was informed via PM that Bacci's legend is a lie. Poster who says he has docked at the commercial dock next door for several years says that Bacci owns no lobster pots, that his lobsters are all delivered by truck and that he does not supply any local restaurants.

This article suggests that the bulk of his supply comes from local boats, with 3-pounders delivered from Maine.

I have no idea what the truth is, but I had heard what I posted about those things from several different sources over the years, and I thought others here had heard the same. I'm thinking about asking Bacci directly the next time I am there, because now I am very curious.

Whatever the circumstances, still a terrific lobster roll; nice to see the knuckle meat shout out.

 

[TRest]

FYI, I was informed via PM that Bacci's legend is a lie. Poster who says he has docked at the commercial dock next door for several years says that Bacci owns no lobster pots, that his lobsters are all delivered by truck and that he does not supply any local restaurants.

This article suggests that the bulk of his supply comes from local boats, with 3-pounders delivered from Maine.

I have no idea what the truth is, but I had heard what I posted about those things from several different sources over the years, and I thought others here had heard the same. I'm thinking about asking Bacci directly the next time I am there, because now I am very curious.

Whatever the circumstances, still a terrific lobster roll; nice to see the knuckle meat shout out.

FWIW, I deposed a Westbrook local this year who gave up his own lobster boat over 5 years ago because the Sound's population crashed. Rise in water temperature has them retreating out of the Sound I think.

 

[August_West]

FWIW, I deposed a Westbrook local this year who gave up his own lobster boat over 5 years ago because the Sound's population crashed. Rise in water temperature has them retreating out of the Sound I think.

Its very cyclical.

My Father (a Westbrook resident for 30 plus years) has had a personal Lobster License (10 traps or less) since the late 80's.

In that time Ive seen it crash, raise, crash, raise etc...... more times than I can count. Years where nobody would eat lobster because there was so much of it. Could barely give it away. To years where He might pull one or two keepers for the WHOLE YEAR.

In the late 80's early 90's striped bass were all but extinct in the sound. Now like 3 out of 5 of the biggest Striped bass in the history of the world (including the current world record) have been caught off Westbrook in LI Sound within the last decade.

Nothing is forever. Either way.

 

[TRest]

Its very cyclical.

My Father (a Westbrook resident for 30 plus years) has had a personal Lobster License (10 traps or less) since the late 80's.

In that time Ive seen it crash, raise, crash, raise etc. more times than I can count. Years where nobody would eat lobster because there was so much of it. Could barely give it away. To years where He might pull one or two keepers for the WHOLE YEAR.

In the late 80's early 90's striped bass were all but extinct in the sound. Now like 3 out of 5 of the biggest Striped bass in the history of the world (including the current world record) have been caught off Westbrook in LI Sound within the last decade.

Nothing is forever. Either way.

Sounds like a global warming denier argument.

 

[August_West]

Sounds like a global warming denier argument.

It does.

But both truths can exist at the same time.

 

[8893]

With prices as low as $4.99 per lb at Stop & Shop last weekend, I don't think supply is an issue this summer.

 

[August_West]

With prices as low as $4.99 per lb at Stop & Shop last weekend, I don't think supply is an issue this summer.

Nope and last year the forecasts were for an incredible shortage.

 

[Captbluefin]

FYI, I was informed via PM that Bacci's legend is a lie. Poster who says he has docked at the commercial dock next door for several years says that Bacci owns no lobster pots, that his lobsters are all delivered by truck and that he does not supply any local restaurants.

This article suggests that the bulk of his supply comes from local boats, with 3-pounders delivered from Maine.

I have no idea what the truth is, but I had heard what I posted about those things from several different sources over the years, and I thought others here had heard the same. I'm thinking about asking Bacci directly the next time I am there, because now I am very curious.

Whatever the circumstances, still a terrific lobster roll; nice to see the knuckle meat shout out.

There are NO Commercial lobster boats in Clinton. Their is one dragger one oystermen and a few periwinkle ( snail ) fishermen. The closest commercial lobster boat is in Guilford owned by the Guilford lobster Pound. The Shop Rite lobsters mentioned in this thread come from Maine where there is no shortage of lobsters..

The Lobster fishery crashed over 8 years ago in the central Sound. It has not recovered. The lobsters started getting “shell rot” and died off. These are facts. Many men lost their jobs, boats, and tons of money. Families who were lobstering for generations quit and went off to other forms of commercial fishing or quit all together.

Mismanagement of many different species of shellfish/fish has led to many many people leaving the industry there is hardly any guys left commercial fishing anymore between the crazy expenses of the licensing and outrageous rules and regulations its impossible to make a dime.

This comes from someone who has suffered through all of this mismanagement and had lived it..

The lobsters rolls are very good enjoy them. But do not disrespect the men and women who lost everything when the lobster fishery went to hell by saying they are locally caught.

 

[8893]

There are NO Commercial lobster boats in Clinton. Their is one dragger one oystermen and a few periwinkle ( snail ) fishermen. The closest commercial lobster boat is in Guilford owned by the Guilford lobster Pound. The Shop Rite lobsters mentioned in this thread come from Maine where there is no shortage of lobsters..

The Lobster fishery crashed over 8 years ago in the central Sound. It has not recovered. The lobsters started getting “shell rot” and died off. These are facts. Many men lost their jobs, boats, and tons of money. Families who were lobstering for generations quit and went off to other forms of commercial fishing or quit all together.

Mismanagement of many different species of shellfish/fish has led to many many people leaving the industry there is hardly any guys left commercial fishing anymore between the crazy expenses of the licensing and outrageous rules and regulations its impossible to make a dime.

This comes from someone who has suffered through all of this mismanagement and had lived it..

The lobsters rolls are very good enjoy them. But do not disrespect the men and women who lost everything when the lobster fishery went to hell by saying they are locally caught.

No disrespect intended. The article above from the June 2016 Courant says he gets most of his supply from seven local boats:

Today, Lobster Landing gets its crustaceans from seven local boats, and larger-sized creatures weighing in at more than 3 pounds come from Maine and Canada.

 

[Fishy]

If he collects from seven truly local boats, he's likely getting lobsters from about half of the remaining Connecticut lobster fleet.

I doubt there's more than 30 boats in the Sound these days.

 

[Excalibur]

Even those local boats probably aren't fishing the Sound much. They're likely given an allotment for federal waters offshore.