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| Hitching Post proprietor Jerry Duhamel Sr. adds the personal touch by chatting up the clientele. |
Today's reopening of the Hitching Post seemed like an opportune time to update my ratings of the lobster rolls of Charlestown. It's a tough job, but someone's got to do it!
I first discovered the Hitching Post (read review here) through The Dog Lover's Companion to New England, believe it or not, which listed it for its dog-friendly outdoor seating area. But the lobster rolls are the real reason to go there.
Their lobster rolls are quite impressive. Piled so high with great big chunks of lobster meat—including an entire claw—that it's hard to get your mouth around the whole thing and it really needs to be eaten with a fork (see photo). And best of all, no celery or fillers of any kind! You can buy it either by itself for $13.25 or as a dinner with French fries and cole slaw for $15.90. Open seasonally. An A++, especially if you eat it outdoors in their lovely and well-manicured garden area.
Hungry Haven's (read review here) lobster rolls are light on mayo and seasoning, so the taste of the lobster really comes through. They're served on a toasted bun with no lettuce or celery. They come with fries and cole slaw and a price that's not hard on your wallet: $12.95. A solid A.
A new entrant in the Charlestown lobster roll sweepstakes for the 2011 summer season was The Seafood Shack at K&S Pizza (read review here). Their lobster roll is served by itself without adornment. The meat, which is fresh from The Local Catch, sits in a bed of lettuce placed on the bun. It's not as generous an amount of lobster as either The Cove or The Hitching Post, but for the bargain price of $11.99 you really can't complain. And it goes down especially nicely in their outdoor seating area with picnic tables and umbrellas. The 2012 opening date for the Seafood Shack has not been announced yet, but last year it opened on July 1. I have to give it an A- (counting bonus points for using locally sourced ingredients), mainly because I've been spoiled by the Hitching Post.
I was never able to review the lobster rolls at Johnny Angel's Clam Shack (read review here) because every time I visited they were sold out. Guess people like them. I'm looking forward to being able to enjoy them at the beach this summer now that Johnny Angel's will be running the beach concessions.
Believe it or not, you can get respectable lobster rolls in the seafood department at Stop & Shop. A bit too much mayo for my taste (though thankfully, no celery), and much smaller chunks of meat than the restaurant ones, but unbeatable at the price of $5.99 for a single one and $17.49 for a package of three (9 oz. total). I jazz them up with a little Old Bay seasoning, which after 16 years in Maryland is a must on seafood. A solid C.
Any others I've missed? Add your ratings in the comments.