A Lobster Fix at the Beach Plum…

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Our family are HUGE LOBSTER ROLL fans. HUGE. And I have driven up to three hours to get my fix whenever we are in New England and have enough time to search for yet another LOBSTER SHACK or restaurant, usually along the rugged coast of Maine. Our best experience so far had been at the Lobster Shack at Cape Elizabeth, Maine, on that horrible September we dropped off the Teen for the first time at boarding school. We hung around New England for another 3 days in case she decided to bail out. :)

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On another visit to the Teen, we ate lobster rolls at Chauncey Creek, on the New Hampshire coast instead. We also hit seafood festivals on the coast, and ate at various inland places also offering good lobster rolls. When we were last in New Hampshire, for the Teen’s graduation, she disappeared to spend her last few days with friends after school had ended, and we were left to our own devises. Of course that inevitably meant yet another quest for a good lobster roll. Local friends suggested we seek out the original Beach Plum location on the coast in New Hampshire, roughly an hour or so drive away. With trusty GPS on board, we followed first highways, then smaller back roads to this legendary lobster “shack”. Trust me, any “shack” that can command say $35 for a huge lobster roll better be legendary… :)

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No, the hummer was not our rental vehicle. :) We parked, got out of the car, and despite the extensive menu, had been advised beforehand that the must-haves were definitely the lobster roll and the lobster bisque. We didn’t opt for the foot long lobster roll at $35 or so, so we had the smaller on for about $17 or so. A bowl of lobster bisque was also ordered along with a bottle of water and a soda. I think our bill came close to $40.

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A few minutes later our ordered was called and I claimed a large bowl of bisque and a lobster roll overflowing with lobster. The roll was slathered with a bit of butter and toasted and the amount of filling was a bit overwhelming. I could have brought another 2 hotdog buns and spread out the lobster to feed a couple more folks. It was very, very good. Unlike some lobster rolls where the mayonnaise is just used as a topping, here it was all mixed in. But you can see from the photos that the lobster meat is the star, with the mayo just taking the supporting role.

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The bisque, which appeared a bit nuclear orange at first, was to DIE FOR. Humongous chunks of lobster, a hot creamy and flavorful broth. It was perfect while sitting out on picnic tables with a slightly cool breeze coming off the ocean.

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And let’s not forget one snapshot of the goofy garden statues… :) The simple verdict? Totally worth the drive, totally worth the money.

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23 Responses

  1. hello mm! i’m not really a huge fan of lobster (along with crabs and shrimps) but i need to say, your photos are really good.

    please say hello to “the teen.” i recall reading about her birthday celebrations when she used to be tagged as “the kid….” wow, ang bilis lang.

  2. Had my fair share of “the best” lobster roll and clam chowder hunting when I was in New England and this post definitely brought back lots of memories. Those are quite pricey I must say and that, aside from your approval has piqued my interest. Will have to wait a little but this definitely gained a place on my next food adventure list

  3. First pic is the gastric juice inducer.

    The Maritime region of Canada, if you look at it in a map is actually the Northern continuation of the New England coast you visited. It is equally famous for lobster. Not being completely assimilated into the mainstream yet (not in any way crippling in our experience), our Filipino/Asian foraging savvy still holds sway, we look askance at eating precious ulam without rice. Seems prodigal. We therefore travel there with a rice cooker and ingredients for a fiery sauce mignonette, shallots, vinegar and red hot chili and/or ginger, garlic, spring onions and soy sauce for lobster Cantonese, lookie here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9pbpLuz4Tc

  4. Indulged on this last weekend in Cape Cod… We had lobster roll on a roadside shack/dive which was featured in the Food Channel.. I had chowder 2x a day.. Got Lobster HEADS for 99 cents a pound!! Thanks for the reminders, MM

    Lobster Cantonese..a synonym for YUM!

  5. @Footloose – LOL! You hit it right on the head. I remember travelling with the family of one of my friends to Las Vegas and they brought their rice cooker so that they can have rice and to cook some soup in after a night of gambling. And this is after several admonitions (not taken) that buffets are cheap in Vegas.

  6. Have never tried a lobster roll, most probably because I find it expensive :) But maybe I’ll get into it slowly, maybe making a shrimp roll first :)

  7. Clarissa, shrimp salad sandwiches, here. :) Footloose, I would have a hilarious rice cooker story for you, if only it wouldn’t offend close relatives… Carla, it’s really orange, I agree, but I think it’s natural, from the pigments in the shells… jheng, while Teen is technically a teen, she’s really practically an adult. Yup, the blog’s been around for 9 years practically… :)

  8. LOVE lobster rolls. There’s a strip mall restaurant here in the SF Peninsula called “Lobster Shack”. They have their Maine lobsters flown in regularly. I am a huge fan. I like my lobster rolls “naked”, meaning only lobster meat and drawn butter… I think Lobster Shack here charges $37 for two rolls. The bisque is also very good. One of these days I’m gonna go to New England for a lobster pilgrimage. lol.

  9. @Khew re too much choice. At the best of times, truly trying to stand behind an indecisive clod slowly vacillating between the 31 flavors of Baskin Robins just to end up asking for vanilla. In this heat, it can drive you homicidal.

  10. Mm, would you know where else in maila lobster roll is offered outside lusso? I haven’t spotted it anywhere else but there.

  11. One more to add to my bucket list!! (of course, the places in my bucket list are really flights of fancy from the armchair) but, thank you, always, MM, for sharing your journey with us.

  12. Suddenly paying 18.00 for a lobster roll at the local food truck doesn’t sound so bad.

  13. If I had this lobster roll, I would buy a few more loaves of bread and make extra sandwiches to “stretch” the experience. I recall buying a McDonald’s Sausage McMuffin with cheese and buying extra pandesal to make two or three more.

  14. ooooh… memories of our trip to Maine just a few years ago. Had the best lobster eats we’ve had. I think made my hubby a convert as he didn’t think it would taste that good and different from what we get south of the New England states…. We’re planning to go back again some time to get some lobster fixin’s

  15. This post brings back some pretty old memories. I spent 4 years in Rhode Island but never had a single lobster roll, nor did I visit any of the mansions. :( I was just too young at the time to really appreciate where I was. Instead, I remember being more in awe of those two-for-one pizza deals at Little Caesar’s than I was of New England seafood. lol

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