The...Lobster...Roll

We've always been fans of seafood. Our typical seafood night hits on the basics; shrimp, oysters, crab, etc. Our favorite oyster bar for a long time has been Shaw's Crab House in Chicago but recently we have grown very fond of GT Fish & Oyster on Grand, just a few minutes from our house.


On a recent visit to GT Fish & Oyster among many good dishes, one stood out as THE BEST....The Lobster Roll. We have always thought of lobster as the pinnacle of the seafood genre...the most decadent...the most upscale...the most delicious. And we have had it MANY different ways. In fact during our honeymoon, one of our most memorable moments was a whole lobster feast where we picked our lobster from the lagoon at Humuhumunukunukuapua’a (see picture above). But we'd never dared challenge a lobster dinner...until now.

The lobster roll at GT was unique...a meaty lobster salad in a perfectly toasted bun paired with a pile of fried onions. The dish was simple but featured the lobster flavor well and the fried onions were an added treat. We liked it so much that we decided we had to try and make it for ourselves.


Homemade recipe from Food Network Magazine
Note: Our local grocery store (Whole Foods) did not have whole live lobsters or top-split hot dog buns so we went with fresh lobster tails ($18.99 per tail) and made our own top-side buns by slicing the sides off some great etxra-wide hot dog buns. This recipe from Food Network Magazine is simple and easy to make. 


Both of these sandwiches would be a delight for any true lobster fan. And we have already talked about when we can next enjoy these treats. But in the end we enjoyed our homemade version a little better because it was just tail meat, it had larger chunks of meat, and it had just the leaves of celery and celery salt versus thin slices of celery stalk. All in all it was a great testament to lobster flavor but probably a low profit margin for a restaurant.  A butter toasted bun is also an essential component ("It's like having a side of melted butter without all the mess and necessary wet naps for your fingers" - Matt). Next time we have to make the fried onions as they were a great addition at GT.