A Tale of Two Rolls

Over Labor Day weekend I had a chance to enjoy two different lobster rolls with onion rings.

On our way up up to St. Andrews, New Brunswick for the long weekend we stopped at the Eagle’s Nest in Brewer, Maine after Alison Yelped for a good restaurant in the Bangor where we could have lunch with her sister, Leslie, and brother-in-law Rick, both of whom enjoy good food. Alison found rave reviews and an above average rating for the Eagle’s Nest which happened to be on Route 9 East heading toward Calais, Maine and the border.

The Eagle’s Nest is a roadhouse hard between the highway and the Penobscot River — you park in the shoulder just in front of the restaurant then walk to the front door on the road. The interior was small and standard Maine decor: formica and hand-made signs. The view of the river out back was very scenic. A note in your menu asks you to excuse any delay in ordering and receiving food as there is just one waiter and just one cook. Three of us ordered the famous lobster roll with onion rings instead of fries. Rick had the fried haddock plate. All of our food came right out (despite the warning), and we were able to marvel at the sight:

As you can see there is a *ridiculous* amount of lobster meat — all knuckles and claws — with *very little* mayo binding the mostly whole chunks together. You cannot see the nicely toasted hot dog roll that pretends to contain the filling. Picking this up to eat it by hand is not an option; this is the first time I have eaten a lobster roll with a knife and fork. The onion rings were on the cool side of warm, but the breading was thin and crispy (the way I like it) rather than fat and bready. It cost $16 but was worth every penny, even in an unusual year where I can get lobster from a local dealer for $3.50 a pound.

THE NEXT DAY found us with the rest of the gang in Saint Andrews planning a picnic to Creighton Point. Among the lunch options mentioned was a lobster roll from Ossie’s Lunch, another highway eatery, who boasts that they serve “The Best Seafood In North America” and I jumped to that.

The Ossie’s roll was more traditional, and conveniently served (for picnic eating) in a cardboard tray. As you can see at the top of the post there is much more mayo (plus other fillers) binding less meat (which included chunks of tail), and the hot dog roll was not toasted. It tasted good (hard to go wrong with fresh lobster meat and mayo), but this roll was all about the picnic spot and the company, and less about the presentation. Unfortunately for Ossie, his boast definitely does not extend more than 90 miles down The Airline to a little place hard between the Penobscot River and Route 9.