Luke's Lobster

I am from Boston (you might know this already if you have been reading my blog for a while).  I am really picky about my lobster.  For the most part, I will only eat it when I am in Massachusetts or in Maine because once you have tasted how sweet and delicious it is coming out of the extremely cold Northeast Atlantic Ocean, you will almost always be disappointed in everything else.  However now there is Luke's Lobster and I daresay I may just be eating a lot of lobster rolls in Manhattan this summer.

Luke Holden, founder of Luke's Lobster, grew up in a small town on the coast of Maine.  He grew up lobstering and open his own lobster company while still in high school.  Pretty impressive!  He then moved to New York to work in finance.  He found himself very unimpressed with the "lobster rolls" he was seeing here in Manhattan.  They were slathered in mayo, filled with celery and incredibly over-priced.  New Englanders do know lobster!  So he called his dad (who owns a seafood processing company in Maine) and together they contacted the lobster men in Maine that they have had longstanding relationships with and now they us the lobster right off the boat from Maine.  It doesn't get much better than that.

I'll admitt, I walked into Luke's with an air of skepicism.  I wasn't ready to buy into the hype and I thought, these people think it's good because they haven't ever had the good stuff.  I walked out feeling as though I just discovered buried treasure.

Lobster Roll minus my first bite - I was so excited I forgot to take the picture first!

The lobster is sweet, fresh and delicious.  There is a dab of mayo and some lemon butter with some secret spices.  This is all served atop a warm buttered bun.  I felt like I had left manhattan and was back in New England.  The inside is so cute.  It looks like a little beach shack on the inside with all the unpretentiousness you find on Cape Cod.

Whether you think you've had good lobster or you know you have, I feel certain that you will love Luke's Lobster.  It is mouthwater good.  And for $15 you will get a huge amount of lobster that you will be hardpressed to find almost anywhere.  I think I am going to have to go back for some New England Clam chowder.  I feel certain it is a test my spoon will stand up to.

Upper West Side:  426 Amsterdam Ave. Between 80th and 81st - 212-877-8800
East Village:  93 E. 7th - 212-387-8487
Upper East Side:  242 E. 81st - 212-249-4241