First, foremost, the music was excellent, perfectly miked & mixed & projected to the crowd on a beautiful evening, and my first let-it-all-go relaxation of the day. Prior to that it was packing up 3 generations and leaving Eliot, ME; numerous phone calls & txts as the point person for my wing of the family in communicating news, updating status, and gathering pallbearers for my dearest aunt who completed her earthly run at 91 with a fatal fall & 3 physician grandkids making the end-of-life decisions with my MD cousin on an Alaskan cruise; and being the sole driver with only a quick Lowell National Historical Park recon & a Mass Pike pit stop before Lobster Landing.
Lady Hans is a lobster roll skeptic (this trip further solidified her non-obnoxious stance), and I enter each attempt a little on edge from both hype and concern for her opinion. I'd wisely opted for whole belly clams in Portsmouth after reading this thread. The roll was quite good (not "transplendant"), but LH would have been better served by a tasting bite and a hot dog. The sausage & peppers was good but surprisingly bland (a well-chosen condiment might have helped the vegetables, but what?). The cole slaw was labeled as "NEW" and a tasty $1.25 addition. Might have helped the S&P, but it was Lady's choice, so I was working with only a taste.
Jazz has been famously labeled "The Sound of Surprise," and after several days of unexpected joys that come with new surroundings and 4 children, it would have been a surprise if LL could have met the 'greatest lobster roll' bar.
For context, I've had quite a few trips to Pepe's that have left me far short of a 'caught dragon' from nearly 40 years that had a crunch & chew ratio that left my jaw muscles happily sore for a few days afterward. During those visits, some of my first-time visiting table mates have pronounced it as "best pizza ever."
I'm too much a Buddhist sympathizer to disagree that expectations are the root of all disappointments. Maybe this gives greater insight into how the 15 miles to Bufalina comes with some 'issues,' and how Willington Pizza netted out to a thumbs experience.
Many years ago, in researching a college paper in my favorite mood-altering substance, I was introduced to the concept of "set and setting." It's a durable context for meeting much of the world's subjective pleasures.
